New California Law

Starting Feb. 1st California will no longer use power generated from "dirty sources" (i.e. coal plants). It doesn't matter if the power plant is inside or outside the state. Currently 20% of their power comes from coal plants outside of their state.

Should be, uh, interesting...

Note: I've probably just waved red meat in front of certian people. but please try and avoid turning this thread into a political/global warming/pollution bruhaha. Let's stick to loss of power. Thanks.

This is great news for those of us living outside California. Thanks for the extra power.

Holy Crap!!! That will mean that 20% of the state will shut down. No gas, no burgers and fries, no TV, nothing, because you can not buy a thing in CA (or pretty much anywhere else) without electricity to power the computer that tells the burgerflipper how much change to give you.

CA is on the verge of brownouts about half the time now, it is going to get worse, pure and simple, if they lose 20% of their power. Another good reason to be living in our home on wheels, far from CA...

Hahaha. Grab some popcorn. This shoud be great entertainment.

Although I extend my apologies to the normal people living in CA.

WOW. They managed to sneak that one in under the radar. Thanks for the post and link, I had no idea this was about to happen. <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

Without getting political, it's interesting how the legislators in certain areas feel they are going to save the planet and fix everything. I learned the other day that the largest consumer of disposable plastic bags isn't the United States, but rather Japan. There seems to be a lot of manipulating of information behind the scenes to make people believe one way or another. Yes, we have global climate change, but I have a hard time accepting that it's entirely the fault of the human population. Mother Nature has her hands in it, too.

A loss of 20% of electricity by coal-fired plants means that California's feel-good politicians just drove the cost of electricity up THAT much more for the end consumer. My prediction is that what has already been sky-high costs since Gray Davis (and probably before) are going to be thrown into low-Earth orbit like two guys piloting an SR-71 on crack.

So the legislators are going to go home feeling good at the end of the day, the electricity suppliers (PG&E, etc.) are going to make a bigger killing, and folks I know in the Golden State are going to be pissed at the end of each month.

The irony is that there are folks who have put in solar panels on their homes in CA and generate so much electricity that they can pump the surplus back into the grid and get paid for it. It would be nice to see big tax breaks and exemptions for people willing to do this, thereby reducing the strain (somewhat) on the power system.

Well, I'm not particularly worried. It's not like the state suddenly has 20% less electricity available on February 1st when the law kicks in. The law applies to new long-term contracts. We'll still be buying a lot of "dirty" electricity from other states for years still under existing long-term contracts, plus under shorter-term contracts or on an ad hoc basis to make up any shortfall in case enough "clean" supplies are not available.

In the meantime, this change gives power generators a financial incentive to switch fuels or finally junk old, polluting plants, boosts business to smaller power generators already using clean technology, raises the prospects of companies bringing out newer, better technologies like cheaper solar panels, etc. It's an incremental change, not an overnight revolution.

Anyway, so personally, I'm not worried about not having power this summer, at least not directly from this law.

A lot more solar is coming to CA. Won't happen overnight, but a few brownouts due to non-availablity of politically correct electricity should provide motivation.

No offense taken. We will use the blackout periods to practice our preparedness skills. The BBQ is fueled and ready to go. My wife loves it when I do the cooking outdoors. :-)

That makes a lot more sense than whacking away almost a quarter of your power.

Wait a minute, did I just say a California law makes sense? <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

-Blast

> The law applies to new long-term contracts.

The price goes up immediately, though. :->

I gotta agree with Arney, it's not really a very big deal. It's just the media trying to sensationalize the news again. Even if you count the energy crisis a few years ago, I doubt if most people suffered for more than a few hours without electricy in the past 5 years or so. From what the news was reporting, they made it seem like everybody in California would have to go back to reading by candlelight. It's funny to see the stereotypes people from other states have about California just from what's reported on the news. I've met people from other countries who assume that because I'm from SoCal, I live in a world where earthquakes are constantly shaking my house as I walk through the smoke filled rubble from the constant wildfires while avoiding riots breaking out on every streetcorner. Oh yeah, and I do this all in the darkness because there's no electricty because of the energy crisis and my house was swept away in a mudslide. HA HA! Compared to what other parts of the country have gone through lately, I think we're probably better off than most places.

We may end up paying a bit more for electricity, but I doubt if it'll be as significant increase as most people are assuming. What most people don't realize is that there aren't that many states in this country that have the power pull something like this and force an entire industry to take notice. Just like with automobile industry, how many states could cause manufacturers to make changes the way California does? Would anybody even notice it if it were Rhode Island or Wyoming trying to do anything? Sometimes the changes are a little extreme, but at least they're headed in the right direction (most of the time)

I think whatever California legislators decide will be just fine. If they decided to reduce power consumption by 20 percent or by 93 percent, that will be just perfect for California residents. Those elected law and policy makers lead the country for a reason, you know. I sometimes wish my state would follow their lead.


(See, CK? I can do this ....I know I can do it!) <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

"...I sometimes wish my state would follow their lead..."

If I had the power, I would be glad to give you "our" govenor...

Maybe I'm the only person who doesn't know this, but....

Today, a guy that I work with says the power company charges different rates for different times of day. He said that from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and all day on weekends, the rate is lower ($0.068 / KWH), and all other times, the rate is higher ($0.085 / KWH).

I guess my bill should come with an instruction pamphlet. <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Sue

Pass the popcorn Harrkev.

Washing it down with a beer.

Got family and grew up in CA, this is gonna be funny.

Sounds like a variation of the gas companies...holiday coming, let's raise the price of fuel. Must be a conspiracy...

Say; harrkev, DBAGuy, how long of an extension cord will I need to run from Colorado Springs to Pasadena? <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Hmm, I'm not sure if my own electric company does that. I always read everything that they send and I don't remember ever seeing a mention of that, although I know that utilities do charge that way.

One of the criticisms against mass adoption of electric vehicles or plug-in hybrids is the argument that our electric grid couldn't handle the extra load of all those cars. But proponents counter with the argument that the vast majority of people would charge their vehicles at night, when electricity demand is normally lowest, and when the rates are lowest. So, that keeps the cost of ownership of electric vehicles lower. Well, of course, if "everyone" did that and the demand at night increased, the price would probably go up, too! Curse you, Alfred Marshall! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (first to describe prices and supply vs demand)