By: Mariam Malik
In present-day society, a life without energy would equate to one in darkness. Energy sources provide the needed fuel for the function of many day-to-day necessities – the need for it is beyond paramount, and hence, a blackout would be disastrous. In the late twentieth century, California was under the potential of blackouts, and energy prices became extortionate in response to the deregulation of the energy industry, yet all the while, nonrenewable energy sources dwindled. The incident contributed to California’s agenda for switching to renewable energy sources, a change that produced numerous benefits, such as improving the environment by reducing waste and promoting energy conservation. But this in turn raised other issues and problems concerning energy overload in transmission grids. So, what is the ultimate solution? A more stable energy system that promotes consistency in renewable energy resources should be promoted to prevent future energy problems in California relating to previous deregulation and the energy grid.
Throughout California’s history, energy problems have been consistent. The first major problem stemmed from the deregulation of the energy industry in 1998 when deregulation legislation took effect and spurred a medley of problems. According to David Whitman and authors in “A California Shock Wave?” legislators deregulated energy markets in the hope to reduce electricity costs by “enabling power producers to sell electricity to utilities on the spot market” (34). The plan failed, and the opposite occurred when the demand for power increased, but the supply did not – prices continued to hike up, and soon, power utility companies went into debt to purchase electricity from power producers. The situation worsened enough that the Pacific Gas & Electric company wrote to California Gov. Gray Davis “warning that without financial help, the cash-strapped utility would … run out of the natural gas that powered the ‘home gas furnaces, stoves, and water heaters’ of millions of residents (34). Eventually, the energy market was once again regulated, in 2001, and the utility companies were pulled out of debt. Undeniably, the market’s initial deregulation was a failure, but reregulating it didn’t lessen the major problem – energy sources, when nonrenewable, were depleting.
After the incident of California’s deregulation and then reregulation of the energy industry, Californians’ fear of an uncontrolled, state-wide blackout may have been abated, but the underlying issue was still present. In 2001, as Whitman and authors write, California had to undergo “rolling blackouts” – planned, limited blackouts – and utility plants shut down seventeen times compared to “having shut down just once in the previous fifteen years” in response to diminishing energy supplies (34). Luckily, in 2002, as stated by the U.S Energy Information Administration, California started the Renewable Portfolio Standard that required that “thirty-three percent of electricity retail sales in California came from eligible renewable resources by 2020” and that percentage continued to increase – to one hundred percent in 2045 (“California - State Energy Profile Analysis - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)”). The deregulation of the energy industry crisis worked to reveal what the underlying problem was and spurred the implementation of low carbon standards and the requirement for renewable resources. This has an overall benefit to society through improving public and environmental health, and hence, should continue to be implemented.
Implementing renewable energy in California sooner could’ve worked to resolve the deregulation crisis more quickly, but after its implementation in 2002, the benefits were still paramount. Hence, it improved the energy standards and situation in California for the better. The Renewable Portfolio Standard not only allowed renewable energy to answer problems concerning energy shortages but also benefited the public’s health through the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, standards the Portfolio had in regard to the electricity and fuel sector. According to Christina B. Zapata and authors in “Low-Carbon Energy Generates Public Health Savings in California,” the Standard “aimed at reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuels” and there was a corresponding decrease in “mortality due to air pollution” (4818). The benefits of renewable energy usage were further seen when Gov. Jerry Brown signed SB 100, a law that called for the transition to fossil-fuel-free electricity, requiring a steady increase in the percentage of renewable resources. A stronger shift to renewable energy was needed in order to combat the threat of climate change and global warming.
One of the most influential benefits of using renewable energy can be seen in its benefits to the environment. Energy sources play a key role in the progression of global warming, and according to the Union of Concerned Scientists in “Benefits of Renewable Energy Use,” the electricity sector accounts for “twenty-nine percent of global warming emissions … emissions that come from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas.” Renewable energy resources, on the other hand, produce little to no global warming emissions and allow for the replacement of carbon-intensive energy sources (“Benefits of Renewable Energy Use”). Undeniably, renewable energy has an overall greater benefit to society compared to fossil fuels and the like due to its ability to reduce greenhouse emissions. Hence, its implementation in California has had positive benefits. On the other hand, using renewable energy also poses problems concerning the power grid, and these problems can have substantial effects on the state’s day-to-day electricity function and offers potential safety risks.
When looking at the rate of changes to California’s electricity system in the past few decades, it can be easy to believe that the state has made leaps and bounds regarding its energy consumption and methods – some negative, such as deregulation, and some positive, such as the Renewable Portfolio Standard. However, while the Renewable Portfolio Standard has proven to benefit society by improving health and the environment, there are disadvantages to it as well. The root cause of the problem, ironically enough, is too much power. As stated by Kim Smuga-Otto, a UC Santa Cruz graduate in science communication, in “California’s Power Trip,” the problem stems from risk of overloading the grid, since efforts to store renewable energy have not kept up with the technology used to generate said energy. Solar energy is a major “green” energy source in California, yet “the state's aging natural gas plants aren't nimble enough to turn off when the sun starts shining and then quickly switch back on when it gets dark” (Smuga-Otto). Due to how the energy grid functions, there cannot be consistent use of renewable energy sources, and there is the potential for blackouts as well as fires if the grid is overrun. As stated by Nichola Groom in “California’s Clean Grid May Lean on Oil Gas to Avoid Summer Blackouts” in a recent, 2021 article, the energy system still has to “lean on fossil fuels … to keep the power on if scorching heat waves stretch its grid” (par. 1). If left unmanaged, the risk of overloading the energy grid can have devastating effects on the state’s citizens. As a result, improving the electric grid can eliminate this risk as well as promote the use of renewable energy.
The use of renewable energy has had myriad benefits for California, making it the better energy source choice. However, while the energy to generate renewable energy in the state has made leaps and bounds, the technology to store that energy in the grid systems have not, and this can raise problems concerning energy shortages, blackouts, and fires. Improving the energy storage systems and the grid is the best way to combat this issue while continuing the use of renewable energy. In Smart Grid Standards: Specifications, Requirements, and Technologies, Takuro Sato, an electronics engineer, and authors write that the best way to make renewable energy into a stable energy source is by “monitoring power supply and demand in real-time and obtaining a balance between supply and demand by integrating conventional electric grid with up-to-date information and communication technologies” (1). This would allow electricity to be discharged to the grid when needed, instead of having the grid rely on non-renewable resources during the night – when solar power isn’t available. Mandates in California have further driven the importance and need for the energy storage system to improve. According to “California’s Power Trip,” “the California Public Utilities Commission has mandated that PG&E, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric [utility companies] have a combined 1,325 megawatts of storage no later than 2024” (Smuga-Otto). While there are engineering challenges to this, the author further explains that “Todd Strauss, PG&E’s senior director of energy policy says … that the utility is on track to add its 500-megawatt share of storage on schedule” (Smuga-Otto). Implementing a more up-to-date energy storage system is feasible in California and can further the usage of renewable energy in the state.
Overall, energy plays a monumental role today, and by default, so does the type of energy used and the energy system. In California, problems concerning energy first arose in the early twenty-first century due to the deregulation of the electric industry, yet when the market was once again regulated, the problem was not fully resolved – energy problems would continue when the energy source, nonrenewable resources such as fossil fuels, was depleting. Starting in 2002, mandates that required the usage and increase of renewable energy sources were executed. This yielded positive results – renewable energy resources were not finite, carbon emissions were lowered, the physical health of the citizens improved, and environmental concerns, such as global warming, were lessened. However, as most things in life are wont to do, the usage of renewable energy does raise its own difficulties since energy storage systems are not as efficient as the technology used to generate energy from renewable resources, and overloading the grid can have negative effects. The ultimate solution to this problem is updating the energy storage systems, as this will promote the usage of renewable energy while eliminating its drawbacks. While there are engineering challenges present, utility companies in California continue to improve the energy storage system. In the end, the usage of renewable energy allows for the establishment of smarter power and a greener future.
Works Cited
“Benefits of Renewable Energy Use.” Union of Concerned Scientists, 14 July 2008, www.ucsusa.org/resources/benefits-renewable-energy-use.
“California - State Energy Profile Analysis - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).” Independent Statistics & Analysis, www.eia.gov/state/analysis.php?sid=CA. Accessed 8 Dec. 2021.
Groom, Nichola. “California’s Clean Grid May Lean on Oil, Gas to Avoid Summer Blackouts.” Reuters, 12 Aug. 2021, www.reuters.com/business/energy/californias-clean-grid-may-lean-oil-gas-avoid-summer-blackouts-2021-08-11.
Sato, T., et al. Smart Grid Standards: Specifications, Requirements, and Technologies. eScholarship, University of California, 2015.
Smuga-Otto, Kim. "California's Power Trip." San Jose Mercury News, 27 Mar 2015. SIRS Issues Researcher, https://fcep.ohlone.edu/login?url=https://explore.proquest.com/sirsissuesresearcher/document/2263118323?accountid=35808.
Whitman, David, et al. “A California Shock Wave?” U.S. News & World Report, vol. 130, no. 3, Jan. 2001, p. 34. EBSCOhost, search-ebscohost-com.fcep.ohlone.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=3966433&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Zapata, Christina B., et al. “Low-Carbon Energy Generates Public Health Savings in California.” Atmospheric Chemistry & Physics, vol. 18, no. 7, Apr. 2018, pp. 4817–4830. EBSCOhost, doi:10.5194/acp-18-4817-2018.
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