One issue that's often overlooked is that PG&E has severe issues in their safety record. Last year their equipment sparked 16 wildfires, 11 of which may have been related to negligent maintenance. https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/PG-E-to-pay-2-5.... In 2010, they blew up 8 people and an entire neighborhood from improperly maintained gas pipes. https://abc7news.com/news/pg-e-receives-maximum-sentence-for.... I'm ok with open-ended liability for things like this. These are risks that are managed by utilities across the country and around the globe, in a responsible way.
I'm generally OK with open-ended liability, even against people who were following the rules, to a T. (And especially against people who were not - see [1])
With wildfires, though, I'm not so sure. These forests are giant powderkegs, and that's no fault of PG&E.
They will burn, sooner, or later. It might be from power utility equipment, it might be from a van's hot exhaust, it might be from a lightning strike.
Blaming the last person who touched it seems... Unfair, in many ways.
With wildfires, though, I'm not so sure. These forests are giant powderkegs, and that's no fault of PG&E.
They will burn, sooner, or later. It might be from power utility equipment, it might be from a van's hot exhaust, it might be from a lightning strike.
Blaming the last person who touched it seems... Unfair, in many ways.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnstown_Flood is a great example of an organization that should have been held criminally liable - for second degree murder.