!["In order to understand how a wildfire may spread, it is important to understand environmental variables that may influence [its] burn rate and extent."](https://www.thecooldown.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/gridFIRMimage.jpg?w=1920&h=800)
New software from Washington, D.C., technology business Rhizome could soon transform how power providers predict and prevent wildfires, Electrek reported.
The artificial intelligence-facilitated platform GridFirm enables utilities to better handle climate-driven grid malfunctions by "evaluat[ing] specific wildfire risk mitigation tactics utilities are commonly considering," as Rhizome co-founder Rahul Dubey detailed, per Electrek.
Some of those methods include putting power lines below ground, encasing bare wires, upgrading older equipment, and installing reclosers (devices that immediately cut power if something goes wrong) that equip providers with invaluable time to assess, act, and avert disaster.
Extreme weather, caused by rising carbon pollution, has made natural disasters more frequent yet increasingly difficult to predict. Rhizome intends to confront that volatility through GridFirm's dynamic, AI-responsive system.
The GridFirm software works with electric services to review infrastructure in various hazardous contexts: "incorporating information related to anticipated dryness, heat, and vegetation," per Rhizome, signifying any assets to relocate or replace. Utility companies play a pivotal role in catastrophic events. Power lines, extreme weather conditions, and dry land can spark a devastating blaze near-immediately.
The platform strategically pulls past data, current input, and longer-term trend forecasting into its models. "In order to understand how a wildfire may spread, it is important to understand environmental variables that may influence [its] burn rate and extent," Rhizome added.
Rhizome also hopes GridFirm can address economic concerns by providing businesses with "clear, data-driven insights that illustrate the potential impacts of wildfires," displaying to investors the urgency and benefits of strategic climate planning.
Wildfires "have become an existential risk, causing bankruptcies, fines, and regulatory actions," Bill Clerico said, per Electrek. (Clerico is the founder of Convective Capital, a venture capital firm that recently granted Rhizome $1 million in funding.) Fires claim lives, wreck property, expose us to harmful smoke, and lead to power outages both frustrating and fatal. In the past decade, these blazes have accrued "over $100 billion" in expenses, Clerico added. By 2040, according to Rhizome's website, power outages could cost the United States $1 trillion if no "aggressive" action is taken.
The GridFirm platform — rolling out now in the U.S., Canada, and Australia — joins a slate of novel innovations targeting the complex wildfire crisis, including an AI-powered detection tool in Texas and a groundbreaking radar system undergoing testing in Ohio. But action can come in less complex packaging: Think cost-saving clean energy solutions, consumer product swaps, and crucial conversations with those around you.
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