Southern California Edison agrees to pay feds $80M in 2017 wildfire settlement

Southern California Edison, the Golden State’s second-largest utility, has agreed to pay the U.S. government $80 million to resolve claims about a 2017 wildfire that tore through national forest lands.

The settlement, finalized Friday, will enable the U.S. Forest Service to recoup costs and damages caused by the fire to Central California’s Los Padres National Forest, the Department of Justice announced Monday.

The fire scorched more than 280,000 acres — or about 440 square miles — including more than 150,000 acres of national forest property in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, the Justice Department noted.

Some 1,063 structures were also destroyed in the blaze, which the Ventura County Fire Department said resulted in the deaths of one civilian and one firefighter.

The federal government in 2020 had sued Southern California Edison on the Forest Service’s behalf, alleging the company owned, maintained and operated the power lines that sparked the initial two ignitions of the fire.

The lawsuit argued that the power lines touched each other amid strong winds, leading the heated material to kindle dry vegetation situated below the conductors.

“This record settlement provides significant compensation to taxpayers for the extensive costs of fighting the Thomas Fire and for the widespread damage to public lands,” Joseph T. McNally, first assistant U.S. attorney, said in a statement.

“The United States Attorney’s Office will continue to aggressively pursue compensation from any entity that causes harm to our forests and other precious national resources,” McNally added.

The utility has agreed to pay the $80 million within 60 days of the Feb. 23 effective date, without admission of wrongdoing or fault, according to the Justice Department.

In response to the announcement, Gabriela Ornelas, a spokesperson for Southern California Edison, described the settlement in an emailed statement as “a reasonable resolution.”

She also stressed the company’s efforts to engage in efforts such as “grid hardening,” which typically involves investing in efficient technologies that make grids more resilient from external threats, according to the Department of Energy.

“We continue to protect our communities from the risk of wildfire with grid hardening, situational awareness and enhanced operational practices,” Ornelas added.