Rolling blackouts possible if temperatures go higher

No one thinks about it until the lights go off, but the network of power lines supplying electricity to homes and businesses is complex and vulnerable.

Power companies can’t prevent unplanned outages, which can be caused by many factorsincluding traffic accidents, damage to power lines, or even metallic balloons caught in overhead wires. Whether outages originate from squirrels and birds on the lines, terrorism, or excessive demand and inadequate capacitypeople should be prepared for power failures, say officials from Southern California Edison.

“The power issue will not likely be resolved until we get new power plants built in the state,” said Rudy Gonzales, Edison’s regional manager for the Conejo Valley.

There’s barely enough supply to meet the demand, which grows every year, yet power companies haven’t been able to build new energy-efficient plants, Gonzales said.

Still, Edison has been able to supply record amounts of power during the recent heat wave. Unless temperatures get even hotter or a major facility goes off line, the supply should be adequate, said Gonzales.

The recent heat wave did cause stage-two power alerts because reserves dipped below the 5 percent guidelines.

Rolling blackouts

Rolling blackouts occur when the state’s operation reserves fall below 1.5 percent, causing a stage-three alert. The California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO), a separate agency from the power companies, establishes controlled outages guidelines.

During stage-three power alerts, Cal-ISO typically orders power companies to reduce electrical consumption immediately by a certain number of megawatts, the basic unit for measuring power generation. At that time, Edison begins controlled, rotating, hour-long blackouts throughout its service area.

Public safety agencies, such as police, fire departments, military bases and hospitals with at least 100 beds, are exempt from the rotating outages.

The rolling blackouts usually last one hour each. If outages continue, the areas that did not suffer blackouts the first time will be affected.

“Most commercial and residential customers can deal with an hour-long outage with relatively few problems,” said Gonzales.

But the outages have caused difficulty for Town and Country Printing in Agoura Hills, said Manny Zamudio, son of the shop’s owner. All the machinery stops working during an outage, and computer files and equipment can be damaged if the power fails in the middle of a print run, Zamudio said.

Power companies haven’t had to resort to rolling outages since the Enron power crisis in 2000 and 2001. Edison now offers incentives to prevent outages from occurring in the first place, Gonzales said.

Aside from planned blackouts, outages can still occur because the overhead power pole system is vulnerable to falling branches, growing trees, animals, birds and environmental hazards.

“Even a small squirrel can cause a fault on the system, triggering momentary loss of electricity,” Gonzales said.

Although long power outages are more concerning to customers, shorter ones are more annoying because they are more frequent and users have to reset alarm clocks and digital devices afterwards.

Ground movement, water or construction workers can also affect underground power lines, but not as often as overhead lines.

Saving energy

According to industry sources, one-sixth of all the electricity generated in the U.S. is used to aircondition buildings.

The state utilities commission, in a program funded by utility customers and administered by power companies, offers a number of options to help residents and businesses save power with their air conditioners.

Consumers can purchase and install energy-efficient appliances to save energy and money and to receive rebates.

Edison offers an air conditioner cycling program, which enables power companies to remotely shut down a central air conditioner at prescribed intervals. About 155,000 customers take part in this program on one of three levels, Gonzales said. Participants can have their air conditioner shut down for 20 , 40or 60-minute intervals, with or without a limited number of interruptions during the summer season.

In return for allowing power companies to take the unit out of service for the prescribed period, Edison gives a small discount on the power bill.

Power companies also offer programs geared toward larger commercial industrial customers, enabling them to save money if they give Edison the option to shut down power for a short time during electrical alerts. “It’s worth it for companies to discuss this with Edison,” Gonzales said.

The public can conserve electricity by turning lights off when leaving a room and keeping the air conditioner set at 79 degrees during the day. Major appliances should be used in the evenings.

Visit www.SCE.com for more information on money-saving incentives offered by the power company.