>> >>PEGGY: HERE WITH MORE ON HOW THE NEW FIRE EYE SYSTEM COULD OFFSET THE COST OF FIGHTING
WILD FIRES IN THE FUTURE AND AN UPDATE ON THE SDG&E 2007 WILD FIRE SETTLEMENT ARE MY
GUESTS SAN DIEGO COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS RON ROBERTS AND MIKE NIGGLIA, COO AND PRESIDENT
OF SDG&E.
MIKE, HOW IS SDG&E INVOLVED IN THIS NEW FIRE TECHNOLOGY?
>> >>MIKE NIGGLI: WE'RE ACTUALLY SUPPLEMENTING THE EYE IN THE SKY WITH 29 ADDITIONAL HIGH
RESOLUTION HIGH PERFORMANCE CAMERAS.
THEY'RE HOOKED AROUND THE SUN RISE POWER LINK AND HAVE FIVE MILE VISIBILITY.
WE TAKE ALL OF THAT DATA AND THEY HAVE INFRARED CAPABILITY TO DETECT FIRES.
WE FEED THAT BACK THROUGH A SYSTEM THAT GOES THROUGH UCSD'S SUPER COMPUTERS AND IS ALLOWED
TO BE UTILIZED BY ALL INCIDENT COMMANDERS.
>> >>PEGGY: THAT'S BEEN OFFICIAL TO SDG&E BECAUSE YOU CAN MONITOR THE SITUATION AS IT'S
HAPPENING AS IT STARTS?
>> >>MIKE NIGGLI: YOU GET A BIG JUMP START ON IT BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHERE IT'S AT, WE CAN
DISPATCH FIRE CREWS.
WE HAVE OUR BIG HELITANKER WITH US RIGHT NOW, SO WE CAN GET TO THE SPOT VERY QUICKLY AND
HELP PREVENT FIRES FROM SPREADING.
>> >>PEGGY: TIMING IS VERY IMPORTANT IN FIGHTING FIRES.
LET'S TALK ABOUT THE VIDEO SYSTEM, RON.
IT'S PART OF A MUCH BIGGER EMERGENCY RESPONSE SYSTEM.
>> >>RON ROBERTS: THE SITUATION IS CHANGE DRAMATICALLY.
WE LEARNED FROM 2007 AND I PERSONALLY LEARNED THAT WHAT WE NEEDED TO DO WHAT THE MILITARY
HAS BEEN DOING.
THE BAY THEY'VE CHANGED THE BATTLE FIELD IN EFFECT, BY HAVING INTEGRATED A VISUAL, AN
ARIEL VISUAL WITH THE TROOPS ON THE GROUND.
IN ESSENCE, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING.
IN ADDITION TO THE CAMERAS ON THE SUN RISE TOWERS, WE ALSO HAVE CAMERAS MOUNTED ON VARIOUS
MOUNTAIN TOPS, A WHOLE SLEW OF THOSE.
WE'RE BRINGING ALL OF THESE SYSTEMS TOGETHER THROUGH THE UCSD SUPER COMPUTER SO THAT THE
VISUALS INCLUDING INFRARED THAT CAN SEE THROUGH THE SMOKE KNOWING EXACTLY WHERE THE FIRE IS,
WHERE IT'S GOING, MICROWEATHER STATIONS THAT ARE DEPLOYED THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY, THE INCIDENT
COMMANDER, THE GUY ON THE GROUND HAVING TO SAY WHERE DO I WANT THESE ARIEL DROPS IS GOING
TO HAVE BETTER INFORMATION THAN EVER BEFORE.
>> >>PEGGY: YOU CAN SEE THEM NOW JUST BRIEFLY.
RON, HOW MUCH IS THIS COST UP FRONT AND HOW MUCH IS IT GOING TO COST TO MAINTAIN?
>> >>RON ROBERTS: FIRST OF ALLﾊ FIRST OF ALL, THERE'S A SYSTEM IN PLACE HERE.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT THE COUNTY HAS SPENT OVER $250ﾊMILLION SINCE 2003, IN CREATING NOT
JUST THESE BUT OTHER IMPROVEMENTS.
BUT THE THERE'S SO MANY PIECES HERE.
TODAY THE CAMERA ALONE WAS 100,000 DOLLARS.
TO CONNECT THE CAMERA AND INTEGRATE IT WAS ANOTHER HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.
THANKS TO SDG&E THE COUNTY KICKED IN 100,000 TO ACQUIRE THE CAMERA, AND SDG&E KICKED IN
MONEY TO MAKE THAT CAMERA OPERATIONAL.
>> >>PEGGY: WE'LL COME BACK TO THE COSTS OF FIGHTING FIRES.
I HAVE TO GET TO THE SDG&E SETTLEMENT THAT WAS RECENTLY ANNOUNCED, SIX MILLION DOLLARS.
CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT THESE CLAIMS FROM 2000, WHAT ARE THESE ABOUT BASICALLY?
>> >>MIKE NIGGLI: IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THE U.S. FOREST SERVICE HAS CERTAIN LANDS THAT
THEY HAVE JURISDICTION OVER.
SO IF THERE'S FIRE THAT GOES THROUGH THERE, THEY HAVE TO FIGHT THE FIRE, THEY HAVE TO
DO THINGS TO PROTECT THEIR LAND AND THEY ARE ESSENTIALLY BILLING US FOR THAT COST AS THEY
WOULD HOLD US LIABLE FOR A FIRE LIKE THAT.
THEY'RE TRYING TO RECOVER THOSE COSTS AND ALSO TO OFFSET SOME OF THE DAMAGE YOU MIGHT
HAVE IN THE ENVIRONMENT.
SO WE'VE GOT A SETTLEMENT WITH THEM.
THAT'S THE LAST OF ALL WE NEEDED WITH THE GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES.
WE'RE NOW SET TO MOVE FORWARD.
>> >>PEGGY: BRIEFLY ON THE COST OF THAT, THE ONE BIG LOOMING QUESTION I HAVE TO ASK, IS
RATE PAYERS GOING TO ABSORB SOME OF THAT COST IN SETTLEMENT?
>> >>MIKE NIGGLI: WE HAVE SETTLED ABOUT 1 AND A HALF TO 2ﾊBILLION CLS IN SETTLEMENTS.
WE HAVE INSURANCE FOR A BILLION AND A HALF.
ANYTHING ABOVE A BILLION AND A HALF WE'LL BE ASKING RATE PAYERS TO HELP IN THOSE COSTS.
>> >>PEGGY: HAVING A SYSTEM IN PLACE LIKE THIS, HAVING THE SEDIMENT COST THINGS LIKE
THAT, IN LIGHT OF THE BUDGET SITUATION, IN THE STATE, HOW ARE WE IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY
GOING TO PAY FOR THIS?
DO WE HAVE A CONTINGENCY PLAN?
>> >>MIKE NIGGLI: WE DO.
YOU KNOW, FIRST OF ALL WE HAVE A LOT OF PARTNERS IN THIS.
WE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS WITHOUT HOMELAND SECURITY, AND NORMALLY YOU THINK
OF HOMELAND SECURITY AS BEING INVOLVED WITH TERRORISTS.
NOT WITH THE TYPES OF EMERGENCIES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
THEY HAVE GIVEN US ENORMOUS SUPPORT IN HELPING CREATE ALL THE SOFTWARE.
THAT'S A VERY EXPENSIVE PART OF THIS WHOLE SYSTEM.
LINCOLN AT MITS HAS BEEN DOING THAT.
WE HAVE UCSD, THE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS JUST APPROVED A, GRANT, IT WILL BE ON OUR
NEXT AGENDA APPROVING A GRANT FOR FUNDING UCSD'S PARTICIPATION FOR THE NEXT YEAR AS
WE'RE WORKING OUR WAY THROUGH THIS AND THEN WE'LL LOOK AT HOW WE SUSTAIN THIS.
>> >>PEGGY: IT SOUNDS LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF COLLABORATION GOING ON Y.WANT TO HAVE A LAST
COMMENT WITH YOU MIKE.
TELL US WHO SDG&E IS INVOLVED WITH AS FAR AS FIRE PREVENTION AND THIS COLLABORATIVE
EFFORT TO PREVENT FIRES AND FIGHT FIRES IN THE FUTURE.
>> >>: A TECHNOLOGY GAME CHANGER FROM OUR STANDPOINT.
WE'VE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THE RED CROSS, THE CITY, THE COUNTY, UCSD, SAN DIEGO STATE, ALL
OF THE ACADEMIC UNIVERSITIES HAVE CONTRIBUTED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER ON THIS.
AND THE HP WREN SYSTEM WHICH CONNECTS THE ENTIRE NETWORK, WE TAKE OUR 140 WEATHER STAI
STATIONS WE HAVE THROUGHOUT SAN DIEGO COUNTY, FEED IT INTO THAT, MAKE IT AVAILABLE ON THE
INTERNET, ALL OF THAT REALLY WORKS WELL.
>> >>PEGGY: WE ARE UNFORTUNATELY OUT O OF TIME.
WE HAVE A LOT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS ON OUR WEBSITE.
MIKE NIGGLIA WITH SDG&E, AND RON ROBERTS COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.