The West’s electric grid is stretched, and extreme events could knock the lights out

  • 📰 sltrib
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 31 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 16%
  • Publisher: 61%

Energy Energy Headlines News

Energy Energy Latest News,Energy Energy Headlines

As Utah heads into its summer peak-demand period, those who monitor the electrical grid are optimistic there will be enough juice for every swamp cooler and air conditioner. But they're not certain.

Power lines along the train tracks after a fire came through at the mouth of Weber Canyon, Tuesday September 5, 2017. The West's electrical grid is facing an increased threat from extreme events like fire.This story is part of The Salt Lake Tribune’s ongoing commitment to identify solutions to Utah’s biggest challenges through the work of the Innovation Lab.

But Malik cautioned that the future is getting harder to predict, particularly with regard to weather. “A lot of the extremes are becoming more normal.”Demand is outpacing supply Second, supply has become less predictable as baseload sources are reduced and renewables increase. “We are shutting down the always available resources and not replacing them or replacing them with intermittent resources,” he said.Utah’s political establishment has pushed this as the biggest threat to reliability.

That may mean buying more power from other Western sources, which is only possible if they’re not maxed out.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 316. in ENERGY

Energy Energy Latest News, Energy Energy Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Climate-Friendly Cocktail Recipes Go Light on IceIt takes a lot of water and energy to make negronis, manhattans and margaritas. Could we do with less ice?
Source: sciam - 🏆 300. / 63 Read more »

Climate change protesters target TotalEnergies' UK headquarters with paintActivist group Just Stop Oil wants the UK and other governments to end all new oil and gas exploration and vows not to let up in its high-profile protests.
Source: trtworld - 🏆 101. / 63 Read more »

Climate Disasters May Be Nudging Societies Toward Rising Violence and CrueltyClimate disasters could lead to rising violence and cruelty, as right-wing backlash against climate action intensifies.
Source: truthout - 🏆 69. / 68 Read more »