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power lines

Is Burying Power Lines Fire-Prevention Magic, or Magical Thinking?

With power lines sparking more wildfires as climate change makes landscapes more flammable and drives a movement to “electrify everything,” a simple solution is gaining acceptance despite the cost.

By Angela K. Evans

A power pole that has split after the CZU Lightning Complex fire rolled through the area leans precariously over Empire Grade in Bonny Doon, California on Aug. 20, 2020. Credit: Shmuel Thaler/MediaNews Group/Santa Cruz Sentinel via Getty Images
Protesters march to a rally outside of Lowry, Minnesota in March 1978 to try to stop construction of an interstate power line that would cut across the region. Photo by Luther Gerlach, a University of Minnesota anthropologist, who documented the protests as part of his work to understand social movements related to energy.

An Energy Transition Needs Lots of Power Lines. This 1970s Minnesota Farmers’ Uprising Tried to Block One. What Can it Teach Us?

By Dan Gearino

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