energy

As 'Fracking' Debate Heats Up, Weighing Risks Key to Possible Monterey Shale Boom

Joe Moore — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:42:19 +0000

Could California be on the verge of a new gold rush? That’s the finding of a new study from USC about the potential economic impact of oil that lies deep beneath the Central Valley, known as the Monterey Shale. But extracting that oil isn’t easy, and it would require the use of a number of advanced techniques, including hydraulic fracturing. And that’s attracted concerns from environmental groups and state regulators.

Solar Sets Records for Power Production in California

Bob Moffitt — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 13:52:48 +0000

The operator of California’s power grid says a single-day record amount of energy was harvested from the sun not once, but twice in the past month. The California Independent System Operator (Cal ISO) reports solar production exceeded the one-gigawatt plateau twice in August. Stephanie McCorkle with Cal ISO says higher production coincides with decreasing costs. “It’s just like with any of these breakthrough technologies, whether it’s cell phones or, in fact, I can remember when calculators came down in the cost the more they were produced and sold.

State Works to Balance Renewable Energy Projects and Protecting Endangered Species

Kathleen Masterson — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 18:43:52 +0000

California is working on a plan to balance goals of developing renewable energy projects on desert lands and protect the endangered species that live there. Californians can weigh in at a public meeting on Wednesday

Remote desert areas may seem like the perfect place for wind and solar energy projects. But some projects have already stalled because they threaten endangered species such as the desert tortoise or bighorn sheep.

The state and the federal government are working on a plan to balance those two goals.

Cal ISO Calls Statewide Flex Alert For This Weekend

Bob Moffit — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 19:49:44 +0000

People use more energy when it’s hot, and California’s power grid operator has issued a Flex Alert because of the current heat wave.

Cal-ISO is the state’s Independent System Operator. When the forecast for demand gets close to the state’s power generating capacity, the operator calls a Flex Alert. Stephanie McCorkle with Cal-ISO says it’s most important to conserve during the peak usage hours between 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

On Quality of Life: Nuclear Power; Michael Hanson

Joe Moore — Wed, 04 May 2011 01:35:23 +0000

Segment I Nuclear Power In the Valley? - The State of California has a long love-hate relationship with nuclear power. It's now been 26 years since Diablo Canyon, the state's newest nuclear power plant, came online on the Central Coast. In the intervening years, reactors at Rancho Seco, near Sacramento, and San Onofre near San Diego have been decommissioned, and the state's moratorium on the construction of new plants still remains in effect.