The oil crisis of the 1970's didn't seem so far away this past summer with the looming threat of power blackouts being thrown around.   When all three Wisconsin nuclear plants and some Illinois nukes were non-operational due to a combination of technical difficulties and mis-management, the utilities were shaking in their boots with a hot summer predicted.
 
The utilities have spent too much time and so many resources working on issues like deregulation and mega-mergers that they have left their customers out in the cold (or the hot in this case) and have let their long range planning and conservation programs slide.
 
The utilities have offered some perfunctory tips for how we can all chip in to save power but they only deal with small amounts of power in the short term.   The conservation programs that used to make this state enviable are disappearing quickly as utilities position themselves to be competitive in a deregulated market.
 
With the nuclear plants back on-line or soon to be so, our worries are not over.   It is unacceptable to wait until power blackouts are imminent to tell ratepayers that if air conditioners are kept below 65 degrees it will all go away.
 

Personal Responsibility
 
True energy conservation is not only about turning off the lights when you leave the room.   It is about purchasing energy efficient appliances, insulating and situating a home so that it can withstand or even take advantage of seasonal weather conditions.   It can also be about small efforts like installing compact fluorescent light bulbs in your home, getting rid of all your "phantom loads" i.e. answering machines that plug into the wall with one of those black "power cubes" or stereos with clocks that are on all the time.
 
The Solar Lobby calculates that if every home in the U.S. installed just 4 compact fluorescent light bulbs, as much energy as is produced by the nation's six largest nuclear power plants would be saved.   A recent analysis of two almost identical homes showed that the home with compact fluorescents, an energy efficient refrigerator and power strips to turn their stereo (even the clock) all the way off used half the electricity of the home that hadn't made those three small adjustments.
 
Energy efficient appliances or construction often require a higher up front investment that will pay for itself over a period of time.   If we want our utilities to participate in long range planning by investing in conservation programs and renewable energy, then we should be doing the same in our own homes.