Northeast Grid Relies on Oil (Meredith Angwin) USofA

February 7, 2018

The Northeast Grid Relies on Oil

The Grid, Oil and Information Extremely cold weather stresses the grid During recent below-zero weather in New England, our grid was saved by oil. Most people believe that burning oil for electricity is a thing of the past, but that's only partially true.

My op-ed, Oil Kept the Power Grid Running in Recent Cold Snap, 1

ran on the first page of the Valley News Perspective section on January 28. The article has gathered a lot of interest, and has been shared extensively on Facebook. A stable supply of electricity is an important component of personal safety in winter. That is why the article is popular. People want to know what is happening with their electricity supply.

In general, gas-fired power plants cannot always get gas in cold weather, because home heating has priority for gas deliveries. And our grid is heavily dependent on gas. It was not merely "lucky" that oil was available for the power plants during the deep freeze; it was planned. Our grid operator, ISO-NE, had paid dual-fuel plants to stockpile oil: this was a major part of the "Winter Reliability Program" for our area.

At the top of this post, I show fuel use on 12/29, captured from the ISO-NE site on that day. Over 30% of our power was supplied by oil. Many similar charts are in the ISO-NE summary report: Cold Weather Operations December 24, 2017--January 8, 2018.

This is not an adventure story, so I won't share tales of heroism and derring-do. Still, we need to remember that "oil was available" was not a slam-dunk for this area, despite the Winter Reliability Program. Fuel availability required Coast Guard icebreakers, and bridges that were raised during high-traffic hours, in order to allow fuel ships to pass underneath. "Oil is available" is not the same as "nuclear plants keep running." In cold weather, fossil fuel delivery can be a problem. (There is a fair amount about this situation in the ISO-NE report above.)

And of course, an oil-heavy grid is a carbon-dioxide heavy grid.

Why we share information Why did I write an op-ed? I wrote some blog posts about the oil and the grid, (here, and here ) and Rod Adams wrote an excellent post that included more information about the Pilgrim plant. But how many people read our pro-nuclear blogs? Or maybe the question is: who reads pro-nuclear blogs? The general public does not read them.

In my book, Campaigning for Clean Air, I encourage pro-nuclear people to be visible---visible to everyone. We need to describe what is really happening to our electricity supply. Renewable energy is important, but it is not taking over the grid. The reality is quite 2

different. A low-carbon grid means a grid with nuclear energy (Sweden, Ontario) not a grid that is closing nuclear plants (Germany, New England).

Advocate!

Follow some of the links above and read about the grid in winter. I hope this will strengthen your commitment to keeping nuclear plants on-line! If so, please advocate for continued use of nuclear energy. A letter to the editor, a blog post, a discussion with a neighbor. It all helps!

Two New Reviews of Campaigning for Clean Air I am tremendously pleased at two new reviews of Campaigning for Clean Air, my book about advocating for nuclear energy.

The first review is at the Facebook page of The Pragmatic Environmentalist. Here's an excerpt from the review.

Just finished listening to this wonderful and powerful book by Meredith Angwin. Are you interested in making a difference in our fight against climate change? Than this book is an absolute necessity. The focus is on nuclear power, arguably the most important part of fighting climate change, but this book could easily be applied to fighting for other science based platforms.

I believe this is the first review of the audio version of the book. I am very pleased to see it!

The second review is in the newsletter of Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy http://www.efn-usa.org. This is an international organization, with members in many countries. Here's a link to the newsletter, and an excerpt from the review.

This book is a must read for anyone engaging with the public on nuclear power issues....

Topics include: Why Support Nuclear, The Nuclear Community, Nuclear Power for Clean Air, Build Your Team, Before You Go Public, Expert Help, Activism from Your Computer, Letter Writing, Petitions and Perseverance, Social Media, Blogging, Writing for the Web, Email Lists, Raising Money, Speaking in Public, Being in the Audience Where to buy the book 3

My book about advocacy can help you be a pro-nuclear advocate.

Ebook and paperback versions of Campaigning for Clean Air are available from Amazon, Nook, the American Nuclear Society, and other places. Since the book is also distributed by Ingram Spark, most local bookstores should be able to order a copy for you. The audio book is available from Audible and other sellers.

Have a healthy, happy winter!

And I hope we can have a happy, healthy grid!

Campaigning for Clean Air: Strategies for Pro-Nuclear Advocacy.

Meredith Angwin

68 Passumpsic Avenue, P O Box 741, Wilder, VT 05088 4

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