Power situation dire

[dj1470]

5% power reduction ordered as of 5:00pm today.

Due to low generation, plants down for maintenance (what idiot ordered that in August ) and not enough available import power the Ontario government has ordered a 5% reduction which means rolling brownouts are on the way if we aren't careful. Won't effect any major cities but outlying areas like Huron, Perth, Haldimand, Essex, etc. could be in danger of rolling brownouts.

www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1123005785067_118414985

 

[Keebler Elf]

When you chronically underfund the maintenance of your power generation infrastructure for years and years, it eventually catches up to you. And that means machinery goes down and needs maintenance, especially when it's placed under great strain (like in August). You also can't run at 100% non-stop indefinitely.

 

[Esco!]

Time to bring in the solar-power treehuggers

 

[ItsAllOverNow]

I do not believe this crap - why do you guys put up with this. You pay so much tax on top of your electricity bills and are then made to feel bad that you are using too much juice.

Some serious questions need to be answered on this one, it is not like it is not foreseeable - it happens every summer. When are some of these government guys going to get canned.

Can you imagine this happening within our hobby - sorry due to excessive demand would all punters please only open one eye when enjoying their massage.

Sorry for ranting, some civic minded citizen in my office turned the AC right down conspiring to cook me and my team all day.

ITS

 

[shakenbake]

...

Some serious questions need to be answered on this one, it is not like it is not foreseeable - it happens every summer. When are some of these government guys going to get canned.

...

ITS

I think that it is really the fault of years of mis management by the former Ontario Hydro executives, rather than the politicians. However, having said that, and furious about having to pay a debt reduction surcharge on my Hydro bill, the politicians did not have the b**ls to do something about it many years ago.

 

[feminista]

we do need to curtail excessive power comsumption. every little bit helps.
i hate it when i have to bring a sweater to go to the mall or to a show during a heat wave Bcuz they overpump the AC. i hate it even more when i am sweating like a pig doing my xmas shopping in a broiling mall in the middle of winter.

many offices and factories leave the lights on needlessly. I am all for punitive measures to counter wasteful excess.

the power was off in 1/2 of barrie last night. i don't know if that was intentional or not, but if it is they should give us some notice.

conserve.

 

[WhOiSyOdAdDy?]

I have to laugh about the power crisis in ontario!

You would think that the hydro utilities would set up programs / rebates to reward businesses who switch to equipment which uses electricity more effeciently as has been done in BC through the "Powersmart" program for the last 2 years. If the utilites took the time to educate the masses.. and give each household 3 15W CFL lamps.. just think how much energy would be freed up to export to the USA

 

[dj1470]

the power was off in 1/2 of barrie last night. i don't know if that was intentional or not, but if it is they should give us some notice.

When I lived in southern California there was never any notice.

The power would just go off for an hour or so every couple days as they rolled the brownout throughout the state. Usually always happened between 5pm-11pm so as to not disrupt businesses but only effect people at home - and who gives a shit about the "people" right? Ontario is talking about 5% brownouts, in 1998 in California it was around 15%. Essentially means that that % of the state goes without power for a short time then it "rolls" to the next area. Always pissed me off that I had to reset all the fucking clocks all the fucking time

 

[Mufflicker]

When I lived in southern California there was never any notice.

Usually always happened between 5pm-11pm so as to not disrupt businesses but only effect people at home -:

I think there is two factors here. Theat time period was most likely a period of peak draw and residental has the lowest priority on the grid.

 

[tboy]

Yea, I love it how they tell all HOME owners that we must cut back on power consumption. I bet I don't use as much electricity in a year as some office towers burn in a night. I agree about the a/c in malls, it is freaking c c cold in there. Have you ever been to one in FLA? hell, you'd think they'd all complain about it when the population gets out their winter coats when the temp hits 65 Deg F.

I also love how they always state that we've reached another record high for power consumption. Like DUH, as stated with all the new construction we will ALWAYS outdo the last record....doesn't anyone in the news in this country have a brain?

 

[Keebler Elf]

Yea, I love it how they tell all HOME owners that we must cut back on power consumption.

If, by they, you mean the electricity companies or gov't, they ARE in fact conserving power themselves. Go into any gov't owned building in Toronto and you'll see a lot of lights out (even during working hours), the temp set a few degrees above normal AC levels, and notices to turn off computers when not in use.

Blaming "them" for not conserving is a convenient way for people to rationalize to themselves why they shouldn't have to personally conserve power (what, and be personally inconvenienced? Gasp! Never!). The "I pay my taxes!" bullshit is just a copout.

 

[tboy]

Keeb, I mean "they" as in the media and agencies involved in asking us to reduce power consumption.

Not once have I ever heard the statement: We have directly approached all major industries and asked them to reduce power by x amount. In addition, we have instituted a new by-law that will charge office buildings x amount for having unnecessary lights on during non business hours.

FYI:
I have only driven my vehicle twice in the last week (walked where I needed to go)
At this moment I only have my fridge, computer and a/c on (and pretty soon it will only be the a/c and fridge
I waited until the temp dropped before doing a load of laundry and then hung dry a lot of the items

What are YOU doing to conserve energry Keeb?

 

[ItsAllOverNow]

I'm not blaming them for not conserving electricity I am however blaming 'them' for systematic underinvestment in a key piece of national infrastructure.

Conserving natural resources should be a year round activity and not just limited to the summer (forced upon us by the above mismanagement).

My 2 pence

ITS

 

[luv4lust]

the city is just as bad as anyone else leaving the street lights on and they preach at us

 

[bishop]

The regulated rate you pay for electricity is about 11 cents/kWhr, this includes all charges (distribution, debt retirement etcc..)

if you use oil/natural gas for fuel to produce electricity the cost would be
10-13 cents per/kWhr, the real market cost to you as a consumer should be 16-19 cents/kWhr (including all charges; distribution, debt retirement .....)

We can't use coal for power because it is too polluting.

No one wants more nuclear stations in their backyard.

All the rivers have been dammed up already.

So what does this leave us with? Wind and solar power, both sources are too expensive to build and tend to never produce large amounts of power when it gets really hot.

Cheap electricity rates, AC, clean air. Pick the two you like.

 

[lomotil]

What happened to the nuclear plants at Darlington and Pickering?

Will we see another blackout like two summers ago, I like seing the Milkway

from Yonge and Bloor!

 

[bishop]

I have no idea of what goes on in alberta, but I do know that wind energy is very uneconomical, and it is not dependable. It is very opposite of the type of generation that Ontario needs. Of course if you build enough of them it will work but in my estimation to build a wind farm that can produce as much peak power as a gas/oil power plant would probally cost atleast 3 times as much, and even then on average you might get 20% power output from them.

 

[Meister]

I have no idea of what goes on in alberta, but I do know that wind energy is very uneconomical, and it is not dependable. It is very opposite of the type of generation that Ontario needs. Of course if you build enough of them it will work but in my estimation to build a wind farm that can produce as much peak power as a gas/oil power plant would probally cost atleast 3 times as much, and even then on average you might get 20% power output from them.

It costs approximately 500000 to buy one wind turbine similar to the one at the CNE with all the accesories and software. Costs could come down if we installed more.
Either way some alternative will be found in the next few decades, we have to, oil is finite.

 

[bishop]

The CNE wind turbine actually costs serveral million to put up and operate, even then the amount of electricity generated is pitiful.

Canada as a nation produces enough electricy for 100000 homes, that is about 10 Megawatts of energy, that accounts for less than 1 thousands of 1 percent of the energy produced in canada.

I am not dissing wind power, but if we build massive wind farms you guys will still bitch, because the power will be very expensive because of the captial costs, you will not be able to turn on your AC system because it is unreliable. People will bitch that the wind farms are ulgy and occupy too must precious land. In the end all you have is clean air.

Seriously the best solution is more nuclear power, nuclear is cheap, reliable and clean ( as far as air goes). But with the threat of terrorism I am sure people would be opposed to nuclear power. Expect to hear some really good news within the next month about new nuclear units comming into service.

 

[Diode]

Look, with all due respect...The reason Ontario prospered (ok one of the reasons) over the last 100 years, was Sir Adam Becks concept of Cheap, available EMF for ALL Ontario Citizens.

Also, Shiek..a few thousand 200 A homes, are Nothing compared to 5 or 6 smelters...with MA consumption at600-1000 V.

...and most Large consumers, pay less per kw/h, but are on a "program" thatwhen demand outpaces supply...they are the first to be removed fromthe grid.

We all need electricity...demand new Hydro plants..NOW
Nukes are ok if you really think about it: don't fall for thier fairy story!