America needs more electricity. The advent of data centers, smart phones, EVs and Artificial Intelligence means we are consuming more power than ever before. Commentator Scott Carlberg says Kansans have a role to play in all of this and he's urging everyone to become a power player.
(Transcript)
Kansans Are Power Players and Need to Know It
By Scott Carlberg
The electric system we use every day is like a duck. Hear me out.
Look around your home. Computer screens glow, an AC system hums. Sedate, predictable. Like the way a duck glides across the water. But under that duck is the quick paddling of legs, sometimes furious paddling.
The Kansas power system paddles, too. Power plants run full throttle, transmission lines carry massive loads. In the background.
The power system paddles so we can:
· Process finances with a bank in Leawood,
· Manufacture food – that’s 21% of Kansas’ manufacturing.
· See a movie at an AMC theater,
· Light up a bar (and maybe patrons) in Lawrence,
· Or let a Kansan watch a puppy video.
My message: The furious paddling to deliver electricity will fail without help, and each KPR listener has some control.
Here’s the background.
The country’s five-year electric load-growth forecast has increased almost five-fold in two years.
Electric demand will surge by 35 to 50% by 2040. Manufacturing, data centers, and mass electrification are the big reasons. Check data centers, about 4.4% of total U.S. electricity in 2023, and may consume up to 12% of U.S. electricity by 2028.
And how about your iPhone, Kindle, iPad, laptop, multiple TVs, security lights? And your home office? The Kansas City Fed says home offices are a big deal. One regional builder says, “The biggest shift now is two home offices.”
More space, more power.
Our lifestyle collides with an ageing and soon under-capacity power system. Pure and simple.
Let’s re-frame our thinking with Energy Realism. It has “Three T's" - Time frame, Trade-offs and Truth.
Time frame. Planning and building an energy system to match demand increases needs decades. Every delay has an outsized negative impact on our future.
Trade-offs. Every energy source or conservation measure has trade-offs. It’s complex. Land use, waste products, visual concerns, costs, efficiency… Decisions today provide flexibility compared to decisions made with our backs against the wall and in the dark.
Truth. We need objective energy context. Says one expert: “The process is going to be expensive – and potentially disastrous – without some pragmatic decision-making. … Truth is central to our shared, long-term success.”
Special interest groups or policymakers with preconceived energy ideas don’t cut it.
Listeners have a stake in this. A big one. They can act:
· Ask policymakers to reform permitting for power generation and transmission; encourage transmission lines to be built competitively.
· Support energy system updates. “Not In My Backyard” does not explore solutions.
· Look hard at personal energy use. If you do not support energy improvements, then drastically reduce your use of power.
Really, either you’re part of the problem or you’re part of the solution.
Be a power player. Help us paddle with smart energy in mind.
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Commentator Scott Carlberg has worked in energy industry communications for more than 40 years. He's also worked for research, nonprofit and higher education organizations. He lives in Leawood.