 I must asks though, Where do you store megawatts?In a 2200 gazillion micro farad capacitor. |
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Posted on 07/28/2006 9:12:42 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
A record-setting thirst for power during the heat wave that has scorched the state this month caught Department of Water and Power officials by surprise, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.
Before this week, the utility's highest peak energy use was recorded at 5,661 megawatts. A stretch of 100-plus temperatures this week, however, created a demand that set a new all-time high of 6,165 megawatts - shocking DWP officials who predicted power usage wouldn't top 6,100 megawatts for four years.
"They didn't even believe our customers could ever put such a load on our system - that we could even have energy use from our customers up to that kind level," DWP board member David Nahai told the Times.
The utility serves 1.4 million customers.
Officials attributed the surge to demand for 24-hour air conditioner use and the popularity of energy-eating large-screen plasma TVs.
DWP Commissioner Nick Patsaouras chastised officials for allowing the utility's equipment to grow obsolete.
"We know staff knew for a long time," he said. "You know when equipment is bad."
The DWP has not yet counted how many customers lost power during the heat wave, which coroners said has claimed close to 100 lives.
Southern California Edison, which serves 4.7 million customers across Southern California, did a better job predicting power demand. It planned for usage of up to 23,000 megawatts, slightly more than the 22,889 megawatts peak, said Ron Litzinger, senior vice president of transmission and distribution for SCE.
The utility still had about 1.1 million customers lose power, officials said.
Yeah, but at least they got clean air from not building more power plants. I guess the greenies are not doing enough conservation. /s
I read a post at DUmmy land yesterday where a moonbat (responding to an article that stated it was the enviro-wackos fault for stopping new power plants) said it's not the demand it's the old cables that the "greedy" power companies have not bothered to replace.
Power generation is the big problem, but it would help if there was newer cable technology in place - this would allow greater storage and sharing of power among regions.
If Californians and the environmentalists were really serious, they'd start building a pair of Nuclear Power plants, tommorrow. Shame they take so long to build..
I agree but I would also think that if you built new plants you would also be laying new cable.
They are going to need to build more power generating plant and it will probably have to be nuclear. There must be something in improving efficiency though...there is an awful lot of waste going on.
"storage of power"? I am picturing the world's biggest capacitor...
OH no! Not EEEEEEEvil nuclear power! (sarc/off) I agree to new plants ASAP. And Nuke is defiantly at least part of the answer. Even France gets something like 60% of it's power this way. Did ya ever notice how the lefties say we should be :more like EU" except when it's something that could actually BENEFIT us instead of just costing us money or freedoms?
I'll give you the the "sharing power between regions" because new transmission definately needs to be built.
I must asks though, Where do you store megawatts?
Shocked? Again?
What does Joseph Graham Davis Jr. have to say about this? *SMIRK*
I am so glad I left CA in 1982 and never looked back. :)
Puh-leaze! The energy use of plasma TVs is a miniscule thing in the overall picture. This line was put in the article as a shot against "the rich". How about "AC used by the elderly"?
So, the draw states like CA, NM, AZ, TX, NC and others wouldn't place and additional power demand on the national and local grids after 30 million illegal people have been allowed to walk on in??
Ironically, they could have both clean air and plenty of electricity. How? Go nuclear. But the wackos trashed a perfectly good nuclear generator when they threw away Rancho Seco back in the 1980s. That cost 900 MW right there. They also threw away another 500 MW of capacity when they trashed SONGS-1. Then another 1100 MW of zero-emissions source was gone when they blasted Trojan to the ground up in Oregon. All told, about 2500 MW of zero-emissions capacity thrown away for no good reason that would come in mighty handy during these periods of high demand. The wackos are the ones to blame, and any Californian/Oregonian who enabled these scumbags to play their dirty tricks.
There are transmission lines that are also capable of storing power - the July issue of Scientific American has a decent article that touches on this subject.
If they were really surprised then this just shows that they are totally incompetent and should be fired immediately. If they expected it and did nothing and are lying about being surprised, then this just show that they are totally incompetent and should be fired immediately.
Check appendix A, page 31 here.
(If you can believe the NRDC.)
I will certainly take that into account when we ever get a plasma wall display or can afford one.
Thanks for the link
| I must asks though, Where do you store megawatts? In a 2200 gazillion micro farad capacitor. |
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