Energy Needs in a Blazing Summer Sun

Where’s the Energy? Photo by Konrad Fiedler

When the power went out across two blocks (GMAP) on Union Ave, in Park Slope, the Food Coop was closed longer than it was during the 2003 blackout, the Sun reports today on their energy themed day. The outage was caused by undergroud fires, resulting from overheated equipment.There were sporadic blackouts accross the city yesterday as the state’s Independent System Operator reported a record peak demand for electricity on Monday.
In 2004, the mayor’s Energy Task Force called for an increase of energy production of 25% by 2008. But they now say current conservation measures are sufficient to meet rising demand until 2012. Con Ed said the past couple of days problems were the result of isolated equiment failures, and not an inability to meet demand. But the Sun still thinks the city dropped the ball. It doesn’t matter “whether the problem was a lack of electricity or an unreliable way to deliver it,” the opinion page posits, and they use yesterday’s subway signal failures as an example of why.
Power Outages [NY Sun]
“Stark Reminder” of Energy Woes [NY Sun]
Mayor Could do Better [NY Sun]
New York’s Energy Future [NY Times]
How to Reduce Your Energy Consumption [NRDC]