Ask Andy

Snapped like toothpicks

2010-11-23T15:19:00.000-08:00

Today's the day after the big snow, but it's been a day of heavy duty action for PSE crews across the area.

About 100,000 of our customers lost power during the storm, which literally snapped power poles like the proverbial toothpick. As of 3:45 p Tuesday, about 57,000 are still out, with most expected to be restored to service by Wednesday, although some isolated areas may be out of power into Thanksgiving.

These pictures were taken near Dash Point, which saw winds of about 50 mph along with several inches of snow.

The worst outages were in the south end, in places like Dash Point, and in the west side of the Puget Sound on the Kitsap Peninsula and Vashon Island.

The outages were primarily caused by fallen trees and branches, and as you can see from these pictures some of the poles sheared off -- a graphic testament to what some are now calling the "Gizzard Blizzard" in honor of Thanksgiving Day being around the corner.

Our Service Alert Map has more on the outages, but I'll add that we have 75 PSE crews working on the Kitsap Peninsula as we head into Tuesday evening -- and we hope to have most customers back in service by Wednesday, although some isolated areas may not see the power back until Thanksgiving, especially if more snow falls Wednesday night as some weather models predict.

Thanks to all of our customers for their patience. This has been an extraordinary storm, and is probably the nastiest pre-Thanskgiving weather I can recall.

If you are out of power, please call us at 1-888-225-5773.

If you know someone who is out of power, perhaps one of these area warming shelters may help.

Snow-vember

2010-11-22T14:29:00.000-08:00

A cold and snowy November Monday, with one of the earliest winter storms we have seen in many years coming our way. Technically, this is of course, still autumn, but meteorologically this is considered "winter weather" for obvious reasons - and if you are skeptical head up to Whatcom County where the wind is blowing nearly 50 mph and the temperatures are in the lwo 20s, all of which adds up to a wind chill of about 10 degrees or less. Make that Novem-brrr!

Fortunately, that rather non-descript looking facility in the photo (taken on a sunny summer day, I believe) is one reason we are ready for winter. When it comes to meeting customer needs in a snow storm, you'd best be doing your planning when the sun shines if you are a utility. More on that in a few paragraphs . . .

Today's snow was well-predicted by the computer models and local forecasters, but still comes as something of a surprise in the sense that snow this early in the season is a rare thing. In recent years, we have had only two major November snows, one in 1996 and one in 1985. I remember both very well, as the chance of snow this time of year is usually pretty slim.

The November 19, 1996 storm moved in quickly, laying down 4-6" of snow in rapid fashion from the north to the south. The 1985 storm was even more dramatic, with 8-12" of snow and temperatures that dropped to the single digits in some areas and that are still in the record books today. I was a UW student then, and remember that there was so much snow that the U closed early for the holiday break, something it seldom does.

Despite the snow and cold, our PSE system is doing well, with more strain coming from last week's windstorm that knocked out power to 140,000 of our customers for a day or so Monday and Tuesday than from this early blast of winter. We've also invested in a large natural gas reserve at Jackson Prairie in Lewis County, which ensures an adequate supply of gas is on hand for extreme cold. The JP facility is what is in that sunny day photo, and it is a pretty amazing piece of engineering, using natural caverns to store natural gas purchased in spring and summer (when prices are usually lower) for our use in the winter. Not much to look at, but a huge help in meeting natural gas needs at a reasonable cost when the mercury drops.

If you do ever lose power or have issues with the natural gas service to your home or business, please call us at 1-888-225-5773. You can also report outages online at PSE.com, and during big storms we put up a service alert map on the web as well.

Remember, too, that a generator might be helpful if there is an outage during the winter, but that a generator should only be used outdoors (and never in a garage) and should be at least 10 feet from any combustible surface such as the wall of a building. The exhaust and other parts of a generator can get very hot and cause a fire if too near a building, and the exhaust is also deadly -- with odorless, colorless carbon monoxide. Here's more on generator safety.

Be careful what you wish for . . .

2010-11-04T15:43:00.000-07:00

All this November sun sure feels like just the ticket after a Monday start to the month that brought record rain and a feeling that the winter blahs were here to stay.

Yet, history tells us that a warm November can be a false indicator of an easy winter, and in fact, the records we are breaking now come from November 1949, which was the warmest November ever -- and was soon followed by the coldest winter in local history.

As detailed in Scott Sistek's great blog on the KOMO news site, the cold set in from mid-December and stayed until early February, with temperatures far below normal for weeks at a time -- including a January in a deep freeze that included the coldest day ever recorded at SeaTac: 0 degrees on Jan. 31, 1950.

More on that incredible winter can be found at the HistoryLink.org website, and at KIRO and KING's websites as well.

The usual caveats apply here as they always do when making big predictions about the weather, but one thing is certain: a warm November is far from a sign that an easy winter is ahead.

For more on getting ready for winter weather go to Take Winter By Storm.org.

La Nina, La Shmina?

2010-11-03T09:07:00.000-07:00

It's so hot you could fry an egg on the sidewalk (well, at least by November standards), and over that sizzling sound I can hear the weather-skeptics saying "La Nina, what La Nina????"

With temperatures today heading to the upper 60s and a shot at the record books, it's easy to wonder if the predictions of a colder, wetter and generally more rugged winter due to La Nina were all wrong. But, don't stick a fork in the long-term forecast just yet, we have a long, long ways to go until we can say that we have dodged a bullet in winter weather.

Today will likely fall just short of the record of 70 degrees from 1970, with highs somewhere in the 65-69 range for most areas -- far above the lower to mid 50s that are typical for early November. Perhaps the warming is caused by all the post-election hot air from pundits and spinmeisters talking about the vote, but it's really more likely just one of those fluky things that happens because that's the way weather is.

La Nina, which is when the Pacific Ocean is cooler than average, is a condition that occurs every few years, and is the opposite of El Nino, which is when the Pacific sea surface temperatures are warmer than average. In an El Nino year, we in the Northwest tend to get an easy winter (was we did in the El Nino of 2009-2010 winter), and in a La Nina, we around Puget Sound usually get thumped, with more snow, rain and gusty weather than average -- along with cooler than normal temperatures.

So, you are no doubt wondering how we can have this "heat wave" today and be having scientists talk about a cool winter?

A few things explain the inconsistency.

First, the impact of La Nina isn't typically felt until later in the season, with the colder, wetter weather kicking in after mid-November and lasting through early April. Although we've seen some wet and windy weather already the last few weeks, it's still a little early in the year for La Nina to be counted out.

Second, even in a La Nina year, we will see some nice weather in the winter time -- although those days may be few and far between. Colder and wetter than average doesn't mean non-stop rain, just more winter weather overall than we usually see. Memory is tricky, however, and we tend to look at past events and skew them a bit. As an example, in the La Nina of 1998-1999, we set a record of 90 days with rain in the 120 day period of November through February. Yet, almost every time I hear someone refer to this statistic, it comes out as "90 straight days of rain," rather than the slightly less grim 90 of 120 -- which isn't exactly a paradise but did leave room for the odd sunny day to slip into the mix and brighten things up a tad here and there in that very gloomy winter.

Consider also, as we ponder today's sun, that in the very mild El Nino winter of last year we did set some records for cold weather in mid-December -- only to rebound to the warmest January on record. It was definitely a mild winter in 2009-2010, but that didn't mean there weren't days when it was pretty frosty now and then.

So, enjoy the sun today, but be ready -- La Nina is still coming our way, and I would bet that the rain will fall, the wind will blow, the mercury will plunge, the snow will pile up, and a few nice days will pop by once in a while to remind us that the sun hasn't gone away completely.

To get ready for the season ahead, stop by Take Winter By Storm for tips on preparing your home or business for whatever comes our way.

Season's first storm?

2010-10-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Lots of talk this week about the "season's first storm", and while that may be a bit overblown for those thinking of our epic winter weather in the past, we will see a turn this weekend from the sunshine of this week to some wet and blustery weather as indicated in this bulletin from the National Weather Service.

On the satellite, the storm is the red-purple comma shaped thing off the Washington coast. Right now, the track looks too far north to do much damage, but all storms such as this bear watching as it is the first of its type to our way since last year.

In my television days, I learned that every newscast, morning, evening or weekend, got to have its own "first storm" (and "first snow"), so expect this to the first of many "first storms" to come our way. Kind of like when I saw the Rolling Stones "farewell tour" . . . in 1981. And yet, I think Mick, Keef and the boys are probably still on the road somewhere right now.

But, "first storms" sell newspapers and drive TV audiences, so they are here to stay. Regardless of the hype however, we are going to see the weather get a bit gusty and wet over the weekend, and the tops of the Cascades could see some snow. As the UW's Cliff Mass notes, the coast could see some high winds and big waves as well.

The message is that while this weekend's weather won't likely be much more than a blustery, cool reminder for most of us around Puget Sound, it's a clear sign that authentic Autumn storms are not far away and should remind us all ought to be prepared. With a LaNina winter, we're likely to get some rough weather if history is any guide.

If you haven't gone through the house to see if you are prepped for storm season, take a look here for some great tips on making sure you and your family are set.

Here comes trouble . . .

2010-10-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

Have you heard what's coming our way?

The National Weather Service is expecting a classic LaNina year, with more rain, more cold, more snow and more wind than a typical winter -- and certainly a lot more weather than the cake walk that was last year's El Nino non-winter. La Nina is when the Pacific ocean is colder than average, which tends to send more strong storms our way from late Fall through early Spring. El Nino, when the ocean is warm, shunts those same storms to California.

Remember the "snowmaggedon" of 2008, when many of us saw two feet of snow on the ground in December -- and then the huge floods of January 2009 that came when it all melted? That was LaNina. The picture here shows one of our line trucks out in the snow dealing with the frozen streets that were oh-so-nasty.

Remember the 90 days of rain in November to February 1998-1999? Also LaNina, in a year that piled up crazy amounts of mountain snow, with Mount Baker racking up more than 1000" over the season -- and stealing the world record for snow from Mount Rainier, which set the record during another LaNina year in the early 1970s.

While it is impossible to know exactly what will hit, it is easy to know that getting prepared is a wise move in this or any winter. That's why PSE has once again joined State Farm, the City of Seattle and King County in the Take Winter By Storm program to help you and your family get ready.

The program is all about taking action so you can stay safe, and has a website with an easy checklist of what you will need, and also a printable "contact card" that you can use to put down your family's emergency contact phone numbers and tuck it somewhere safe.

We also have plenty of safety tips for things such as generators at PSE.com, as well as what we're doing to build a robust electric grid and natural gas system to better withstand rough weather.

No matter what we do, however, the lights will sometimes go out -- and with LaNina on the way it's best to use our remaining few easy days to get ready for whatever comes!

Snoqualmie to solar -- it's all here

2010-04-16T08:59:00.001-07:00

We live in a pretty interesting area, where we have enough precipitation (both rain and snow) to have a majestic waterfall at Snoqualmie, and enough sun to support solar power.

The Snoqualmie story will be told this weekend on KCTS Channel 9 through a special showing of "The Power of Snoqualmie Falls", a great video by local filmmaker Stephen Sadis that was underwritten by PSE. The story, though, isn't really about PSE, but is more focused on Charles Baker, the man who had the vision to build the falls power plant in the 1890s. Baker was an amazing guy, who, much like a Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos or other modern-day entrepreneur in our area, saw an opportunity where others did not -- and courageously built the world's first underground hydroelectric power plant, then was forced out of the company he founded after a death in his family, a lawsuit over a will and a whole lot of drama that makes for some great television.

The video airs on Channel 9 this Saturday at 7 p.m., and is a treat for anyone interested in local history. You can get your own copy of the show through a donation to KCTS, which will help keep this kind of local television coming to your living room.

The Snoqualmie story, however, is far from finished, as PSE is now modernizing the power plant, helping this pioneering renewable energy project produce more clean power for generations to come, and also improving the park facilities for visitors. You can read more about the project on our website.

And now to the solar part of the story. PSE is proud to support solar projects for our customers (in fact, nearly 600 PSE customers now have grid-connected solar units at home) and also in our schools. I recently had a chance to meet an incredible student at my alma mater, Mercer Island High School, who had been the driving force behind MIHS getting a solar project on the roof of the school cafeteria.

You can meet Harry Bolson in a nice story from KOMO-TV, and hear from him what it took to get this project up and running. He's the nicest kid you'd ever want to meet, and makes me wonder what the heck I did when I was in high school!

From waterfalls to wunderkinds, we have it all.

Skagit style: a tulip travelogue

2010-04-05T16:28:00.000-07:00

It was a little cold and windy for April, but spending a day in the tulips of Skagit County is a worthwhile family outing even when it feels like Spring has slipped back into Winter. Normally, I don't do a "travelogue" in this blog (which would make it a "travelblog"), but after a fine family outing over the weekend I decided to make an exception and bang out a few words on the subject of the Tulip Festival.

If you haven't been to Mount Vernon and vicinity for the annual bloom, then it is a must. And, if you always go, then make sure to hit it this year. I don't know if it is me, but the colors really seemed to "pop", even on a cloudy Easter Sunday afternoon. Huge reds, fiery oranges, glowing yellow and some purples so deep they were almost unreal. And, it's all happening just a few miles west of Mount Vernon, not far from Interstate 5.

Mostly, this is an energy column, and in fact there is a connection here, as just a few miles down Beaver Marsh Road from the "RoozenGarden" (which is the epicenter of the tulip universe) is Farm Power NW, which operates a dairy digester that helps power the PSE Green Power Program. In truth, the tulips are a little prettier than the dairy digester (although the giant orange engine that powers the generator is kind of pretty to some of us), but the dairy digester -- which converts manure to methane and then to renewable electricity -- is helping to keep Skagit County's agricultural heritage thriving. By turning a waste product (manure) into something valuable (clean electric power), the Farm Power operation is making our economic ups and downs a little smoother for Skagit County.

Do you love the tulips? Like seeing a little agriculture in action? Enjoy a little open space? Then consider signing up for the PSE Green Power Program, which purchases all the energy from the dairy digester. By supporting Green Power, you provide the market that makes innovations like this possible and keeps communities strong.

Take a look, too, at the Skagitonians To Preserve Farmland website for more on their efforts locally to keep a beautiful and unique community full of cows, tulips and all things natural.

Spring storms in!

2010-03-29T15:43:00.000-07:00

A wet and windy Sunday night and Monday for much of the area, with a few downed trees causing some power outages across western Washington, both for PSE and other utilities.

Is it unusual to get a storm this time of year? Somewhat, but not really. (How's that for a waffle of an answer?) Our typical season for big storms is more like October through early March, but weather is weather and we can see gusty winds, rain and mountain snow (all three of which came roaring through yesterday and early this morning) well into April and sometimes May. That's why being prepared with an emergency kit at home (and in your car) is a good idea any time, even when it feels like warmer, more pleasant weather is here. Even in summer, a power outage can occur, so even then knowing where the flashlight and battery radio are is a wise idea.

The National Weather Service did an excellent job of forecasting this gusty weather, with their forecasts indicating the potential for high winds well in advance. The NWS now has a survey online to help them serve our region better. Please take a few minutes and fill it out -- the data the NWS gathers will help their meteorologists serve us all better.

Click here for the latest forecast and here for tips on storm preparedness.

Home, Sweet Home Show

2010-02-24T10:38:00.001-08:00

Home improvement is a frightening subject for many of us (especially those of us who have suffered severe "hammer-related injuries" or other do-it-yourself calamities). Fortunately, there are experts who tell you how to do it right, or how to do it while you sit back and watch.

The Seattle Home Show is going on this week, and it is a fantastic chance to find out how to make your domecile more appealing, and to talk face-to-face with PSE's Energy Advisors. You can reach them anytime by dialing 1-800-562-1482 during business hours and they will help go over questions about energy use and how to save money. At the Home Show, though, you get to meet these rock stars of conservation up close and personal, and then go talk to the contractors and vendors who have the efficient furnaces, heat pumps, solar panels, etc. for your home.

The Home Show is huge, and finding our booth isn't easy. In fact, I trooped around for a while, successfully getting completely lost inside the Qwest Field events center. Helpful hint: the PSE booth is located at the far east end of aisles 600 and 700. Which way is east? Well, it's toward the end of the events center that is nearest to the train tracks that run by Qwest Field and Safeco Field. When you hear the train whistle (like you do during Mariners games) then you're getting close.

We have a lot of new rebates and programs this year, including for geothermal heat pump systems and home energy audits.

If you're thinking about home upgrades, energy efficiency is the upgrade that keeps on giving. It makes your home more comfortable (so you get the most for the space you're paying for each month) and it saves money as well. And, if you decide to move, the upgrades help boost the value of your home as well.

Check out the Home Show (in fact, I'll be there on Sunday at 3:30 at the speaker's area on the upper concourse) or visit us online to find out how we can make your home even sweeter.

What's up with the weather?

2010-02-18T16:18:00.000-08:00

Can a February afternoon get any better? From the standpoint of sunny skies and feeling like it's already April, the answer is clearly no. Most years, we're in the middle of the grind-it-out, deal-with-it season of Gray Skies and Endless Drizzle. This year, however, those usual dreams of Hawaii, Mexico or Arizona have been put on hold, replaced by daydreaming out the office window as blue skies brighten mid-winter.

The only trouble is, all this blue sky is not doing our mountain snowpack any favors. If you've been watching the Olympics, you've no doubt seen how the skiers and (especially) boarders have been pretty challenged by some un-winter weather. The last few days at least there's been some snow at Whistler, unlike at Cypress where there's been more rain than snow for much of the last few months.

Is it climate change? That debate, in my mind, side tracks our attention from two issues that our region faces regardless of global warming (or as one columnist called it "global weirding").

Issue number one is that our region depends on hydropower for much of its energy supply (about 60 percent for the NW as a whole), and hydropower depends on melting snow to keep the turbines spinning in spring and summer. But snowpack has always been highly variable, with great early season snowpacks routinely washed away by spring rains, and vice versa, with weak early season snows giving way to heavy snowfall well into April and May. Variety has been the one thing we have always been able to count on when it comes to mountain weather.

Issue number two is that even if the snowpack were absolutely stable, and never varied for any reason -- whether it's global warming or random chance -- our energy use is growing and our ability to rely on good ol' hydro is decreasing. That's one reason why PSE is looking to wind power plants, natural gas power plants and other resources (including solar) -- and why energy efficiency needs to be front and center for any planning we do as a utility and our state and region do as a whole.

Energizing the classroom

2010-02-09T10:14:00.001-08:00

Remember that great teacher you had as a kid? The one who made a subject you never liked suddenly become totally cool and interesting?

Truly gifted and enthusiastic, they made school something you looked forward to, with each day an adventure both in what you learned about the subject -- and in what you learned about yourself as you tackled something new.

Fortunately, teachers like that are still in classrooms all over Western Washington, and PSE is helping them give kids a great education by supporting wind and solar projects at schools in our area.

If you're an educator, administrator or parent, please take a look at the just-issued "request for proposals" for our 2010 Renewable Energy Education program grants. The program, formerly called the "Solar Schools" program, is now a little broader and also includes wind projects as well as solar arrays.

PSE has helped fund 20 educational solar projects at schools and community facilities around our area, including one from our 2009 round of grants for Coupeville Middle and High School, picutured here. This array was installed by the gang at Whidbey Sun & Wind, who contributed their knowledge, enthusiasm and elbow grease to get the project up and running smoothly.

The most exciting part about the renewable energy in education program to me has been the teachers, administrators and parents who have been involved in each project. I've met a number of the people who've teamed up to make grant applications to PSE, and they are all just like that "favorite teacher" you remember: enthusiastic, smart and always looking for something extra for "their kids."

If you are interested in the PSE solar and wind for education program, please visit the grant application information at PSE.com.

The school wind and solar systems generate a little energy (enough to power about 20 laptop computers), but more importantly generate ideas in the classroom as students use tracking software and other tools to study how their system works in different kinds of weather -- and how they can better manage their energy use to get the most out of the power they now make.

Like spending your own money, generating your own energy makes you conscious of every kilowatt -- in the same way that digging into your own pocket when you're a kid makes you think twice about every nickel, dime or quarter at the candy counter.

And, if you're thinking about solar at home, we can help with that, too.

Spring already?

2010-02-04T15:46:00.001-08:00

The grass in my yard is growing, and I'm none too happy about it! It may only be the first few days of February, but it feels like spring is already here.

Just days ago, we closed out the warmest January on record, with daily average temperatures that were well above normal, running at 47 degrees for the month. This run of above average winter heat broke marks going back more than a century. Interestingly, while it was warmer, it was wetter as well, with about an inch more rain than average -- about 6" for the month at SeaTac rather than the typical 5".

Warmer, but rainier? Actually the two often go together in winter. If it's warm, we are often getting moderate to heavy rain, and not bright sunshine. By contrast, our clearest days in the winter are often very cold.

This past January was kind of an odd mix, with some very wet days, a bit of windy weather mid-month around the MLK holiday, and also some nice partly sunny, high clouds days that weren't necessarily stunning -- but were certainly a nice change from how gray winter can be.

Now, after the January warm up, we're into a pretty pleasant February. The only trouble is that this is the time of year that is critical to our mountain snow pack, which is vital for salmon, farmers and hydro power, such as PSE's Upper Baker dam in Skagit County (pictured here).

The good news is that we have until late March to catch up; the bad news is that with El Nino dominating our weather, history is against us as far as getting big late season snow fall.

In the meantime, skinny snow packs are another great reason to be energy efficient. Here are some easy ways to save energy -- and keep some water behind the dam for summer -- at PSE.com.

And will we get more snow? Keep the snow shovel handy, there's still a few weeks left before we can count Old Man Winter out for good.

It's movie time! Snoqualmie Falls on TV tonight

2010-02-01T15:44:00.000-08:00

We interrupt our regular blogging for this special bulletin!

Generally, this blog is not a replacement for TV Guide, but I wanted to get a note out about a great program on KCTS-9 TV tonight at 9:00 p.m. that's all about the story of how the power plant at Snoqualmie Falls was built back in the 1890s by a predecessor company of PSE.

Although it's the story of the world's first underground hydroelectric plant, the "Power of Snoqualmie Falls" is also a story of big dreams, dashed hopes and a lot of other drama over the past century.

The falls was built more than a century ago, and is still providing clean power for our region, and is now going to be improved with new technologies that should keep it humming away for a long time to come. The visitors area (one of the most popular tourist attractions in our region) is also being spiffed up, with new facilities opening later this spring.

The program airs tonight at 9:00 on KCTS-9 TV.

Renton kids see bright future in energy

2010-01-28T14:07:00.000-08:00

Who's a big fan of cow manure? I guarantee that asking this question to a group of junior high kids is a very entertaining way to start a conversation about career planning.

What do you want to be when you grow up? Me, I'm still trying to decide, but the students at Renton's Nelsen Middle School seem to have a pretty good handle on the future, and for many, that future is in being part of new thinking about energy.

I spoke to six classes of 6th, 7th and 8th graders today, and they are pretty sharp when it comes to energy and how it affects their lives. Sure, a few kids looked a little sleepy when the buzzer rang for home room at 7:55 a.m. (and that was before I started my presentation), but most "get it" that energy is going to have an impact on their lives one way or the other.

My main "career day" message is that we have two big issues in the energy world -- rising energy demand and rising concern about the economy and environment -- and that solving those issues is vital to their future, but also holds a lot of cool opportunities to have an interesting job and make a difference in the direction society takes.

After talking about the basics of energy (Number one: today, your parents get the bill, but tomorrow it has your name on it), we talked about what the kids liked to do, and how their interests could be a good path toward a career in energy. '

For example, one young lady said she liked drawing and painting -- and was a little skeptical that the arts had much connection to the energy industry. However, with some help from her classmates, we quickly outlined a career path for a budding artist that involved coming up with compelling images to educate people on ways to save energy.

Another student said he liked math, and that was pretty easy to link to energy. Some high quality engineering noggins have spent a lot of time figuring out how to build wind turbines, solar panels, hydro plants and other cool machines, or to putting in a few miles of natural gas piping. My 7th grade mathematician was smiling at the idea that perhaps he could put his pencil and calculator to work designing a new, clean way to produce energy, or to use them more wisely with electronics and other items that were more efficient.

Thanks to the gang at Nelsen for a great morning, and look out all you grown ups, there are some smart kids eager to get out and put their mark on the world. Not too long from now, I expect I'll be seeing them here at PSE -- and we'll be the better for it.

June-uary? El Nino causing calendar conundrum

2010-01-21T11:35:00.000-08:00

Time to play the game that everyone's talking about -- What Month Is It? This new parlor pasttime involves guessing whether it is January or June, winter or summer. Lately, it's been hard to know as we are on pace for a record warm January.

After a cold December, temperatures this January are running about 7 degrees above normal, with a daily average temperature (meaning the average between each day's high and low temperature) of 47 degrees, versus a more typical 40 degrees. That has a big impact on energy consumption, with PSE customers generally using less electricity and natural gas than last year at this time. The only caution with that kind of statement, though, is the fact that we are only one cold snap away from record energy demand -- such as the cold weather a few weeks back in the early part of last month that set new marks for electric and natural gas demand.

What's behind the warm up? Is it climate change? No, not in this case. Rather, the weather we've been seeing is typical of El Nino, which is a warming of Pacific Ocean sea-surface temperatures that gives us a warmer and somewhat drier than normal winter. In contrast, El Nino gives California a wetter and cooler winter, which is why some big storms are hitting California while in Washington it feels like spring is here early. The satellite picture here shows the "big weather" moving in down south, and just a little ripple coming our way -- the reverse of the usual winter weather for the West Coast.

While it's wonderful to be blogging while seeing some sun out the window on a January day, the troubling part is the fact that this kind of year is not good for the snowpack that we need for salmon runs, agriculture and hydropower. Right, now organizers of the Vancouver Olympics are a little nervous that snow is looking thin for all that gold medal schussing to come in February.

Does this mean we are facing a snow shortage (and summer water shortage)? Not necessarily, as February and March are often huge months for mountain snow. But, being smart about water use is always a good idea, and when you save water you are also saving energy -- and money. A nice "triple play" to make at a time when spring appears to have sprung early.

Winter at Wild Horse

2010-01-14T08:54:00.001-08:00

It may be fairly mild and rainy around much of the Puget Sound area, but at 3,500 feet of elevation on Central Washington's Whiskey Dick Mountain it looks like winter.

These pictures were taken this week at PSE's Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility, which is sited on Whiskey Dick about 15 miles east of Ellensburg along the Vantage Highway in Kittitas County.

Earlier in the season, our crew at Wild Horse reported winds in the 30 to 40 mph range and temperatures in the single digits, making for some brutal wind-chill numbers but also a lot of clean, renewable energy.

The site is quite beautiful in a unique way, with a "shrub-steppe" habitat that is filled with small cactus and other plants that you might not associate with Washington state if you are more familiar with the wetter, mossier west side of the Cascades.

The winter weather means we can't have visitors right now, but the Renewable Energy Center visitors facility will reopen on April 1 and stay open through November 30 for its third season of providing an "up close" look at how renewable energy works.

Meantime, enjoy these cool pictures and start planning a trip over the mountains for when the weather warms up!

Geothermal, can you dig it?

2010-01-07T09:42:00.000-08:00

Consumers being consumers, we all like to choose exactly what product or service is right for us. Some things I buy wouldn't be right for you, and vice versa. Each product may be good overall, but not a good choice for what we need individually.

This includes products that can help us live smarter and save a few dollars -- including those that can help us be more energy efficient.

Fortunately, PSE now has more "ways to save" with an expanded range of products that are eligible for our energy efficiency rebates. The goal is to allow you to better pick what works for your lifestyle, and your home.

One cool new item is a $1,500 rebate for an ENERGY STAR qualified geothermal heat pump. These have been gaining in popularity over the past few years, particularly on the East Coast where many homes don't have natural gas and must use home heating oil, but are now catching on in our area as well. In particular, they may be a great choice if you live in an area without natural gas service, and have instead been using electric baseboard heat or an electric furnace, neither of which is terribly efficient. The illustration here shows how the systems use horizontal, diagonal or vertical "wells" to tap into the "heat" underground (in winter) or the "cool" underground (in summer).

The geothermal heat pumps take advantage of what's called "reversal of seasons" between the air and the ground. In winter, the temperature of the soil underground is usually warmer than the air above, making for a source of heat for your home. In summer, the opposite happens, and the ground is usually cooler than the air, making for a source of cooling. A geothermal system taps into this "reversal of seasons", providing a very neat and efficient heating and cooling source. The system isn't right for all homes or locations, but it may be just the thing for some applications, and now our broader range of rebates will help the economics if it is right for your needs. As you might note from the handy color cartoon, this won't work in every location, but is certainly a good choice for some homes -- and choice is what our rebate program is all about.

If you are on electric heat, but geothermal won't work in your location, we also now have a "conversion rebate" of $1,000 for switching from forced-air electric heat to a natural gas system.

Choices. Always good to have more of them, but they can be confusing. Looking for what's right where you live and how you live? Please call our Energy Advisors at 1-800-562-1482 and they can help with some of the choices. Nice to have more options, but even better to have options plus information. The Energy Advisors can provide both.

Solar powers up in 2009

2009-12-30T16:04:00.001-08:00

Number one question I get at any speaking engagement in the area: "Does solar work in Western Washington?" Yes, it does, and in fact solar just had its best year ever as measured by the number of PSE customers connecting their home or small business solar systems to our grid. Don't let today's cloudy satellite picture fool you. December may not be solar season, but we do okay in making electricity from the sun for much of the year, in large part because of our long days from April through early October.

In 2009, some 197 PSE customers hooked up to our grid through out "net metering" program, which gives you credit for the extra power you generate on sunny days when you're not home or you're energy use is low. Then, on those days when the sun isn't shining, you can draw on those credits and have the reassurance of knowing that your friendly local utility (that would be us) is still sending power down the wire for whenever you need it.

What's really amazing about the growth in solar this year is that it's not cheap to put solar on your roof (with most homeowners investing from $20,000 to $30,000 to put up a system that meets roughly 25 to 50 percent of their power needs, depending on the size of their home and their energy efficiency) and 2009 wasn't exactly a banner year for the economy.

A few things got solar amped up this year: the passion of solar enthusiasts, the availability of made-in-Washington solar panels (which allow you to get full benefit of a state incentive) and a major increase in the federal tax credit for solar, which was largely spearheaded by Sen. Maria Cantwell and Rep. Jay Inslee.

I've had a chance to talk to Congressman Inslee (who represents a good chunk of the central Puget Sound area including Bainbridge Island and parts of King and Snohomish counties) and he is truly an expert on solar, and a big believer in its ability to help meet some of our energy needs in the future. He's written a good book on the subject, called Apollo's Fire.

The tax credit, which Maria Cantwell helped lead through the Senate in 2008, removed an earlier $2000 cap on the federal tax credit for solar systems -- allowing solar owners to get a full 30 percent off the price of their system via their taxes. That's been a big boost for solar, and made for a busy year for solar installers, a nice "green economy" benefit in this recession.

To learn more about solar, check out these great links.

Insulation, oh baby!

2009-12-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

The ingredients of romance? A fine wine, soft music, flickering candles and thick, luxurious . . . insulation.

Well, at least that's what one New York Times blogger noted this week, quoting President Obama on the sex appeal of insulation. "Here's what's sexy about it -- saving money," said the President.

This has been an interesting week in energy news, with a lot of stories about the Copenhagen climate talks and the clashes between police and protesters and climate change believers and skeptics. Lost in that hullabaloo, in my mind, is the fact that most energy strategies targeted at climate change make good sense for a lot of other reasons.

Renewable energy, such as wind power, is something we can do close to home, without importing fossil fuels. Likewise, energy efficiency means avoiding building more power plants (and they all cost money, whether you're talking about coal, nuclear, hydro, solar or whatever) and also less of the infrastructure needed to bring power to where it's being used.

In this cold time of year, insulation can certainly be a money-saver, and also something that will improve the value and comfort of your home for the long term. This is also a great time to think about adding a little to your home's R-value.

PSE offers a pretty comprehensive package of insulation rebates, and also help in finding an expert to get the job done right.

The economic stimulus package aimed at perking up the economy gives you a tax break for insulation and other energy efficiency steps, too. And if insulation is sexy, well, a tax break is downright irresistible.

Driving change

2009-12-11T10:26:00.001-08:00

Ice cold in Bellevue this week as the new Nissan LEAF all-electric car made it's debut. But judging by the response of the crowd at Bellevue Square, it may well be a hot seller when it hits the market late in 2010.

In the top photo, Steve Reynolds, PSE's CEO, is speaking about how electric transportation is a bit of "back to the future," since our early hydroelectric projects helped power electric street cars in Western Washington a century ago. What comes around goes around!

The Puget Sound area is one of five launch markets selected by Nissan, which will begin selling the cars on a limited basis next year, and then says it will go into full production by 2011, adding a U.S. production plant in 2012-2013. The City of Bellevue and other members of the "C-7 New Energy Partnership" (Bellevue, Issaquah, Kirkland, Mercer Island, Redmond, Renton and Sammamish) are all working together to bring charging stations to the region. PSE won't be building any chargers ourselves, but will supply the power.

I'm a long-time car fan, and I was very impressed (although the car was not available to drive, other PSE people who did drive one at another event said it had plenty of pickup and was something they could see driving themselves). The car is good-sized, with enough room for four people for most of the trips we take commuting, shopping, etc. and had slick but not-too-far-out design that signals the car is something different, but still practical. I currently have a Nissan Maxima with 202,000 miles, and perhaps it will become a LEAF in a year or two. (This may require extensive domestic negotiations).

For PSE, the electric car poses both opportunities and challenges. As a business, the use of energy is how we make money. On the other hand, we also encourage energy efficiency to help keep demand from growing too fast, and to help preserve the environment. Out of control demand is expensive to meet, and in general we are an energy intensive society that could benefit from greater energy efficiency.

The electric car may offer a neat third option of allowing for charging at off-peak times (such as overnight) which can be done without adding much extra in the way of powerplant capacity, while also helping reduce our region's environmental impact and carbon footprint by swapping gallons of petroleum for electrons. This could allow use to use our region's hydro and wind resources to help power transportation, rather than relying on fossil fuels and foreign oil.

Right now, PSE has two plug-in hybrid cars in its fleet, which we are using to help us learn more about how electric vehicles operate. Judging by our tests, it's a market whose time is coming quickly.

You can learn more about getting information about the cars at Nissan's website. I've signed up for the information emails, and will pass on any details as I get them.

Cold snap breaks records

2009-12-10T15:47:00.000-08:00

A major dip in the mercury this week as our blast of cold weather broke some records -- and not just temperature records, either.

The PSE record books have been re-written and re-re-written a few times this week, as the cold has resulted in a spike in both natural gas and electric use.

On the natural gas side (and the picture here shows our Jackson Prairie storage facility in Lewis County), our customers used record amounts of natural gas.

On Monday, we set a new record of 791,000 MMBtu (million British thermal units) of natural gas, and then set a new record on Wednesday of 812,000 MMBtu of natural gas.

Both marks eclipsed the natural gas usage of only a year ago during our very cold (and snowy) December 2008.

On the electric side, we also set records that broke our old marks (from December 2008), with a new all-time energy demand of 4,912 megawatts (MW), a little higher than the previous high demand for electricity of 4,906 MW set in 2008.

Interestingly, we also set a new summer peak only last July, when the 100+ degree heat wave pushed electric consumption to 3,508 MW, higher than what had been the summer record of 3,228 MW set in July 2007.

Notice a pattern here? We're using a lot more energy -- winter or summer -- and we're seeing those gains coming quickly.

We're dealing with that challenge in three ways: adding to our energy supplies, reinforcing the pipes and wires that make up our energy delivery systems and increasing the ways we can help you track and reduce your energy use.

With the cold weather looking to stick around, all three strategies look like wise ideas.

Snow? Could be, may be, might be . . .

2009-12-03T16:09:00.001-08:00

No word in the English language unleashes as much joy, ecstasy, panic, fear, love, loathing and other mixed emotions as -- SNOW! And yes, we might just see some by this weekend or early next week. Or then again, maybe not. The forecast models are split on whether we will be cold and dry or bring in some moisture and make a little snow.

Expect a real cold snap the next few days, as we enter into a familiar winter pattern of cold, clear sunny days, followed by the inevitable return of wetter weather, and the equally inevitable forecaster's dilemma of whether that returning moisture will bring snow.

It's always a tough call, but right now, I'd say we'll see some snow, mainly on higher hills and more rural areas, anytime from Saturday night and into next week, with a slow warming and return to cloudy skies and rain by later Thursday or Friday.

At the moment, it doesn't look like anything memorable -- no repeat of the big 2008 snow is in the cards for the time being, but it wouldn't be mid-December without a bit of snow. The picture here is from a snowfall in Duvall in 2004, with one of our service crews out in the cold on some slick and icy roads.

The National Weather Service will be tracking this, and you can't beat UW Prof. Cliff Mass for a behind the scenes look at the forecast. KOMO's Scott Sistek also blogs about weather with a nice sense of humor along with some easy-to-understand Weather 101.

And if the temperature does drop, you might want to call our Energy Advisors at 1-800-562-1482 or see PSE.com for the latest on rebates for insulation, efficient furnaces and other tips for keeping the house comfortable and the energy bill manageable as cold weather comes to town.

You can even use the "energy use by day" feature of the online audit tool at MyPSE.com to track whether the cold snap makes your energy use go up -- if it does, the rebates for insulation might be a smart move.

Bainbridge Island grid gets smarter

2009-11-24T13:09:00.000-08:00

The "smart grid" is a popular term, but one that's a little vague. Depending on whom you ask or what you are reading, it can mean everything from putting solar on your rooftop (which we can help you do) to putting wind power on the grid (we do that, too) to meters that report back digitally rather than via a meter-reader with a clip board and a pen (yep, our 1.1 million electric meters and 750,000 natural gas meters have been wireless for nearly a decade.)

Recently the news has brought a few interesting headlines on smart grid developments, from grants from the DOE to a new pilot project we have on Bainbridge Island where residents are helping us test new technologies to lower energy use during periods of peak demand.

The test, which we developed with the help of the Bainbridge Island Community Energy Task Force, uses an internet-controlled device that allows us to dial back electric water heaters and furnaces on the island during times of peak demand. In our area, that means in the winter time (in some hotter parts of the country this technology is being used for things like air-conditioning and swimming pools).

The program is strictly voluntary (and if you live on Bainbridge you can click here to find out hwo to sign up) and customers who do choose to take part can opt out at any time. In fact, one of the things we're hoping to learn is whether what's technically possible, such as using the internet to dial back your furnace, is something that will fly in the real world. Who knows? Perhaps people say they won't mind putting on a sweater when the furnace gets rolled back for a few hours, or perhaps they'll hit the override button. After all, it's your house so you get to choose. It will be interesting to see what the test reveals, both about technology and about human nature.

As a bit of media commentary, I think the headline on KING5.com is kind of silly. We're not taking control of anyone's furnace without them knowing about it. Everyone who takes part is a volunteer -- and they get $50 a year to boot. Not exactly Orwell's version of Big Brother, but headline writers are headline writers so no big deal.

And if you're interested in getting a bit smarter with your energy use, create a MyPSE account and switch to paperless billing. You'll get all the information of the paper bill (in fact, even more) and you'll have the satisfaction of being a little eco-friendlier, too.

Windy weather, wise investments

2009-11-19T15:21:00.000-08:00

Another windy night coming to the Puget Sound area, with the National Weather Service forecasting high winds again for the North Sound (especially Whidbey Island, Whatcom County and Skagit County) with gusts of 60 mph, and strong winds gusting to 40 mph or so for the rest of the area.

Pretty amazing to see windy weather four times in a single week, but that's life in our neck of the woods during November. In fact, November 19 is, historically, the day most likely to have rain -- with rain roughly 80 percent of the time on that date during the last century. Check out this nice chart on the KOMO-TV website for more stats.

So far in this stormy week, PSE's system has held out pretty well, with mostly short-term, scattered neighborhood outages despite winds that have gusted as high as 61 mph in areas we serve, with Bellingham and Whidbey Naval Air Station posting the highest wind speeds. Even higher gusts have been reported in the Cascades and Olympics, with Hurricane Ridge on the Olympic Peninsula and Crystal Mountain ski area near Mount Rainier both clocking winds of more than 100 mph.

Why is our system holding out? I'd credit three things: 1) smart investments in infrastructure and maintenance; 2) great people who are well-trained and know what to do, and 3) a little luck.

As far as the investments, we've been building a more robust system, including new substations, transmission lines, and more undergrounding of local distribution power lines. That all adds up to better reliability, with projects underway across Western Washington. On windy Whidbey Island, for example, we've put in some of the most modern equipment around, and this week it's been paying off in better reliability and fewer outages. Tree-trimming is a big year-round effort, with Whidbey Island again providing an example of how weathering the storm starts with being ahead of the storm -- trimming trees in the summer sun, and not when the wind blows.

When it comes to people, our team started having "mock storms" back in those sunny days of September, and everyday we have more than 130 power line repair crews, nearly 200 damage assessors (double what we had in 2006) and 25 tree crews ready to go.

And of course a little luck! The winds have been strong, but not quite where they begin to topple trees in big numbers. So far most gusts have been below 60 mph, and that's roughly the breaking point for our majestic Northwest timber.

As the wind blows tonight, keep your fingers crossed the gusts don't get too strong, and take a moment to breathe easier knowing PSE was working to build up our energy delivery system and have train up our people to be ready.