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Pastimes : The California Energy Crisis - Information & Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MulhollandDrive who wrote (866)	8/16/2001 1:12:16 AM
From: Zeuspaul	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1715

Surplus Capacity I don't know where the surplus capacity should come from. IMO the power structure should incorporate public and private generation facilities. It would seem the excess capacity would be easier to incorporate in the public facilities. My current thinking is the existing electric power system has significant excess capacity. My own power consumption is down over forty percent with very little loss in functionality. Most of my reductions are from turning off unnecessary lighting..TVs, and computers at night. Unplugging the little used freezer in the garage also made a difference. I recall hearing of an experiment sponsored by Phillips in the bay area. I only caught a piece of it on the radio. Phillips replaced all lighting with efficient lighting for an entire block. The number I thought I heard was a total reduction in power use of forty percent. Energy efficient lighting also reduces air conditioning costs. A fellow employee also told me his total power consumption was down forty percent and it was primarily due to replacing his lighting with CF bulbs. The local Home Depot has turned off every other light and the store is still brightly lit. My mothers power bill is triple my own. I pointed out to her that she had high wattage bulbs on all over the place. She indicated to me lighting doesn't really use that much juice compared to air conditioning and heating elements. True....except most heating elements are only used for a short period of time. A cell phone charger can use as much as a clothes dryer if one looks at the amount of time an appliance is used. As reported in the LA times today...the City of LA can save millions of dollars by replacing the bulbs in traffic lights with high efficiency bulbs. Contrary to Cheney's seemingly dated views....I believe conservation could be a MAJOR source of energy supply. A serious effort could result in 20 percent plus reductions in energy usage with little or no loss in standard of living. If one considers the environmental aspects of conservation the standard of living may increase with a reduction of energy usage....in a wasteful society. What effect would a twenty percent reduction in energy usage have on the nations power producers? Would there be a need to build any new power plants? Should we be nice guys and only conserve ten percent? Zesupaul