On the Extreme Weather Front Lines, the Needs are Clear

There have been an increasing number of extreme weather events around the globe.  

I am currently serving as a program manager for a utility addressing the recovery efforts for the utility’s service territory in response to a devastating hurricane. This hurricane destroyed various parts of the territory’s transmission and distribution grid, while severely damaging substation assets. This includes large, powerful hurricanes in the Atlantic that have had significant impact on the region

It is a critically fragile situation. The territory is struggling to survive the damages it incurred during the storm as it continues to rebuild and install resilient safeguards for the incoming hurricane season.

If disaster recovery is any evidence of how much of a lifeline the electric grid is for the communities it serves, it can be widely observed with a city’s reliance on its utility.

For most in North America, the electric utility is in the foreground of the work that is carried out day to day, but it is an afterthought, as the expectation around daily life is that there will always be electricity available.  Only when people experience complete blackouts can they comprehend the importance of the electric utility.

So, in an environment where this concept of reliability is removed, especially in the wake of a natural disaster, it is alarming for people who are not able to proceed with their industrial, medical and personal obligations. But these types of events are only the beginning of what’s expected.

The effects of climate change are widely known on a global scale. From the melting of the icebergs to the floods in Europe, South Asia and North America, there are many indicators of “extreme weather events,” the former “once every 50 years” events.

The recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report is alarming. It indicates that this is the final warning to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 on a global level and stop all carbon dioxide emissions by the early 2050s. As a planet, we are currently not on track to meet these requirements.

As I continue to face the daily challenges of ensuring the operational success of this electric utility, I am reminded that this event is a harbinger of what’s to come. Working on a daily basis to address the incremental changes and improvements to ensure the resiliency of the grid and to restore the public’s faith in the reliability of its system is no easy task.

It is pertinent for not only those active in the energy industry to continue pursuing measures that address these climate events, but those who have had the luxury of keeping it as an afterthought while they bring their work to the foreground. This effort cannot be undertaken by the few, because it affects the many.

It is critically necessary, even on an individual level, to create a cohesive strategy that furthers the pursuit of a cleaner, safer and resilient future.