AltaLink is working to protect Alberta communities, while delivering the safe and reliable power required for the communities, during the wildfire season.
Over the last two years, Alberta has seen more than 2.9 million hectares burned and 2,200 wildfires reported. AltaLink is focused on reducing wildfire risk in the areas where it operates with a series of safety measures and enhancements to its system.
“With wildfires becoming more frequent and intense throughout Alberta, reducing the likelihood that our transmission system contributes to the ignition of a fire is a critical part of our job in delivering power safely to Albertans,” said Evan Mitchell, AltaLink’s vice president of system operations and asset investment planning. “We’ve seen the devastation that wildfires can cause to communities both in Alberta and across North America and we are taking action to help prevent it from happening.”
AltaLink has implemented a series of safety measures and system enhancements to increase situational awareness and mitigate the risk of the transmission system contributing to the ignition of a wildfire. This includes enhanced vegetation clearing practices to maintain safe clearance distances to reduce potential contact with power lines resulting in a fire, increased inspections of equipment in high-risk fire areas, asset replacements or upgrades to strengthen the system and real-time analysis of weather conditions using daily hazard forecasts, advanced weather stations and cameras.
AltaLink is also focused on expanding its emergency preparedness through ongoing engagement with industry partners, government agencies, emergency services and community leaders to ensure effective coordination and communication in the event of an emergency.
AltaLink also expects to implement a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) during extreme weather conditions resulting in a catastrophic fire. This involves temporarily shutting off power to impacted transmission lines until conditions are safe to turn it back on.
AltaLink will provide advance notice before a PSPS occurs and is committed to providing timely communication and updates to affected communities in case of an action to be implemented. Once conditions improve, crews inspect affected transmission lines for damage and debris to ensure any risk is eliminated before safely restoring power.
AltaLink also works closely with electricity distribution providers, like FortisAlberta, to communicate with customers during events like power outages.
