Our confused and halting response to climate change is already exposing Americans to new and potentially devastating risks during periods of extreme heat and cold.
- This isn't the fault of record temperatures or increases in extreme weather, but rather the ill-considered way our attempts to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the power sector have weakened the electric grid.
- Our ability to consistently meet changing demand has been weakened as intermittent sources like wind and solar have steadily displaced ultra-stable sources like nuclear and coal.
- Increasing use of intermittent energy generation makes the grid less resilient in times of stress.
The Decline of Stable Baseload Power
- The steady and consistent baseload power generation necessary for an affordable and reliable grid is also being replaced with intermittent sources of power like solar and wind.
- Under the current regulatory model, much of the country’s electricity generation and transmission is managed by regional transmission coordinators-known as Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) and Independent System Operators (ISOs)-that hold day-ahead, hourly, and real-time auctions to determine what power plants can most cheaply meet demand.
The Emerging Reliability Crisis
- Our grid is vulnerable to what Meredith Angwin calls the “fatal trifecta” of overreliance on weather-dependent solar and wind, just-in-time natural-gas backstops, and imports of electricity from neighboring states
- Texas has become a leader in wind generation because of generous federal taxpayer subsidies, driving more conventional generation out
- In 2003, Texas generated electricity mainly with a mix of coal, nuclear, and natural gas, but now gets 20% of its power from wind and 28 GW of wind capacity
- The prescription for this is to have more wind and solar, and when that makes things even worse, we’ll presumably be told we need an even higher dose
- Blaming climate change for blackouts is regulatory Munchausen by proxy
The Hard Work of Getting Back on the Right Path
- An affordable and reliable grid will require policy solutions that incentivize both of those goals
- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved few new reactors and even fewer plants since its inception in 1975
- This 50-year hiatus in nuclear development means that the U.S. is lacking in valuable expertise and experience that would make new nuclear construction quickly achievable
- Regulatory apparatus is not well-suited to accommodate new development, and regulations will need to be reduced if there is to be any hope of building smaller units
- Further increasing our use of natural gas would also help keep carbon emissions low
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/ferc-gaslights-america/
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