Chickens coming home to roost?? California power grid overwhelmed

[RadiumProj@cs.com]

Regarding the ongoing thread about need for power, power production 
alternative risks,  etc., etc. copied below is an AP story running today 
which reviews the electricity alert declared by California on Thursday. This 
article makes for interesting reading. The California regulatory structure 
and assorted environmental activists can now take credit for the various 
conservation measures now being implemented there such as shutting down water 
pumps on major distribution lines, shutting off the lights at Intel, and 
getting ready for rolling hourlong blackouts. Chicken little may have 
something to squawk about now, but it's not the theoretical effect of a 
fraction of a milliRem projected 10,000 years in the future from nuclear 
waste storage at Ward Valley or some other aspect of the nuclear fuel cycle.

Stewart Farber
Public Health Sciences
172 Old Orchard Way
Warren, VT 05674
[802] 496-3356
email: radiumproj@cs.com
===================

California Declares Power Emergency 
By JOHN HOWARD 
Associated Press Writer 

      SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- California declared an unprecedented 
electricity alert Thursday after its overwhelmed power grid, crippled by 
idled power plants and scant supplies, struggled to meet demand. 

      Hundreds of companies were ordered to cut back on electricity use, but 
there were no immediate "rolling blackouts'' that could affect thousands of 
homes and businesses across the state. 

      Instead, huge state and federal pumps that move water from Northern 
California to other parts of the state were temporarily shut down to save 
power. 

      "We're hoping that with these resources we can avoid the blackouts,'' 
said Lorie O'Donley, a spokeswoman for the Independent System Operator, the 
power grid manager. 

      Another spokeswoman, Stephanie McCorkle, said the state's first Stage 
Three alert, covering 85 percent of California and its 34 million residents, 
would remain in effect until 1 a.m. EST. If power reserves are exhausted, 
hourlong blackouts were likely to begin. 

      California has had isolated blackouts in the past, but never before 
endured controlled, widespread outages ordered by authorities to protect the 
state's power grid. 

      Demand reached 31,600 megawatts Thursday evening, nearly the maximum 
available, and reserves dipped below 1,000 megawatts -- about enough 
electricity for 1 million homes. 

      The power crunch -- which hit even before winter had begun -- has been 
blamed on cold weather in the Northwest, the shutdown of some power plants 
for repairs and the effects of utility deregulation in California. 

      With supplies of electricity running perilously low, California 
officials declared a Stage Two emergency at 4 a.m. Thursday. It was the 
fourth such declaration in as many days and the eighth in three weeks. 

      Under the Stage Two emergency, hundreds of companies that had signed 
"interruptible'' service contracts in exchange for huge rebates were ordered 
to reduce or shut down their power. Others awaited notification to do 
likewise. 

      Computer chip manufacturer Intel stood ready to turn off 50 percent of 
the lights at its 6,500-employee installation in Folsom. 

      "If that's not enough, we'll take the lights down 100 percent and work 
in the dark,'' Intel spokesman Bill Mueller said. 

      A Stage Two emergency is declared when power reserves fall -- or are 
expected to fall -- below 5 percent. California had never before had a 
statewide Stage Three emergency, which is declared when reserves fall below 
1.5 percent. 

      The ISO said a 500-megawatt power plant unexpectedly went down Thursday 
afternoon, further stressing the system. The power manager also said 
utilities, which try to buy power at least a day in advance to obtain the 
best possible price, were buying power with just 10 minutes of lead time as 
supplies dwindled. 

      The alerts are the latest in a series of problems to bedevil 
California's deregulated electricity system. 

      The phased-in deregulation of California's $20 billion electrical power 
industry was supposed to lower prices by creating greater competition. But 
demand for electricity has outstripped supply, in part because of a growing 
population and a booming high-tech economy. 

      Electricity is also in short supply because energy companies held off 
building new power plants while deregulation was in the planning stages. In 
addition, deregulation has forced utilities to sell off their 
power-generating assets, such as dams and plants, and import electricity from 
neighboring states, where power demand is high right now because of a cold 
snap. 

      Earlier this week, energy companies and state officials asked 
Californians to delay turning on their Christmas lights until well after 
nightfall and to keep thermostats set at 68 degrees. After lighting the 
Christmas tree at the state Capitol, Gov. Gray Davis quickly pulled the plug 
to conserve energy.

      California inspectors have launched surprise inspections of power 
plants that have closed for repairs to see whether the shutdowns were 
deliberate attempts to drive up costs. 

      Shutdowns were part of the reason that one-quarter of the system's 
capacity was down on Wednesday by 11,000 megawatts, enough to supply 11 
million homes. Of that amount, state officials said, 4,000 megawatts were 
from plant breakdowns. 

      


      On the Net: 

      California Independent System Operator: http://www.caiso.com 

      California Public Utilities Commission: http://www.cpuc.ca.gov 
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