RE: PG&E will shut off power for nearly 800,000 customers starting Wednesday
10-12-2019, 08:55 PM
10-12-2019, 08:55 PM
The thing to remember about all the major blackouts (accidental, that is) we've had is that they all pretty much stem from the same root cause that started the domino effect: high-voltage transmission lines going down - usually due to them drooping into trees during periods of high loads.
Having overlapping coverage is absolutely necessary to avoid the domino effects that major blackouts are caused by.
Here's one method of power storage that is tried, proven, consistent, and ready on-demand with only minutes notice: Pumped storage hydroelectric.
You do not need to use existing bodies of water - in fact, it's better that you don't - so the only real environmental impact is from the construction itself and whatever the project may displace. And it can double as a drinking water reservoir, granted that you can keep enough water in there for generation purposes.
Go one better: place a solar farm over the reservoirs at both ends. That will shade the water to reduce loss through evaporation and also supply your pumping power, effectively creating a solar power battery in the form of raw kinetic energy, stored and ready to rip at a moment's notice. You can even set up a sprinkler system to run now and then to clear the dust off the panels. It all just goes back into the reservoir.
This way there's no need to keep the other oil/gas/coal burner plants running during off-peak times to "recharge" your reservoir. And they'll get more of that much-needed down time for maintenance and repairs to keep them running in peak performance - which is also critical for reducing emissions.
Having overlapping coverage is absolutely necessary to avoid the domino effects that major blackouts are caused by.
Here's one method of power storage that is tried, proven, consistent, and ready on-demand with only minutes notice: Pumped storage hydroelectric.
You do not need to use existing bodies of water - in fact, it's better that you don't - so the only real environmental impact is from the construction itself and whatever the project may displace. And it can double as a drinking water reservoir, granted that you can keep enough water in there for generation purposes.
Go one better: place a solar farm over the reservoirs at both ends. That will shade the water to reduce loss through evaporation and also supply your pumping power, effectively creating a solar power battery in the form of raw kinetic energy, stored and ready to rip at a moment's notice. You can even set up a sprinkler system to run now and then to clear the dust off the panels. It all just goes back into the reservoir.
This way there's no need to keep the other oil/gas/coal burner plants running during off-peak times to "recharge" your reservoir. And they'll get more of that much-needed down time for maintenance and repairs to keep them running in peak performance - which is also critical for reducing emissions.