If you wanted to create a recipe for disaster, the beginning of the 2021 wildfire season would be a good place to start. Nearly 90% of the western U.S. is suffering through extreme drought. The snowpack set new low levels there as well. A record-breaking heatwave steamrolled the Pacific Northwest with extreme temperatures hitting 116 °F in Portland. Mix all of this together, and you get a tinderbox ready to explode.
The last decade has...
How Ontario regulation can improve electrical safety BY BILL KHASHFE, London Hydro According to an Ontario Electrical Safety Report, 35 percent of the province’s electrical-related fatalities in the past 10 years were attributed to power-line contact. Equipment specifications and electric utility...
A variety of factors influence the safety of those who work on utility lines. Many of the items are standard and likely on everyone’s line worker safety checklist. But there’s one that may not be top-of-mind when considering how to keep linemen and linewomen safe — the influence...
How to reduce dangers while providing preventive maintenance data BY FINLEY LEDBETTER, Group CBS, Inc. While most discussions about avoiding electrical hazards focus on personal protective equipment (PPE), utility workers have a number of ways to protect themselves and their gear, including...
Protecting utility workers with documented reporting BY MIKE DOHERTY, PowerTel Utilities Contractors Limited Within the lineman trade, accountabilities for the documentation of various inspections, job safety analyses (JSAs), audits, safe work practices (SPGs), qualifications, safety meetings,...
Battery fires in large-scale energy storage systems (BESS) have raised concerns, but a recent review by the American Clean Power Association (ACP) found that such incidents pose only minor environmental risks. According to a third-party analysis of U.S. battery fires since 2012, these fires did not...
A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...
Lineworkers face numerous risks daily, from respiratory ailments to electrical hazards. These dangers can result in severe injuries, low blood pressure, bleeding, and vomiting. However, by adhering to established safety protocols, contractors and employers can significantly reduce the likelihood of...
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has rejected a proposal from PJM Interconnection, one of the United States' largest regional transmission organizations, to alter its transmission planning protocol. The decision represents a significant victory for state regulators who had expressed...
Batteries have greatly influenced the utility industry, and the evolution of battery chemistries has revolutionized their applications. With the emergence of new technologies and advancements in existing ones, standards committees and safety code writers are working to develop best practices and...
At Valard, our people are the core and health of our business. Without our people, we have nothing. In fact, one of our slogans is “People. First.” However, being a people company means some of our biggest challenges are created by people. Our challenges are unique, as is each person...
