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To: Think4Yourself who wrote (81586)	12/13/2000 3:33:48 PM
From: gamesmistress	Respond to of 95453

New economy puts strain on old power plants bayarea.com PALO ALTO, Calif (Reuters) - As Californians unplugged Christmas lights and worked in dimly lighted offices to help avert a power crisis, many officials wondered whether such modest conservation steps were enough to offset the unstoppable demand for electricity, particularly in Silicon Valley. High energy consumption is often dismissed as an innocuous by-product of a flourishing economy, but in a state that uses far more electricity than it produces the high-tech industry's unquenchable thirst for power has created a drain that is now being linked to everything from diminished quality of life to the future of the region's business base. While the U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts nationwide electricity demand will grow at a modest 1.8 percent a year through 2002, some California cities are struggling to meet growth rates that are many times higher. In the heart of Silicon Valley, Santa Clara says it would not be unreasonable to see demand doubling within a few years. The city of just over 100,000 people is home to high-tech and Internet companies such as Intel and Yahoo. Santa Clara had a peak load this summer of 450 megawatts of power, and officials say they have requests for an additional 300 megawatts over the next two years alone. ``It is a bit of a new phenomenon for us and we are working on it as we go,'' said John Roukema, assistant director of Santa Clara's city-operated electric utility. High-tech workers are famously workaholic but the power drain in Silicon Valley is not just a matter of employees burning the midnight oil. Far more consumption comes from the machines behind the Internet and the backup systems behind those machines, which are rapidly being deployed to insure things like e-mail services and online stock brokerages do not crash. These Web hosting centers, which provide a secure home for Internet servers, have been one of the biggest bumper crops of the New Economy, showing relentless growth even as other Internet businesses slow down. They also tap disproportionate amounts of power. By one estimate a Web hosting center uses 10 times the electricity of an office building the same size. And because they require precise climate control, they cannot simply turn the lighting off or the thermostat down as office buildings do in times of energy crunch, like the one the state experienced last week. ...No one is more aware of the potential crisis than the high-tech companies, which recently resurrected the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group, an energy-conservation coalition formed back in the oil embargo days of the late 1970s. ``Over the years, the issue of energy conservation fell off the table, but here we are 20-plus years later and energy has resurfaced,'' said a spokeswoman for the group, whose members include Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard and IBM. ``We have an energy problem here in Silicon Valley. The power supply is not reliable and sustainable for the long term. ... Without reliable power, companies talk about going elsewhere.''

To: Think4Yourself who wrote (81586)	12/13/2000 3:37:57 PM
From: Tommaso	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 95453

I continue to disbelieve in the Internet/computer explanation for electricity consumption. I think it has a lot more to do with air conditioning loads on larger houses (heat-pump load in cool weather). My electric bill goes up a great deal more for Christmas lights than if I were running a very large Internet server. The smallest room window air conditioner (about 700 watts) pulls as much power as 4-5 computers and all their ancillary equipment (except maybe when a laser printer is actually running). You understand I am not questioning the increasing number or computers and Internet use and the increasing use of electricity, but I think it's a post hoc ergo propter hoc error in thinking. Now fabricating plants that melt silicon, etc., must certainly use lots of power, but on the whole I think the Internet saves energy. It sure means less driving for me. I bought a new energy-efficient refrigerator and unplugged an old freezer, and my own power bill dropped by half. Last month it was less than my cable bill, which was $39.50 (ridiculous, but I am addicted to being able to watch Bravo, Cubs games, NCAA soccer, CNNFN, and so on at will and at several points in the house).

To: Think4Yourself who wrote (81586)	12/13/2000 7:35:01 PM
From: Second_Titan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 95453

JQP Dont worry about power plants emptying the lines and robbing residences. When residential heating demand is high pressure drops low enough that gas turbine plants cant stay online. Before that happens local utilities have curtailment procedures to ensure priority customers stay fed. What will be the next step is that #2 oil deliveries to industry will be the bottleneck. Even if there is product, the #2 fuel oil delivery system has not been tested heavily in years. Fleet of trucks, drivers, loading terminals etc.