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Climate change is pushing the power grid to the limit. Energy storage could help. CCSC’s Dr. Eric Fournier talks to Vox Unexplainable about the electric grid.

But many blackouts can also be blamed on how the electric system works. Namely: The goal of the power grid is to deliver electricity to your home as soon as it’s been generated at a power plant. There isn’t a great pool of electricity waiting in reserve for when demand spikes. Experts say that needs to change. “Electricity systems are real-time systems,” said Eric Fournier, research director at UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. There’s little room for error.

Surviving in the Age of Megafires

How do we survive in the age of climate change driven megafires? The Big Burn podcast from LAist Studios tries to answer that complex question by exploring how we got here, how we keep screwing things up, and what we can do to survive and even thrive while the world around us burns. -- Stephanie Pincetl, guest panelist

We Need to Take Better Care of Our Forests – Dr. Pincetl in Esquire

The area encompassing both Southern California and Baja in Mexico have what’s known as chaparral ecosystems: dry soil, hot weather, and short shrubs. But these two regions’ fire lives have played out very differently. “Right across the border, there are very similar chaparral ecosystems,” Pincetl said, but “that chaparral has not had the benefit of fire suppression, because the Mexicans simply can't afford it. And it continues to exhibit this low intensity fire pattern, which does not kill the chaparral, but there are unsuppressed fires that occur on a relatively regular basis. And people don't die. The houses aren't burned. There's not huge conflagrations. So how do we get back to that kind of chaparral, is the question.”

The real reason a heat wave is pushing California’s power grid to its limits

Heat’s impact on the grid is twofold, explained Eric Fournier, research director at UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. First, more people turn on their air conditioners and run them for longer on hot days, which means electricity demand is higher. Second, heat has a physical impact on the infrastructure of the grid, making wires less efficient at moving electricity and pushing transformers and thermal power plants to their temperature limits. As the temperature rises, those air conditioners have to work harder to cool the air — which means they draw more power, straining the grid even more. “So you get this feedback loop,” said Fournier.

UCLA teams up with LADWP for equitable solutions to reach 100% renewable energy

More detailed data collection and analysis will be important in this effort and others, and it will be led by the California Center for Sustainable Communities — specifically leveraging its Energy Atlas, which can show city officials where resources are being consumed and at what level, down to the individual building or unit. “Anything that has a spatial characteristic, we can examine and provide an analysis for it,” said Stephanie Pincetl, founding director of the center. “Our motivation is to work at consumption through the lens of equity. How much are they using? Where? And to do what, and under what conditions?”

Is it the end for the lush lawns of Los Angeles? Dr. Pincetl talks to the BBC

An overall issue with the current approach to lawn replacement is that it's very individualised, says Dr Pincetl. There is an element of personal responsibility when it comes to lawns and water use, according to Dr Pincetl, where "the water you use on your lawn is the water I'm not going to be drinking next week". At the same time, more sweeping community-level changes are needed. Dr Pincetl calls for "a more robust infrastructure of transformation to really help people who want to make that transformation and don't have that kind of capacity". For instance, youth training organisations could work neighbourhood by neighbourhood to support residents in reimagining their lawns.

Deep drought leads to steep water restrictions in Southern California

Los Angeles is in its third year of extreme drought — and water officials have resorted to extreme water-reduction measures. Professor Stephanie Pincetl, founding director of the California Center for Sustainable Communities at the University of California Los Angeles talks to WBUR radio.

What powers UCLA? CCSC’s Dr. Eric Fournier talks to the Daily Bruin’s Prime magazine

UCLA cogeneration plant. “You’re basically operating a large jet engine that has been strapped to the ground,” explained Eric Fournier, research director at the California Center for Sustainable Communities within the UCLA Institute of the Environment & Sustainability. An impressive number and diversity of pipes – a description also courtesy of Fournier – line the inside of the facility, as do support structures for seismic stability.

VIDEO: Climate Change and Housing: Strategies To Cope With the Impacts of Wildfires

Panel discussion by the California Association of Realtors:Panel discussion by the California Association of Realtors: featuring CCSC's Director Stephanie Pincetl, Karen Collins, Assistant Vice President, The American Property Casualty Insurance Association and Chief Jim McDougald, Division Chief, State of California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. California’s commitment to advancing ambitious climate goals cannot ignore the impact of wildfires on communities across the state and the need for protection, policies, and resiliency measures to mitigate the most damaging effects of climate change. As wildfires and heat waves become commonplace concerns in the state, it’s clear that California needs a comprehensive action plan to reduce wildfire risk, improve environmental conditions, adapt insurance needs, and accelerate action to combat climate change. Additionally, it’s important to consider how we can empower property owners, homeowners, local governments, and pertinent stakeholders to proactively reduce wildfire hazards to minimize the loss of property and life and be active participants in advancing effective solutions. Among the key approaches to wildfire resiliency and preparation is collaboration with the insurance industry to ensure protective policies are available and affordable for all Californians who are at risk of climate change-intensified wildfires. Join us for a wide-ranging discussion that will cover such topics, including climate change trends, efforts to build resiliency to protect communities, and the future of housing development in a wildfire-prone state.

Dr. Pincetl comments to LA Times: Southern California ‘cannot afford green lawns’ as drought forces unprecedented water cuts

“Lawns do well with about 30 inches of rain a year. Do we get 30 inches of rain a year? I don’t think so,” Pincetl said. Los Angeles receives about half that amount in a typical year. “So if you want to have water to drink, water to do all the stuff you do inside, bathe your children, do your laundry, using water on a lawn just seems foolish,” Pincetl said.