Posted on 08/15/2003 8:49:01 AM PDT by syriacus
The controversial Cross Sound Cable is expected to powered up for the first time later today following last night's blackout.
Rita Bowlby, spokeswoman for Cross Sound Cable Company, told News Channel 8 the company received an emergency order from the Department of Energy last night to operate the power cable.
Bowlby says the cable will be turned on in a matter of hours "or less."
In a news release, the DOE said "Activation of this 330 megawatt cable will help stabilize voltage between the two states and enable electricity to flow quickly when the generation system is operable, reducing the time needed for full restoration and reliable operation of the electric system."
The order is in effect until September 1, but could be modified.
The Department of Energy order was made under the Federal Power Act, citing an emergency situation due to a shortage of electricity in the northeast. Bowlby said the order states this is being done "in the public interest."
The power cable runs from New Haven, under Long Island Sound, to Shoreham, Long Island. Power can flow in either direction. But it has not been turned on because a section of the cable is not buried at the proper depth in New Haven Harbor.
Connecticut's attorney general and Department of Environmental Protection have fought against turning the cable, citing environmental concerns.
(New Haven-WTNH, Aug. 15, 2003 Updated 8:12 AM)
http://1010wins.com/topstories/winstopstories_story_109115217.html
LIPA to Seek Emergency Use of Cross-sound Cable
Apr 19, 2003 11:47 am US/Eastern
(1010 WINS) (NEW HAVEN, Conn.) A New York utility, arguing a new power line under Long Island Sound is vital to national security, may ask the Department of Homeland Security to allow the power line to be used.
The Long Island Power Authority said it is researching whether the federal department can use the Homeland Security Act to get the Cross Sound cable running.
The cable was installed last spring, but state environmental regulators say it cannot be used until it is buried at the required depth.
Connecticut opponents of the cable said they would fight any attempt to use homeland security as an excuse to get the cable turned on.
"It is an insult to our local first responders that LIPA would compare the importance of the work they are doing every day to protect our country to energizing their regional electricity cable," U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn.
LIPA's board of trustees discussed seeking help from Homeland Security at a Jan. 9 meeting, according to minutes of the meeting obtained by the New Haven Register.
The utility fears that Long Island could suffer from rolling blackouts this summer without the cable. LIPA Chairman Richard Kessel "noted that President Bush and his administration are courageously fighting terrorism, but there are major challenges ahead, including our heavy dependence on foreign oil, and it is the height of imprudence to jeopardize the supply and reliability of the flow electricity during this crisis," the meeting minutes read. Kessel said during the meeting that LIPA would pursue emergency approval for the cable from the Department of Homeland Security. The issue is being researched by LIPA's lawyers, utility spokesman Bert Cunningham said Thursday. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said LIPA's argument is "self-serving."
"I sincerely doubt that any reasonable federal official would give credence to the kind of exaggerated, almost delusional assumptions made in these minutes," Blumenthal said.
Federal authorities have been watching the cable dispute, however. An initial plan to lay the cable was rejected by Connecticut regulators, leading to a rebuke in President Bush's national energy policy report. The cable was installed by Cross-Sound Cable Co., a partnership between The United Illuminating Co. of New Haven and Canada's Hydro-Quebec. LIPA is leasing the cable.
The 24-mile cable runs between New Haven and the former Shoreham nuclear power plant on Long Island. It can transmit up to 330 megawatts of power.
As I read the article, the only problem is that part of the cable is not buried deep enough into the seabed. I suspect the reason for the "Minimum Burial Depth" is to protect it from trawlers, ships running aground, etc.
The activation order is only for a couple of weeks, and hopefully also provides for keeping shipping, fishing, etc "the heck away from there".
Rosa DeLauro is a Communist idiot who longs for the creation of a Stalinist regime in the United States so that she can take her rightful place herding citizens into cattle cars in order to be shipped off to re-education camps.
"I sincerely doubt that any reasonable federal official would give credence to the kind of exaggerated, almost delusional assumptions made in these minutes," Blumenthal said.
Blumenthal is another idiot in a high place. Maybe this can be used against him to thwart his plans to run for governor.
The primary purpose of the "minimum burial depth" requirement is to give environmental extremists and Communists a legal tool with which to hammer the power company and thereby advance their anti-capitalist, anti-business, anti-rational-thought objectives.
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 9, 2003 |
Contact: Media Relations: (516) 719-9892 Media pager: (516) 525-LIPA |
Kessel Comments on Cross-Sound Cable Project
LIPA Board Briefed on Need for Cable for Summer 2003
Uniondale, NY – January 9, 2003 – At a special meeting of the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) Board of Trustees held on Jaunary 9th, LIPA Chairman Richard M. Kessel briefed the Board of Trustees on the status of the Cross-Sound Cable Project and the need to press for the 330 megawatt cable to be allowed to operate by the State of Connecticut.
The following are excerpts from Mr. Kessel’s remarks to the LIPA Board of Trustees.
“TransEnergie [cross-Sound cable project developer] has determined they will not pursue the regulatory process to put the cross-Sound cable in operation.
“Connecticut has put every barrier possible [in the way of TransEnergie] to prevent the cable from operating.
“It’s disturbing that Connecticut continues to thwart interstate commerce and the reliability of the region’s electric transmission grid with politics.
“The Army Corps of Engineers has said that the cable presents no environmental threat as installed.
“The cable is ready to operate. It has been tested and energized.
“It was ready to operate last summer under an emergency order issued by the Department of Energy.
“This is an issue that does not just impact Long Island. It impacts the entire Northeast region. It could impact national security.
“LIPA’s aggressive programs to conserve energy and add new on-Island generation resources kept the lights on last summer. And we’re adding more on-Island resources for summer 2003, as we continue to stress and promote conservation.
“But the failure of a base-load plant or one of our other cables during a heat wave could put Long Island in jeopardy. And the same holds true for Connecticut.
“It’s imprudent not to put the cross-Sound cable in operation.
“It will be the goal of the Authority to take all steps necessary to energize the cable.
“We will review all of our legal options, and, if necessary, will seek intervention by the Department of Energy.
“It is our intention to have the cable operate as soon as possible, but at the very least by summer.
“This is the underwater version of Shoreham. But fortunately, LIPA’s ratepayers, through LIPA’s prudence, are not at risk. All of the costs to build the cable have been borne by the Cross-Sound Cable Company. This is a merchant cable. LIPA will not pay to use it until the cable begins to carry electricity to Long Island.”
###
LIPA is a not-for-profit municipal retail electric utility that serves nearly 1.1 million electric customers in Nassau and Suffolk counties and in the Rockaways Peninsula in Queens. It owns and operates the region’s electric Transmission and Distribution System, and acquires electricity from a number of power providers to meet customer demand. LIPA provides a full range of EnergyWise programs to help both residential and commercial customers save money by using less electricity. LIPA does not own any electric generation assets on Long Island and does not provide natural gas service.
Information about LIPA and its products and services is available on its Web site 24/7 at www.lipower.org.
-30-
Last Update: 8/15/2003 11:05:06 AM
(Stamford, Connecticut-AP) -- As many of the affected areas recover from yesterday's blackout, Connecticut is facing a new problem.A major state power line that feeds southwestern Connecticut went down this morning, leading the state to implement emergency conservation procedures to prevent more blackouts.
Governor John Rowland is asking residents and businesses to save power. It's not clear why the power line fizzled. Utility officials say it could take some time just to evaluate the damage.
Meantime, the Department of Energy is ordering a regional company to power up a 330-megawatt cable that runs under Long Island Sound between Connecticut and New York's Long Island. Officials believe power from the cable will be able to restore thousands of households.
Activating the cable has been opposed by some lawmakers and environmentalists.
As for the depth of the cable, it was largely buried to the required depth or greater along almost the entire route, and only in a few places was it buried to a lesser depth, and so the alleged concern about anchor dragging in New Haven harbor is likely a red herring as well.
Blumenthal has in the past issued grossly misleading and alarmist and obstructionist proclamations, including the following: ""Even with the conditions the Army Corps plans to place on the project, it will do damage to consumers and our environment that is severe, immediate, and irreparable. It promises higher energy prices, disruption and destruction of the Long Island Sound environment, and damage to our state economy. Despite proclamations to the contrary by the Siting Council and the Department of Environmental Protection, history shows that cables crossing the Sound do serious and enduring damage to the aquatic life and ecosystems of this fragile and finite precious resource"
Such bloviating does not conform to reality. Oysters grow from seed stage to maturity in perhaps four years, maybe less, and the beds that were disturbed will be renewed quickly. More to the point, it is laughable for Blumenthal to cry crocodile tears about damage to the Connecticut economy, when in truth he is responsible more than almost anybody else (Enron included) for the damage to the CT economy due to his politically-motivated Microsoft witch hunt...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.