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Excessive Heat/Energy Grid Stress Advisory:
EMERGENCY PROCLAMATION: August 31, 2022
California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued an emergency proclamation to free up additional energy capacity amid the west coast heat wave this Labor Day weekend.
Recently, the State of California has been experiencing extreme heat events with higher-than average temperatures. These events can increase demand and put significant strain on California's energy grid. As a result, the Office of the Governor and the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) have taken actions to increase energy capacity during these Extreme Heat Events.
On Wednesday, August 31, 2022, the Governor issued a Proclamation of a State of Emergency concerning electricity reliability (Emergency Proclamation). The Proclamation suspends certain permitting requirements and allows facilities to produce more electricity during peak demand hours, from 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on August 31, 2022 through September 7, 2022.
The Proclamation suspends state and local air quality and permitting requirements that restrict the amount of power a facility may generate, that restrict the amount of fuel a facility may use, or that impose air quality requirements preventing power plants and operators of back-up generators from generating additional power during peak demand hours. This may include any permit condition, regulation, or law that prohibits, restricts, or penalizes the use of stationary or portable generators during Extreme Heat Events.
In part, the Proclamation allows the use of backup generators and similar backup power sources to increase energy production and meet the demands on California’s electrical grid during peak times of this state of emergency.
If doing so, the usage must be logged as emergency hours and submit a report to Amador Air District, California Air Resources Board (CARB), and the California Energy Commission (CEC) within 30-days of this proclamation including additional fuel use, additional hours of operation, and energy produced by that additional use and operation.