(Website is brand new and currently being drafted)

Share Your Spark!

When the power goes out, your EV could help keep a neighbor’s home dry.

Northern California is entering the 2026 winter storm season with unusually warm ocean conditions and a potentially powerful El Niño expected to affect the Pacific region of the United States. [Learn more here.]

Severe storms can bring two problems at once: water that needs to be pumped—and no electricity available to run the pump.
The result can be catastrophic. It doesn’t have to be that way.

The solution: Marin Power is building a neighbor-to-neighbor network that connects qualifying EVs, portable pumps, and trained volunteers to provide temporary pumping power where it can make a meaningful difference.

Whether you need assistance or want to help, here’s how you can take part:
Need Pump & Power? — [Ask for a Pump]
Have an EV to Share? — [Share Your Spark]
Want to Learn More? — [See How It Works]
Want to Support? — [Be a Donate or Partner, Volunteer]

Subscribe to receive notices about major storm events and king tides over six feet, along with reminders to reduce water use, lower sewer backflow risk, and prepare your home. [Subscribe Here]

Why This Matters

Atmospheric rivers are associated with approximately $1.1 billion in flood damage each year across 11 Western states. More than 84% of recorded flood damage in the region has been associated with atmospheric rivers.(Source) The average federal flood-insurance claim payment was approximately $66,000 between 2016 and 2023. (Source)

Using the historical average federal flood-insurance claim of approximately $66,000, protecting 15 homes could represent nearly $1 million in potential avoided flood losses.

The impact is not only financial. Flooding can threaten people’s health, safety, housing stability, belongings, and sense of security. It can also lead to mold, temporary displacement, lost work, increased insurance premiums, and long periods of repair.

What Inspired the Creation of Marin Power

My current home flooded during the 2021 atmospheric-river storm after a power outage stopped the sump pump. Backup power could have prevented that failure, but the owner chose not to make that investment. I am a renter and want to protect my home.

With a relatively small investment in portable pumps and training, neighbors may be able to help one another protect their homes during storms.

I will draw on my past 10 years of disaster-relief experience, including matching RVs with people in need. For this pilot, I will help match homes at risk of flooding with portable pumps and electric vehicles capable of powering them.

A Feasibility Pilot

Starting Small. On Purpose.

Marin Power will begin as a feasibility pilot to determine whether a neighbor-powered emergency pump network can become a permanent additional layer of resilience in Marin County.

The project will focus on situations like my own, where a relatively small intervention could make a meaningful difference. Safety is the highest priority, which is why we are starting with a small, defined scope.

The initial goal for the pilot is to:

Provide 15 portable pump kits
Recruit 25 volunteer EVs
Offer assistance to eligible Marin County households in three target areas

Each household will be evaluated before being added to the matching service. Sign up in advance; same-day registration is unlikely to be considered for assistance.

Marin Power is initially focusing resources where mobile pumping has the potential to make the greatest difference:

Downtown San Rafael
Ross Valley, including San Anselmo
Santa Venetia

The goal is to test a practical idea, learn what works, measure the results, and expand only where the solution fits.

The Heart of Marin Power

I believe most people want to help when they’re given a clear opportunity and a practical way to do it.

An EV owner can share power.
A sponsor can help provide equipment.
A volunteer can give time.

Together, we can leverage our resources and produce a better outcome.

I want to know the people who are willing to try to be part of the solution. These are the kind of people I want in my life!