The Peter St Onge podcast was particularly great. The wealth of information gleaned from that discuss was amazing and delightful. That Sam Insull was spoken of with consideration lightened my heart as this father of electrifying our world is too often unfairly vilified.
And as Robert mentioned, Lisa Linowes could also use a bit of help in her fight with offshore wind as the big money boys have their gloves off, prepared to steamroll all opposition.
Thank you Robert for continually choosing such informative guests.
Interesting that the map of coops has Texas covered well but there’s a blank spot on the central Permian Basin or in / around the central basin platform... surely not a coincidence. I will have to read more on the history in the area around producing fields and private properties that existed by the 1930’s.
MAGAs and Libertarians take notice. this is one example where government interference was highly beneficial to all. Another example that immediately comes to mind is the NWS, which collects ALL the raw weather data for ALL private enterprises that make weather reports......
(not to deny that what is going on today is gross overreach and very destructive to all.....but balance is the key, not extremism in any direction).
Where I live -Alberta. , our electrical bill is in five parts. Electricity used, peak electricity demand over a year, local distribution lines, municipal right of way and high power transmission lines and substations.
The electrical usage is usually the smallest of the charges. It could be a way around your splintered american system
Politicians / activists are brilliant at taking credit for things created by the genius of others. In this case, by Edison, Westinghouse, Tesla, Insull, and many others.
E.g., it wasn't the feminists or politicians that liberated women; it was the (unfortunately almost unknown) inventors of the birth control pill and various home appliances.
But the politicians and activists sure showed up to take credit for it.
Thank you for the article and for using your abilities and resources to inform the public on our industry. I am thankful for what was put into place so long ago and that the RUS (formerly the REA) continues to support the rural electric cooperatives in their community centered role.
The history about rural electrification on Independance Day was a great touch. As the CEO for a G&T cooperative that happens to be headquartered in Vinita, OK, the reference to Oologah and Will Rogers is very familiar.
Thank you Robert, fantastic history. As an "English Man in an Arizona Pine Forrest" I remember my father detesting the smell of matches ? ..... Well he born and grew up in North London, he lived in a very Victorian row of terraced houses and as a child they only had GAS lights in the house. His mum and dad would light the gas with matches which is why he hated the smell. I am now 63 and remember visiting the house in the 60's when I was very young but I have a distinct memory of it being small and dark. England suffered very badly with it infrastructure during WW2 and there was still rationing of food well into the 1950's . London was heavily bombed and some parts were not electrified for some time. The USA was very lucky in that the devastation of war did not reach its shores so the amazing war time industrialisation was put to domestic production after the war. Again thank you for a wonderfully informative article, we should all be VERY thankful on the 4th of July that we live in an ELECTRIFIED country ........ GOD BLESS AMERICA
TVA is closing the Kingston and Bull run steam plants. It will require 72 sq.miles of solar cells plus more sq. miles of batteries to replace just the Kingston steam plant. I and my neighbors will have to heat our houses with coal and wood stoves. Summer air conditioning can be provided by car air conditioners running directly on lawn mower engines to eliminate the losses of generators and electric motors. R.K.Edwards.
Agree on the fantastic impact of rural electrification. The only other comp (ie huge effective government cross country infra spend) is the federal highway system. Unfortunately, both of these have been taken as a precedent by big government advocates that anything the federal government undertakes and imposes on the country, particularly policy as opposed to construction, will have an equally positive impact. They haven't. The IRA provides a chance to evolve into another positive as long as we stress the incentives, and don't get tempted by mandates.
During the early 60s I would spend my summers working on a ranch in eastern Utah. We lived in a tar papered shack. We didn’t have running water (we had access to a creek next to the shack), but we did have electricity for the bulbs hanging from the ceiling and a radio. I remember noticing the poles and lines passing by and appreciating the effort of getting electrical power to this out of the way area. Thanks for the history lesson.
Before the TVA in TN/NC, there was Alcoa (the Aluminum company). We visit the area often and the little known history is fascinating. The TVA pretty much copied them.
I love your assessments of the state of our energy in the USA, you are doing such good and noble work
Having been a speaker at several national co-operative electric events - they know they must do things that ensure reliability above all else - that is why nuclear appeals to them. I do not believe they will be the bottle neck in an energy future.
BTW - just be a touch wary of where that heritage support is coming from ; )
Excellent essay, sir. Thank you. Viewing from the context of the 21st Century, two things stand out to me. First, the PUHCA created the Rural Electrification Administration and “charged it with providing loans for the construction and operation of generating plants.” In today’s culture, the bill would be structured to provide gifts (labeled as “subsidies”) to renewable generation only. Congress then was about getting something done; today its about picking favorites.
Second, you note that “[o]ver that same three-decade period, US gross national product increased nearly ten-fold, going from $100 billion to $977 billion.” Today’s Congress is oblivious to the fact that that growth, 10-fold in 30 years, occurred due to fossil fuels. Congress and government then were about helping America grow. Today, I’m not so sure what the are about, other than finding someone to blame.
The Peter St Onge podcast was particularly great. The wealth of information gleaned from that discuss was amazing and delightful. That Sam Insull was spoken of with consideration lightened my heart as this father of electrifying our world is too often unfairly vilified.
And as Robert mentioned, Lisa Linowes could also use a bit of help in her fight with offshore wind as the big money boys have their gloves off, prepared to steamroll all opposition.
Thank you Robert for continually choosing such informative guests.
Interesting that the map of coops has Texas covered well but there’s a blank spot on the central Permian Basin or in / around the central basin platform... surely not a coincidence. I will have to read more on the history in the area around producing fields and private properties that existed by the 1930’s.
MAGAs and Libertarians take notice. this is one example where government interference was highly beneficial to all. Another example that immediately comes to mind is the NWS, which collects ALL the raw weather data for ALL private enterprises that make weather reports......
(not to deny that what is going on today is gross overreach and very destructive to all.....but balance is the key, not extremism in any direction).
Where I live -Alberta. , our electrical bill is in five parts. Electricity used, peak electricity demand over a year, local distribution lines, municipal right of way and high power transmission lines and substations.
The electrical usage is usually the smallest of the charges. It could be a way around your splintered american system
Politicians / activists are brilliant at taking credit for things created by the genius of others. In this case, by Edison, Westinghouse, Tesla, Insull, and many others.
E.g., it wasn't the feminists or politicians that liberated women; it was the (unfortunately almost unknown) inventors of the birth control pill and various home appliances.
But the politicians and activists sure showed up to take credit for it.
Thank you for the article and for using your abilities and resources to inform the public on our industry. I am thankful for what was put into place so long ago and that the RUS (formerly the REA) continues to support the rural electric cooperatives in their community centered role.
The history about rural electrification on Independance Day was a great touch. As the CEO for a G&T cooperative that happens to be headquartered in Vinita, OK, the reference to Oologah and Will Rogers is very familiar.
Thank you Robert, fantastic history. As an "English Man in an Arizona Pine Forrest" I remember my father detesting the smell of matches ? ..... Well he born and grew up in North London, he lived in a very Victorian row of terraced houses and as a child they only had GAS lights in the house. His mum and dad would light the gas with matches which is why he hated the smell. I am now 63 and remember visiting the house in the 60's when I was very young but I have a distinct memory of it being small and dark. England suffered very badly with it infrastructure during WW2 and there was still rationing of food well into the 1950's . London was heavily bombed and some parts were not electrified for some time. The USA was very lucky in that the devastation of war did not reach its shores so the amazing war time industrialisation was put to domestic production after the war. Again thank you for a wonderfully informative article, we should all be VERY thankful on the 4th of July that we live in an ELECTRIFIED country ........ GOD BLESS AMERICA
TVA is closing the Kingston and Bull run steam plants. It will require 72 sq.miles of solar cells plus more sq. miles of batteries to replace just the Kingston steam plant. I and my neighbors will have to heat our houses with coal and wood stoves. Summer air conditioning can be provided by car air conditioners running directly on lawn mower engines to eliminate the losses of generators and electric motors. R.K.Edwards.
Great piece. We’d like to see modern environmentalists forced to live without electricity like the Cauthons for a few years.
Agree on the fantastic impact of rural electrification. The only other comp (ie huge effective government cross country infra spend) is the federal highway system. Unfortunately, both of these have been taken as a precedent by big government advocates that anything the federal government undertakes and imposes on the country, particularly policy as opposed to construction, will have an equally positive impact. They haven't. The IRA provides a chance to evolve into another positive as long as we stress the incentives, and don't get tempted by mandates.
During the early 60s I would spend my summers working on a ranch in eastern Utah. We lived in a tar papered shack. We didn’t have running water (we had access to a creek next to the shack), but we did have electricity for the bulbs hanging from the ceiling and a radio. I remember noticing the poles and lines passing by and appreciating the effort of getting electrical power to this out of the way area. Thanks for the history lesson.
https://www.citizen-times.com/story/opinion/2021/01/11/visiting-our-past-earliest-wnc-dams-built-alcoa/6615351002/
Before the TVA in TN/NC, there was Alcoa (the Aluminum company). We visit the area often and the little known history is fascinating. The TVA pretty much copied them.
Keep up the good work!
This is a wonderful read. Thank you for the interesting bit of history.
I love your assessments of the state of our energy in the USA, you are doing such good and noble work
Having been a speaker at several national co-operative electric events - they know they must do things that ensure reliability above all else - that is why nuclear appeals to them. I do not believe they will be the bottle neck in an energy future.
BTW - just be a touch wary of where that heritage support is coming from ; )
Excellent essay, sir. Thank you. Viewing from the context of the 21st Century, two things stand out to me. First, the PUHCA created the Rural Electrification Administration and “charged it with providing loans for the construction and operation of generating plants.” In today’s culture, the bill would be structured to provide gifts (labeled as “subsidies”) to renewable generation only. Congress then was about getting something done; today its about picking favorites.
Second, you note that “[o]ver that same three-decade period, US gross national product increased nearly ten-fold, going from $100 billion to $977 billion.” Today’s Congress is oblivious to the fact that that growth, 10-fold in 30 years, occurred due to fossil fuels. Congress and government then were about helping America grow. Today, I’m not so sure what the are about, other than finding someone to blame.