
Electric Outage: 1-844-484-2300
Water Emergency: 541-685-7595
EWEB Main: 541-685-7000
The Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) is expanding its capacity to provide water to customers in case of an emergency.
Find Out MoreThe EWEB Board of Commissioners meet on the first Tuesday of the month.
Find Out MoreEWEB General Manager Frank Lawson delivered his annual State of the Utility Address at the March 7 public Board of Commissioners meeting.
Find Out MoreWith cold and icy weather forecasted for the next several days, we want to share some tips on how to heat your home while still conserving energy. We also have tips on how to stay warm if there is a power outage at your home.
Find Out MoreCollaborating with the City of Eugene, a Climate Guidebook, and priorities for upriver EWEB customers were the main topics at the Feb. 7 Board of Commissioners meeting. The five-member Board serves without pay and is elected by EWEB customers. Their job is to establish policies and values and set EWEB’s long-term direction. Board meetings are open to the public and include opportunities for public comment.
Find Out MoreIn January, our elected Board of Commissioners approved an agreement for EWEB to make an unprecedented bulk purchase of substation transformers.
Find Out MoreThe Eugene City Council approved the purchase of EWEB's former riverfront headquarters property at a meeting on Jan. 30. The terms of the deal state that the City of Eugene will purchase the 4.4-acre property, which includes two buildings and parking lots, for $12 million.
Find Out MoreAn EWEB-supported program provides firewood for people affected by the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire. The McKenzie Firewood program was developed by Pure Water Partners (PWP) in 2021.
Find Out MoreAfter evaluating several proposals and opportunities, EWEB is focusing its negotiations to sell the former riverfront headquarters property to the City of Eugene. The exact terms and details of the deal will be negotiated during the next few weeks.
Find Out MoreDespite an ice storm and a few windstorms in Eugene and the McKenzie Valley in the past few weeks, EWEB has so far fended off widespread weather-caused power outages – largely because of investments in year-round system maintenance and infrastructure improvements.
Find Out MoreThe EWEB Board of Commissioners started off their first meeting of 2023 by choosing a new board president and vice president.
Find Out MoreCommissioners unanimously voted to approve a Record of Decision endorsing the General Manager's Recommendation to decommission the Leaburg Hydroelectric Project and approved Resolution 2302 directing the GM to develop a Leaburg Hydroelectric Project Decommissioning Action Plan
Find Out MoreIn response to a call for aid this week, EWEB’s water division jumped into action to assist the town of Mapleton after a leak in their water system left about 260 homes without running water.
Find Out MoreFor their final meeting of 2022, on Dec. 6, the EWEB Board of Commissioners grappled with some major decisions and looked ahead to a new year.
Find Out MoreCommissioners supportive of General Manager's recommendation to remove Leaburg Dam
Find Out MoreJuly 08, 2022
EWEB’s Board of Commissioners approved the utility’s first Wildfire Mitigation Plan during the July 5 Board meeting. The plan is designed to protect public safety, reduce risk to utility customers and promote electrical system resilience to wildfire damage.
We already have numerous, well-established programs in place for grid reliability and safety that support wildfire risk mitigation. Our new Wildfire Mitigation Plan meets the legislative requirements for Oregon electric utilities to develop risk-based wildfire mitigation plans and adopts more rigorous standards and industry best practices. These include annual vegetation management and equipment inspections in areas of higher wildfire risk. EWEB has also established procedures that make the electric system more sensitive during fire weather events so that it quickly trips off-line to reduce risk of sparking.
“I really appreciate that we are going above and beyond what is required of us. We often tend to be a leader in proactive planning and it’s exciting to see us continue with that momentum here,” said Mindy Schlossberg, EWEB commissioner at-large.
In recent years the convergence of complex issues is making wildland fire activity more dangerous and destructive than in the past. These factors include increased vegetative fuel loads from decades of fire suppression activities, more development in the wildland/urban fringe and the rising frequency of erratic climate patterns such as drought, extreme heat, and severe storms. While most wildfires ignite from either a natural cause such as lightning strikes or human actions, we recognize utilities have a role to play in the mitigation of wildfire risks.
EWEB’s 2022 budget allocates $1 million towards various wildfire risk mitigation activities. These actions fall within five main components for a comprehensive approach to wildfire prevention and response:
In our Wildfire Mitigation Plan, immediate operational response is enacted during Red Flag Warnings through our 24/7 Dispatch Center. A Red Flag Warning is issued by the National Weather Service when warm temperatures, very low humidity, and strong winds are expected to combine to raise fire risks. For example, a heightened risk of a lightning storm.
To decrease the risk that EWEB powerlines become a potential ignition point, we change the protective settings on our equipment during a Red Flag Warning. These protective measures include modifying high-voltage electric switches and relays. Just like a circuit breaker in your home, the switch can sense when trouble occurs, such as a tree branch falling on the line and shuts off the power. Turning up the sensitivity in protective settings mode to reduce the potential of sparking a fire may increase the chance of a power outage. We encourage our customers to be ready year-round, have an emergency plan (and supplies) in place, and ensure preparedness for a prolonged power or water disruption – whether caused by snow, ice, wind, or wildfire.
“A big part of this plan is communicating information about red flag events effectively with the community and letting customers know a red flag event does not necessarily mean we’re shutting off the power,” said John Barofsky, EWEB Commissioner (Wards 2 & 3).
The plan builds on EWEB’s strong foundation of increasing public safety through effective public outreach on resiliency and emergency preparedness, such as the Pledge to Prepare and water reliability initiatives. As part of this effort, we’ve outlined specific messaging and imagery for Red Flag Warnings to alert the public of heightened wildfire potential and the changes EWEB would implement on the electric system to reduce wildfire risk. Already, we have a dedicated webpage for Wildfire Safety and Prevention on our website and a Higher Wildfire Risk Area map to help customers determine if their residence is within an area where protective settings may be put in place.
Now we will continue to refine our wildfire risk resources for public awareness, education, and preparedness. A targeted outreach effort to prepare the medically fragile and other vulnerable communities for potential loss of power will be addressed in future iterations of the Wildfire Mitigation Plan. As an initial step, we encourage customers to update their contact information and alert EWEB of any life-sustaining medical equipment needs.
Our new Board-approved plan not only exceeds compliance requirements, but also aligns with several EWEB strategic priorities, policy objectives and core values. The safety of our workforce and community is our first core value and fundamentally drives how we deliver essential utility services to the public we serve. EWEB’s Wildfire Mitigation Plan strengthens our emergency response protocols and builds on our robust public engagement around emergency preparedness and safety.
EWEB is committed to adapting its strategies as risk assessment models and technologies mature, and in response to emerging best practices, and changing environmental conditions.
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Mailing Address: 4200 Roosevelt Blvd., Eugene, OR 97402
Phone: 541-685-7000
Toll free: 800-841-5871
Email: eweb.answers@eweb.org
Customer service phone hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday - Friday