On September 25, APPA will host a free virtual webinar showcasing lessons learned from five public power utilities that completed wildfire risk mitigation activities through a partnership with Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and Department of Energy’s (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO).
This project supports APPA’s goal of assisting utilities in building resilience against the increasing wildfire risk.
The initiative included two peer roundtables where utilities shared their wildfire mitigation programs, challenges, and successes.
Additional details about the Sept. 25 webinar are available on APPA's website.
Participants learned directly from each other, exchanging strategies and lessons learned. APPA and ANL also held one-on-one sessions to explore specific interests, including technical assistance using ANL’s ClimRR local projections tool.
ClimRR insights helped utilities better understand broader extreme weather trends affecting wildfire risk and operations, such as:
• Cooling Degree Days (CDD): Projected increases support load forecasting and rising demand
• Plant Hardiness Zone Shifts: Changing vegetation patterns may increase fire-prone species
• Longer Growing Seasons: More vegetation growth means more fuel and frequent management
• Fewer Freezing Days: Less snowpack and fewer natural fire breaks increase fire spread potential
Through an application process, APPA selected 11 utilities with existing expertise in wildfire risk mitigation. The five public power utilities participating in the first cohort were:
• Austin Energy, TX
• Salt River Project, AZ
• Snohomish PUD, WA
• Eugene Water & Electric Board, OR
• Placer County Water Agency, CA
The second cohort of APPA members participating in the project will participate from October 2025 through September 2026 and are:
• Loveland Water & Power Company, CO
• Truckee Donner PUD, CA
• Electrical District No. 3, AZ
• Seattle City Light, WA
• Western Area Power Administration, CO.
Also participating in the second cohort is Colorado-based CORE Electric Cooperative, a rural cooperative.
For questions about this project or to learn more about using ClimRR or APPA’s wildfire mitigation resources, members are encouraged to reach out to Aggie Serrame (ASerrame@publicpower.org).
