The hip bone is connected to the thigh bone and growth is connected to job growth is connected to employment issues is connected to consumer confidence is connected to cost of living which is connected to energy cost and availability which is…. well, you obviously get it. If growth is our only way out of the current mess, then anything that impacts that potential is relevant. The cost of oil impacts everything from how far you are willing to live from your (maybe) job and hence real estate prices to how much growth your company can afford. A corollary to oil costs is a more general reference to the cost of energy, and with aging nuclear reactors confronting natural disasters – provoking a more general examination by governments of potential flaws in their reactors – where sufficient reasonably-priced energy is going to come from is a big question.
The aftermath of the Fukushima reactor meltdown has been that a nation famous for neon lights and lavish lifestyles is now living with darker evenings and a lot less air conditioning. “On July 1, 2011, the government imposed mandatory curbs on electricity use in areas served by the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) and Tohoku Electric Power Co., based on article 27 of Japan's Electricity Business Act ‘Restriction on Use of Electricity.’ Under the order, big factories, office buildings and other heavy users of electricity are required to cut their electricity consumption by 15 percent compared to the summer 2010 peak level. In the non-industrial sector (commercial, academic, household, offices, etc.), on the other hand, small-scale users and households are being requested to voluntarily reduce their electricity use by 15 percent.
“Japan has been hit by fierce heat since late June, and not a single day passes without the topic of how to survive the summer's power shortages being covered in the media and on the Internet. Department stores and consumer-electronics, and retailers took the opportunity to offer various products to help keep cool in summer while saving electricity.” JapanFS.org, July 2011. New, efficient electric fans have replace air conditioners in many homes and businesses, and for the first time, consumers are beginning to use software programs that really cut electricity usage significantly: “Microsoft Japan Co. is offering free energy-saving software for home use, which can reduce the power consumption of computers using its Windows operation system by about 30 percent. The software automatically changes the settings of computers to save energy, for example, by lowering the display brightness to 40 percent of the normal level and putting the computers in standby mode when not in use.” JapanFS.org.
While this software is abundant in the United States and Western Europe, it has not caught on, even though the potential cost savings are significant: “It's not news that smart meter customers don't yet care enough to obsessively track their electricity use--that's presumably why both Google PowerMeter and Microsoft Hohm are going by the wayside. But a lack of interest isn't the problem; it's a lack of understanding… IBM's survey of over 10,000 people in 15 countries revealed that 30% of people surveyed don't know what the term ‘dollar per kwh’ means (or the equivalent in their country), over 60% of people don't know what a smart grid or smart meter is, and over half don't know if their utility has a clean energy program. If customers don't even know how they're paying for electricity, it's difficult to use smart meters to save.
“And here's the thing: IBM's survey found that 61% of people who are familiar with energy technology and pricing have a favorable view of smart metering, while only 43% of people with minimal knowledge view smart grid technologies in a positive light. Once people understand what the technology does, they think highly of it--and once that happens, it becomes more likely that they will pay attention to variable electricity pricing.” FastCompany.com, August 29th. With future sources of electrical coming into question, perhaps it is necessary to require the implementation of such power monitors nationwide.
The vulnerability of nuclear plants, which supplies about 20% of America’s electrical power with 104 reactors (according to the Nuclear Energy Institute), is an issue for more than the West Coast reactors sitting at or near major fault lines, as the recent Virginia/D.C. quake clearly illustrated. The shutdown of a nuclear reactor in Northern Virginia as a result makes the point very clearly: “‘Virginia quake may have exceeded nuclear plant design’…The historic earthquake that shut Dominion Resources Inc’s North Anna nuclear plant in Virginia [in late August] may have shaken the facility more than it was designed to withstand, the U.S. nuclear regulator said on [August 29th].
“The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said it had sent a special inspection team to the plant rocked by the 5.8-magnitude quake, after initial reviews from Dominion indicated the ground motion may have exceeded North Anna’s design parameters… The plant cannot be restarted until the operator can show no ‘functional damage’ occurred to equipment needed for safe operation, the NRC said.” Reuters, August 29th. We are much more blasé about the safety of our nuclear plants, and insufficiently few questions are being asked of the operators of those plants. Our policies appear to be reactive and not proactive. That is clearly not the case of other nuclear nations.
Germany may have opted for a greater possibility of rolling blackouts and insufficient electricity to power its great industrial machine rather than face fallibility of its aging nuclear reactor capacity, structures that may actually be “newer” than comparable facilities in the United States: “Nuclear plants have long generated nearly a quarter of Germany’s electricity. But after the tsunami and earthquake that sent radiation spewing from Fukushima, half a world away, the government disconnected the 8 oldest of Germany’s 17 reactors — including the two in this drab factory town — within days. Three months later, with a new plan to power the country without nuclear energy and a growing reliance on renewable energy, Parliament voted to close them permanently. There are plans to retire the remaining nine reactors by 2022.” New York Times, August 29th. But Germany has survived its recent cutbacks by purchasing electrical power from neighboring nations, even though some of that power may itself have been generated via nuclear reactors.
Where will Germany find that missing power? Green technology? Undoubtedly, there will be rise in this source of power, but unfortunately, the answers are likely to be in coal and gas-powered plants that have nothing but bad news for the environment: “Then there are real concerns that the plan will jettison efforts to rein in man-made global warming, since whatever nuclear energy’s shortcomings, it is low in emissions. If Germany, the world’s fourth-largest economy, falls back on dirty coal-burning plants or uncertain supplies of natural gas from Russia, isn’t it trading a potential risk for a real one?” NY Times. The message for the United States is simple: invest in power generation technology and usage monitors or get slammed for the disasters and shortages you did not prepare for.
I’m Peter Dekom, and the failure of our government to invest in our future is the legacy of shame we are passing down to future generations.
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