Power shortage looms

By Charles S. Johnson, of The Standard State Bureau HELENA -- With an arctic front moving into the Northwest this weekend, resi dents of Montana and other western states have been urged to take a number of con servation measures to prevent electricity shortages.

The cold front is expected to move in over the weekend and hit hardest from Monday through Thursday. But subnor mal temperatures are expect ed to linger into the following week. The Northwest security advisory issued a Stage II alert warning at the recom mendation of the Regional Emergency Response Team, which comprises Northwest utilities, federal hydro opera tions agencies and states. It is headed by the Northwest Power Pool, Northwest Utilities Conference Committee and the Northwest Power Planning Council. The Emergency Response Team will monitor the situa tion and intends to reconvene Sunday.

The Stage II warning is called when regional forecasts indicate that contractual requirements to supply elec tricity can be met only after including extraordinary actions. These actions include appealing to the public to reduce demand, reducing the voltage at which power is delivered, demand-side management such as shifting electrical use into periods of low use and interrupting non firm power allowed under contracts. The various Northwest energy groups recommend that people take these steps to conserve energy now to avert problems in the coming week: n Turn off unnecessary electrical equipment such as computers and lights. n Reduce thermostat settings in electrically heated buildings. n Wash dishes and clothes in cooler water. n Wrap water heaters and set them to no higher than 120 degrees. n Weather strip, caulk and take other steps to make homes more energy efficient.

John Hines, administrative officer for the Montana office of the Northwest Power Planning Council, said a Stage II warning often pre cedes a Stage II emergency alert `` like a weather forecaster giving a winter storm watch.'' `` There are actions that can be undertaken that can prevent going to the alert,'' he said. `` Conservation today means we'll avoid disrup tions later.'' There are three stages of warnings and three stages of alert, Hines said. During a Stage I alert, utilities are asked to put all generating capacity into use and curtail all nonfirm or unnecessary power sales and sales to other regions, he said. Utilities also are to buy power in the wholesale market no matter what the cost. At a Stage II alert, utilities must look for ways to reduce usage. Many large customers have nonfirm contracts that can be halted dur ing these emergencies. Utilities will ask consumers to voluntarily cut back and consumption, Hines said, so they can make sure demand doesn't exceed supply `` or we're in deep trouble.'' A Stage III alert means involuntary curtailments of power and rolling blackouts. The involuntary curtailments are done on a rotating basis at different times so that no one group of consumers or area bears the brunt alone. `` They wouldn't just target the city of Helena,'' Hines said. `` They would maybe do it for an hour and take it to another city.'' The last time that the state came close to a Stage III alert was in the winter of 1989, when the state experienced long periods of belowzero temperatures. California is at a Stage III alert, so it has no surplus power to ship to the Northwest when the arctic front moves in. Hines urged people to take whatever steps they could to conserve energy in the West. `` It's small on each household level, but when you're talking millions and millions of customers, it really makes a difference,'' he said. Added Hines: `` What's so unsettling is this is happening so soon in the year. It will take our hydro system down and if we don't get a blast of snow or rain, we'll really be in trouble.''

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), December 09, 2000