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Ilan
Kelman. Posting to Natural hazards-Disasters Listserv, 15 August 2003
Yet
again we see the impressive vulnerability of our large-scale, centralised,
integrated systems which are a feature of today's society.
Despite
Y2K, terrorism, previous events, and decades of experience in the energy
industry and risk management, we still end up creating situations and
systems which cause severe, continental-wide crises.
Whether this event was deliberate, incompetence, a true accident
(does that ever exist?), or a combination, the system itself still has
inherent vulnerabilities which we apparently do not understand and which,
perhaps, we are not willing to invest the resources to tackle properly.
Since
local coping mechanisms appear to be implemented across the affected
areas, is it perhaps time to consider more localised energy systems too? A further advantage would be that having energy production
much closer to the users where possible could perhaps educate people about
the economic, social, and environmental cost of excessive energy usage, a
key aspect of tackling climate change.
Another
question for this list relates to a previous blackout which this event has
again brought to light (pardon the pun).
The Globe and Mail, a Canadian national newspaper, reports at:
http://www.globeandmail.ca/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030815.ugrid1/BNStory/Front
that:
"Yesterday's
failure was not the first of its kind. On Aug. 11, 1996 -- almost exactly
seven years ago -- a squirrel found its way into a grid on the U.S. West
Coast and knocked out power in nine states and parts of Mexico,
demonstrating the weaknesses in the system."
Would
that event count as a natural disaster?
Best
wishes to everyone affected by this event and stay safe during it,
Ilan
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