Global Electricity Grids Strained  

Adam Porter reports that electricity grids around the globe are struggling to meet demand. Australia isn't mentioned but its certainly the case here as well, and the likely upshot is that more coal fired plants are going to get built - and as I've moaned before increasing carbon emissions isn't a very wise option to choose at this point.

Talk of problems with grids always brings Richard Duncan's grim "Olduvai Cliff" theory to mind. Personally I've always thought his fears are overdone - but when I look at the impact power generation is having on the atmosphere and hence the water cycle (and how much water plants require for cooling), and imagine what would happen if oil supplies were interrupted for a period of time (as we need oil to dig up the coal and transport it to the plants), I can start to see how this nightmare could become a nasty reality.

The solution ? Conservation (reducing demand), increasing efficiency of use and increasing distributed power generation based on renewables wherever possible. Are these things happening now ? No, no and very slowly...

Electricity supply in developed countries is straining to cope with demand, an International Energy Agency (IEA) report suggests. In a report called 'Saving Electricity In A Hurry', the agency predicts there will be outages like those experienced in the United States, Japan and Canada.

Several developed countries have experienced power shortages and more are likely to occur, it says. A mix of factors lead to power cuts but pre-planning rarely happens, it adds.

The report lists recent electricity outages in the United States, Japan, New Zealand and Canada and says there is "reason to believe that this list will grow".