California grid officials asking for others to divert power to the state because of a lack of hydro power amid drought and heat waves.
This may be setting us up for more power shut offs and rolling blackouts this fire season in order to conserve power. Other tactics include raising the cost of electricity during high-demand hours — when it’s most expensive to provide it — and offering cash and prizes to conserve energy when the grid is strained. “I don’t think anyone in the world anticipated how quickly the changes brought on by climate change would manifest. We’re all scrambling to deal with that,” said Peter Lehman, the founding director of the Schatz Energy Research Center, a clean energy institute in Arcata.