New Media
Is Portland at risk for urban wildfire? A local expert who analyzed Los Angeles fires thinks so
Despite a red flag alert, local authorities were “unprepared in a variety of ways” for the fires, McCullough said. The city lacked ignition surveillance and emergency notifications, and in the case of the Eaton fire, Southern California Edison didn’t shut down power lines amid strong Santa Ana winds.
“Portland is less prepared and has considerably less resources than L.A.,” McCullough said.
NYC’s $6 billion power line from Canada likely down rest of July
”This is a very unusual outcome for a competent utility,” said Robert McCullough, principal of McCullough Research, an energy consulting firm. “ When something like this happens, the engineers from the vendor show up immediately.”
Expert warns: LA style urban wildfire could race thru Inner Southeast
A Reed College alumnus who built his career inside the electric power industry warns that the catastrophic Eaton Fire in Los Angeles last year should be treated as a warning shot for Portland- and this region is not moving fast enough to prepare.
New Articles
Two stumbles forward, one back: Three wise men opine on Churchill Falls MOU after independent review
In December 2014, the premiers of Quebec and Labrador announced a proposed transaction for the existing dam plus3,900-megawatt expansion products. Simultaneously, they released the Churchill Falls Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The document was not really a memorandum of understanding; it was a pastiche of draft contract sections plus schedules that reflected modelled quantities and prices.
Dispelling the Myth of the Canadian Hydroelectric Cornucopia
Precipitation is not always reliable, and CO2 isn’t offset unless a new unused supply of hydroelectricity has been developed. Viable hydroelectric sites are in limited supply. And while U.S. and Canadian hydroelectric capacity is roughly comparable, good sites both north and south of the U.S. border have been largely developed or set aside for environmental reasons.
Not surprisingly, exports from Canada to the U.S. have fallen precipitously since Canadian loads have grown, relative to their resources. In addition, hydroelectric output has fallen because of a three-year drought stretching from British Columbia to Québec.
The Altadena fire: Could it really happen here?
One year ago, the Eaton Fire, one of the costliest wildfires in U.S. history, destroyed L.A.’s Altadena neighborhood. Nineteen people lost their lives, and over 9,400 buildings were destroyed. Total property values lost amounted to $25 billion. Are there lessons from the Easton Fire for Portland?
Yes. The Eaton fire provides a clear list of missteps Portland needs to avoid as droughts, heat, and high winds increase wildfire risk in North America. While L.A. is larger and more populated than Portland, there are similarities.
New Reports
What Really Drives California Gas Prices: Global Oil and Refinery Profits, Not Climate Policy
The West Coast of the U.S. has a highly concentrated supply system with serious concerns about market power and collusion in pricing. Statistical evidence indicates that California oil refiners actually increase their profit margins when global oil prices increase. Contrary to claims that the cost increases reflect California’s environmental programs, these are not correlated with gasoline prices. The reality is that gas prices are most impacted by global market dynamics, and dependence on petroleum for transportation is an expensive option in an uncertain world.
Per Chevron’s statements that it may close refineries in response to reduced imports of refined fuels, the data they cite are questionable, at best. California both imports and exports gasoline – frequently exporting more than it imports.
Trump and Energy: Mercantilist or Simply Confused?
Mercantilism in its simplest form is government intervention in international trade to block imports and expand exports. Over the last fourteen months, the United States has embarked on the second largest set of tariffs in its history. Only the Smoot-Hawley legislation of June 17, 1930, was more significant, and Smoot-Hawley was a major cause of the Great Depression.
New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) Scheduling Interruptions and Net U.S. Exports to Quebec
Quebec is in its third year of a major drought, and reservoirs continue to be drawn down to meet peak winter loads. Lower reservoirs hamper operational flexibility, which can lead to interruptions in NECEC exports, and increased imports to Quebec to address loads.