SAN DIEGO -- San Diego Gas & Electric is preparing to pare back its controversial plan to shut off power in certain areas when low humidity and high winds pose a wildfire risk, The North County Times reported Monday.

The utility will remove from the plan 2,300 customers in Valley Center and the northeastern tip of Escondido because half the overhead power lines in their areas are being moved underground and the other half are being switched from wood poles, which can snap in high winds, to sturdier steel towers, the newspaper reported.

The utility petitioned state regulators for permission to turn off electricity in fire-prone areas after state fire investigators ruled that arcing power lines triggered the devastating Witch Creek, Guejito and Rice Canyon fires two years ago. So far, SDG&E has spent $740 million settling lawsuits arising out of the 2007 wildfires.

The California Public Utilities Commission is scheduled to hear the matter on Sept. 10 in Sacramento.

Opponents say the plan would deprive up to 130,000 people of vital services and the utility should focus its attention on doing more improvement projects like the one in Valley Center. Recently, SDG&E said it would develop alternative plans for the 590 or so people in affected areas who use respirators or other electrical devices to stay alive.

Although the commission won't hear the matter until Sept. 10, SDG&E executives have said they will put their plan into effect on Sept. 1 when wildfire season begins in San Diego County.