Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
I could continue the list with smart metering, very fast
load adjustments, etc., but the point is that the function-
ality has to be speci
ed in advance or at least the desired
upgrade path laid out if only the
first objective is to be
met. No organization has been assigned the responsibility
as yet. Construction will be a problem too. Currently, it
takes about
years to get approval for a major power
line route.
A model that might be used is that of the US interstate
highway system begun in the
s during the Eisen-
hower administration. It had been designed long in
advance mainly by the military as a way to move goods
and troops in the event of another major war. Since it was
cleverly dubbed the National Defense Highway System,
the federal government laid out the route in consultation
with the states and built it with federal money. Maybe if
everyone called their new grids a National Defense
Electron Highway System we could actually get them
built in a reasonable amount of time.
There has been little planning, but much talk about
planning, worldwide. If anything really happens in the
United States, it will most likely be through initiatives
by the states.
