Student Post: Quenching our Nation's Thirst for Electricity: Greater Transmission or Reduced Use

The trend lately has been for businesses and individuals to reduce the amount of energy they consume on a day-to-day basis. This is being accomplished through energy efficient appliances and light bulbs, the use of geothermal energy to heat buildings, better architectural designs that account for optimal sunlight (or shade), unplugging devices when not in use, and more efficient means of transportation. The idea of reducing the amount of energy consumed is not only practical, but essential as we move forward as a nation and as a species. But, will becoming more energy efficient solve our growing need for energy? 

 

The population of this country and the planet is not going to decrease in the foreseeable future. Greater energy use will follow with a greater population base. Additionally, as our technology advances and our hunger for the latest devices increase, we will become increasingly reliant on the electrical grid. Cellular phones, laptop computers, tablets and perhaps eventually, electric vehicles have all found their ways into the homes of a large number of Americans. Will our reduced use of electricity through more energy efficient designs and appliances be able to negate the population growth?

 

I believe that in the short-term, technological advances that allow for greater energy efficiency coupled with a better understanding by the general public of the importance of energy conservation, we will be able to provide enough reliable electricity to meet all of our needs. In the long-term however, I am not so optimistic. 

 

A reworking of our country's electrical grid system that would provide for greater, more efficient, and reliable transfer of electricity will become a necessity. The time to upgrade this system should be sooner rather than later. No one like to spend money to prevent something that has the possibility of happening in the distant future, but the alternative may be far more severe especially at a time when we are even more dependent on electricity to power our daily lives. One of the main problems is that the cities that require the most electricity are also the cities without the resources to provide it for themselves. Generally speaking, the methods of producing electricity lie in the middle of the country with the major cities lying on the coasts. Transmission and an overhaul are going to cost money (and a lot of it), but waiting until the problem has become crippling to our economy and well-being will undoubtedly be worse.

 

I am not saying that energy conservation and energy efficient appliances and buildings aren't necessary. We need to reduce how much we use, but more importantly we need to realize that at our current capacity, reducing consumption by half is merely a band aid.