Goats Reduce Wildfire Risk One Bite at a Time

Roaming freely and with ease, a herd of about 100 goats spends its days grazing lazily on mountain mahogany and manzanita shrubs in the Sierra Nevada.

This is no leisurely buffet; by feeding on the vegetation, the goats are making a critical contribution to preserving the safety and reliability of Southern California Edison's electric infrastructure in the northern portion of its service area.

SCE partners with Chasin Goat Grazing to mitigate wildfire risks in the Sierra Nevada.

"The goats are easily able to eliminate overgrown brush near our power line right of ways, in areas where terrain may be difficult for crews and equipment to access," said Sarah Hendrix, senior utility arborist with SCE's Vegetation Management team.

The herd is at the center of SCE's goat-grazing pilot, exploring ways to sustainably minimize vegetation growth near energized equipment in the mountain community of Shaver Lake. Keeping trees and brush at manageable heights directly below power lines is essential to reducing the potential for power outages and the risk of wildfires. With their natural agility and continuous cravings, the goats are the ideal species to safely get the job done.

About 100 goats will graze 26 acres of overgrown brush over several weeks.

"Some of the areas in this project are in steep terrain," said Chase Cianfichi, co-owner of Chasin Goat Grazing, SCE's goat-herding business partner. "The goats are able to traverse that landscape more effectively and do not face the same safety hazards that a human crew would."

Goat grazing integrates electrical safety with environmental preservation, especially important in ecologically and culturally sensitive areas of the Sierra Nevada. The goat crew has helped SCE make progress on its 2023-2025 Wildfire Mitigation Plan, through which SCE has reduced the probability of a catastrophic wildfire caused by SCE equipment by more than 85%. With a less invasive "hoof-print," they help prevent fires and preserve the natural landscape.

Now in its fourth year, the goat's consistent grazing has slowed the regrowth of fuel-loading plant species and, in some cases, stopped them from growing back at all.

The goats of Chasin Goat Grazing are foraging on mountain mahogany and manzanita shrubs in the Sierra Nevada.

"It's been so successful we were able to reduce the amount of goats from 400 last year to 100 because there's less brush to graze," said Hendrix. "The brush is less dense and growing at more manageable heights. This pilot has effectively created a healthier landscape."

Over the next few weeks, the goats will finish grazing 26 acres. This fall, some select hungrier goats will return to ensure no vegetation gets left behind.

"We look forward to exploring goat-grazing efforts in other parts of our service area," said Hendrix. "They're hungry for more."

To learn more about SCE's wildfire mitigation efforts, visit edison.com/wildfiresafety.