Power grid operator PJM asking customers to use less electricity working with two fewer coal plants

The liberals' War on Coal, part of its fight against global warming, is wreaking havoc as much of the nation is under a deep freeze.

And the polar vortex may hit home--inside your home.

From the Chicago Tribune:

After electricity demand soared during Tuesday's continuing bitter cold, one of the country's largest electric grid operators asked consumers in Illinois and several other states to turn down the thermostats a touch during peak usage hours Wednesday.

PJM Interconnection, which coordinates wholesale electricity distribution in 13 states including Illinois, is also asking residents to avoid using power-gulping appliances like the stove, dishwasher and washers and dryers between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and 7 p.m..

Demand in the PJM Interconnection's territory reached 140,835 megawatts Tuesday morning, far above typical winter usage of 110,000 to 120,000 megawatts, a PJM spokeswoman said. Summertime peaks can reach 165,000 megawatts, the spokesman said.

Paul J. Gough, a smart reporter with the Pittsburgh Business Times, looked back to last year.

It was only a few months ago that two southwestern Pennsylvania coal-burning power plants were closed after FirstEnergy Corp. determined the costs to keep them compliant with environmental regulations were too much.

There was a hue and cry among local elected officials and union leaders concerned about job losses at the Hatfield's Ferry and Mitchell power stations in Greene and Washington counties, south of Pittsburgh, as well as the reliability of the state's electrical grid. But electrical grid operator PJM Interconnection, which has to approve all closings, said it wouldn't affect the region's electrical capacity. FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) closed the plants in October when it couldn't find a buyer.

Coal barge

I remembered all that this morning during a conference call with PJM Interconnection about the strain on the regional electrical capacity due to the weather. PJM hit a record peak for winter use Tuesday morning and expected to surpass that Tuesday afternoon. It asked consumers to conserve electricity and took other steps, including temporarily reducing voltage and asking energy producers to make as much energy as they could to alleviate the concerns.

Gough asked the big question. If those two plants were still operating, could this crisis have been prevented?

Not really, said Michael Kormos, executive vice president of operations at PJM Interconnection. The grid operator had taken into account the fact that the coal-burning plants were shut down or retired, and replaced its electrical generation with other sources, primarily natural gas-fired generating plants.

But Kormos did say, "I would always prefer to have more generation (but) … even with those plants shut down, we will be able to serve this load."

But PJM is requesting its customers to use less electricity.

I ain't buying his answer.

Perhaps Kormos fears an audit from Obama's radicalized IRS.

Technorati tags: coal environment energy fossil fuelsamerica usa politics

(Photo) Hiking in Grand Teton National Park

That's Little Marathon Pundit hiking alongside the sagebrush in Grand Teton National Park.

Technorati tags: nature outdoors national parks travel travel blog tourism

So-called experts: Brutal cold snap caused by global warming

The reason it's so cold in much of the United States and Canada--it's -10 where I live right now--is because of...wait for it...global warming.

From the Guardian:

While the ongoing cold snap is breaking records from Minnesota to Florida, it will not go down in history as the most significant Arctic outbreak in U.S. history, not even by a longshot. Scientists said the deep freeze gripping the U.S. does not indicate a halt or reversal in global warming trends, either. In fact, it may be a counterintuitive example of global warming in action.

Researchers told Climate Central that the weather pattern driving the extreme cold into the U.S. — with a weaker polar vortex moving around the Arctic like a slowing spinning top, eventually falling over and blowing open the door to the Arctic freezer — fits with other recently observed instances of unusual fall and wintertime jet stream configurations.

Such weather patterns, which can feature relatively mild conditions in the Arctic at the same time dangerously cold conditions exist in vast parts of the lower 48, may be tied to the rapid warming and loss of sea ice in the Arctic due, in part, to manmade climate change.

Arctic warming is altering the heat balance between the North Pole and the equator, which is what drives the strong current of upper level winds in the northern hemisphere commonly known as the jet stream. Some studies show that if that balance is altered then some types of extreme weather events become more likely to occur.

When it get's hot in July, these "experts" will blame global warming. When a powerful hurricane hits, global warming will be the cause.

When the weather is moderate...

Oh, it's been below zero degrees Fahrenheit for 36 hours in Chicago

Technorati tags: newsweather nature snow winter climate change environment global warming

Chicago's ban on gun sales ruled unconstitutional

Chicago lakefront

Despite having fewer residents than New York or Los Angeles, Chicago still suffered more murders--again--than either city last year.

And Chicago's strictest-in-the-nation gun laws aren't the answer for stopping the bleeding.

But Chicagoans who want to legally defend themselves may be able to do so more easily soon.

From the Chicago Tribune:

A federal judge on Monday stripped away a key element of Chicago’s gun ordinance, ruling that it is unconstitutional to prohibit licensed gun stores from operating in the city.

U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang found that the city failed to persuade him that banning the sale of guns by licensed dealers was necessary to reduce the gun violence that has plagued the city.

The ruling also would make it legal for individuals to transfer ownership of a firearm as a gift or in a private sale as long as the recipient was over 18 and had a Firearm Owner’s Identification card.

Chicago, the last city to allow residents to have handguns in their homes, once had one of the strongest handgun crackdowns in the country, making it a primary target of the National Rifle Association. Overturning the ban on retail gun stores and private gun sales was the last major hurdle gun rights groups faced in their hard-fought battle to dismantle Chicago’s tough firearm prohibitions.

Technorati tags: 2nd Amendment gun control gun rights NRA IllinoisChicago chicago chicago politics Illinois Politics

(Video) CBS' Garrett calls out Carney for WH backing away from ObamaCare enrollment goals

Probably tired of being mocked as a boy wearing daddy's suit, White House press secretary Jay Carney grew a beard over the Christmas holiday. Now he looks like a slob who doesn't wash his face.

Beard or no beard, it's still the same old Carney. Watch his shuffle as CBS News' Major Garrett calls out the White House for weaseling away from its ObamaCare enrollment goals.

Technorati tags: Obama Barack Obama government news politics health universal health care socialism obamacare law

Sunset at Denny Creek near Yellowstone National Park

The beauty of Yellowstone National Park doesn't end at the park borders. In another Mrs. Marathon Pundit picture from last August, below is Denny Creek near West Yellowstone, Montana at sunset.

Denny Creek is a tributary to the South Fork of the Madison River.

Related post:

Yellowstone National Park: Madison River

Technorati tags: Montana nature outdoors national parks travel travel blog tourism