East Coast outage?

Fri Aug 15 17:06:28 UTC 2003

JC Dill wrote:
[snip]

> Am I the only one who is surprised that here we are now - over 7 years
> later - and the electric grid industry still hasn't found/implemented a
> design fix for this problem?  What does the FERC and the DOE do anyway?  Do
> they just "regulate" prices?

To see what FERC does,

  http://www.ferc.gov/about/ferc-does.asp

As for what the DOE does, it's primary function is and has always been the
production and maintenance of the United States's nuclear weapon arsenal.
FERC is pretty much the only part of it that deals with the nitty-gritty
of commercial power and energy regulation. See,

  http://www.doe.gov/engine/content.do?BT_CODE=ABOUTDOE
  http://www.doe.gov/engine/content.do?BT_CODE=AD_O

> (Yeah, they did such a good job with E! and
> we in California will be paying for it for many years to come.)  I kinda
> thought the whole point of having federal departments and commissions to
> oversee energy was to assure the country of a *reliable* energy system...

Yes and no. The USian approach is to regulate, not dictate, as subtle as
that difference may be.
-- 
Crist J. Clark                               crist.clark at globalstar.com
Globalstar Communications                                (408) 933-4387

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