San Diego Gas and Electric says it will comply with a state ruling to put its emergency shut-off plan on hold for now.
The California Public Utilities Commission has voted 3-to-2 to prevent SDG&E from going ahead with its plan September 1. The power company can not implement the shut-off program until the PUC gives full consideration to the plan. SDG&E’s Stephanie Donovan says the utility will abide by the ruling. But she says the restraining order doesn’t mean regulators will kill the plan.
“I don’t think that anybody should try to use this as a way of trying to predict the future. I don’t think that the decision made today is any indication necessarily of how the vote might go on September 10,” she says.
Donovan believes the commissioners want a chance to weigh in on the plan before it’s implemented. The utility wants to turn off power to certain areas of the back country when weather conditions create a high fire risk.
