Item 26 - Adoption of the City of Santa Ana Emergency Operations Plan

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City of Santa Ana Emergency Operations Plan Part I Basic Plan 2.4.4 Power Failure Electric Power Supply The City of Santa Ana receives its electrical power supply entirely from Southern California Edison (SCE). SCE is one of the nation's largest electrical utilities, supplying 15 million people over a 50,000 square mile service area, covering 180 cities throughout 15 of California's southern, central and coastal counties. SCE covers almost all of Orange County, except for the southern end of the county (roughly south of Alicia Parkway) which is covered by San Diego Gas & Electric, and the City of Anaheim, which operates its own city power utility. The Power Content Label is a document produced by the California Energy Commission (hqp://www.energy.ca.gov/pgl/) which lists the sources of each electrical provider's power supply. The 2020 Power Content Label for SCE indicates that SCE acquires its supply of electricity from three major sources and two minor sources: • 42% purchases or transfers from other power utilities throughout the western United States • 30.9% renewable generation (15.1% solar, 9.4% wind, 5.5% geothermal, 0.1% biomass, 0.8% other hydro) • 15.2% natural gas generation • 8.4% nuclear power generation • 3.3% large hydroelectric power generation Electricity cannot be stored effectively in large quantities, therefore it must be generated, distributed and used in real time; supply must always be produced to meet the current demand. California electric utilities are part of an interconnected electrical grid throughout the western United States and participate in the Western Systems Coordinating Council, which coordinates the activities and establishes the reserve requirements for power supply for the entire western United States. The California Independent System Operator (CA ISO) is a quasi -governmental agency established by the State Legislature to ensure demand for power is met and to provide for adequate reserves in California. CA ISO acts as a monitor for the electrical grid in the state, to observe for power supply shortfalls, to coordinate the sharing of available power supply among utilities and to provide warning when the power supply may fail. Types and Causes of Power Outages Some power outages may be planned events or very minor in scope and would not be considered emergencies, although they may represent a significant inconvenience to the community. These include Maintenance Outages, which occur quite often as SCE performs system maintenance or upgrades their electrical infrastructure. Maintenance outages are limited to a small neighborhood or a few customers at a time, are short in duration (usually several minutes to several hours) and are scheduled ahead of time and affected customers are notified beforehand. Repair Outages also occur frequently as a result of minor accidents such as damage from vehicle crashes, wind or storm damage to infrastructure, debris contacting power lines, or equipment failures such as transformer fires. Repair outages are also usually limited to a small neighborhood or a few customers at a time and usually short in duration (several minutes to several hours), but are not scheduled ahead of time and customers do not receive notification until after the power is out. Other outages may constitute a public safety emergency or a significant disruption and loss to the community. These may be caused by extreme heat; damage or fear of damage to power generating or distribution equipment caused by wind, storms, lightening or wildfires; or intentional damage, sabotage or cyber-hacking of the electrical grid. These include Electrical Demand Emergencies, Public Safety Power Shutoffs, Electrical Transmission Emergencies, and Large Scale, Widespread Power Outages. Electrical Demand Emergencies (and Rotating Outages) occur when a shortfall in the electrical operating reserve (the available power supply) is forecast or expected to occur. This means electric consumers may be consuming more power than the electrical grid can supply. This most commonly occurs during periods of extreme heat, when homes, businesses and other facilities are operating air conditioning, fans and refrigeration units at maximum capacity, placing extreme demand on the power supply. Failure or maintenance operations on electrical 64