Pennsylvania

Keeping the air conditioners running in muggy Pennsylvania

Just back from visiting the family in Pennsylvania, where temperatures were hitting the high 90s. It was the kind of sticky, muggy, oppressively hot weather that reminds me why I live in the cool corner that is the Pacific Northwest.

As air conditioners were blasting away everywhere and lights were flickering, I was thinking that grid operators must be calling on every demand-response resource they could.

Back into post-vacation action, I came across an Aug. 10 release [PDF] from PJM Interconnect that confirmed it. The power grid was on emergency status and PJM, in fact, drew a record demand response -- 1,945 megawatts -- equal to a fair-sized city.

PJM also reduced voltage in the overall system by 1,000 MW, explaining those flickers. So I actually lived through the scenario with which I opened "Adventures in the smart grid no. 2." Damned glad they kept those air conditioners on.

Park Service hacks down some trees in Pa.

This is sorta effed. The National Park Service is cutting down hundreds of acres of trees on the Gettysburg Battlefield to restore historical accuracy. From NBC News in Pennsylvania: The National Park Service is starting another phase of its efforts to return Gettysburg Battlefield to how it looked in 1863, during the Civil War. The […]

Governors’ races along Eastern seaboard could lead to big environmental gains

While the Mark Foley mess has everyone’s attention riveted on the fast-changing congressional landscape, enviros should also keep an eye on gubernatorial races this November. “The state level is where all the truly positive environmental action has been happening in recent years,” says Tony Massaro, senior vice president for political affairs with the D.C.-based League […]

Environmentalists pick their sides in key Senate races

It’s a rare political event that can draw applause from both the White House and environmental groups, but Lincoln Chafee’s victory in the Rhode Island Republican primary on Tuesday was just that. Lincoln Chafee. The Bush administration reasons that Chafee — the most liberal Republican in the Senate, and frequently at odds with Bush on […]

Chamber of Horrors

You’d think the U.S. Chamber of Commerce wouldn’t have much free time on its hands these days, what with the raging debate over permanent normal trade relations for China. But the industry-friendly group recently managed to cobble together a charming volume called The Environmentalists’ Little Green Book, a compendium of off-the-wall quotes and blistering bon […]