Roy L. Hales

CLEANING UP THE SANTA BARBARA OIL SPILL

 

Originally Published on the ECOreport

By Roy L Hales

May 28, 2015 (Santa Barbara) - It has been eight days since a 24-inch Plains All American oil pipeline ruptured. Though the pipeline was manually shut down after 45 minutes, approximately 105,000 spilled and 20,000 of that entered the ocean. Volunteers are combing 8 miles of affected shoreline, skimming oil from the ocean, and rescuing wildlife. Close to a thousand people are cleaning up the Santa Barbara Oil Spill.


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HOW SDG&E'S SMART DEVICES HELPED RESTORE POWER TO THEIR CUSTOMERS

 

Originally Published in the ECOreport

By Roy L Hales 

San Diego’s grid has endured an onslaught. A record breaking 5-day-long heat wave, that produced back to back peak demand records of 4,781 megawatts (MW) and 4,890 MW. There were high winds, microbursts followed by sudden downpours and flooding. A lot of trees fell and there were several outages. Repair crews worked round the clock. Some worked 24 hour shifts. Hanan Eisenman, Communications Manager for San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), explained how SDG&E’s smart grid devices helped restore power to their customers.


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SAN DIEGO NEEDS TO PUT TRANSIT AND ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION FIRST

 

Originally Published in the ECOreport

By Roy L Hales

September 13, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) - A statewide survey, done by the Public Policy Institute, found that 77% of Californians think public transit should be the focus of transportation spending. Only 18% said more money should be spent on highways and freeways.(1) This sentiment is strong in San Diego, where more than a decade ago 85% of the respondents said the transit system was the #1 priority.(2) When the question came up again, in 2010, 55% of those polled wanted the transit system expanded, as opposed to 32% who want more roads.(3) Now, as the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) draws up its’ transportation plan, community groups want them to put plans for a freeway expansion on hold. According to Monique Lopez, from the Environmental Health Coalition, San Diego needs to put transit and active transportation first.


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THE OCOTILLO WIND FARM KEEPS LIMPING ON

 

By Roy L Hales

Photos Credit: Parke Ewing

Originally published in the ECOreport

The Ocotillo Wind Farm keeps limping on. According to a recent article in East County Magazine, the site was producing just under 18% of capacity during the first quarter of 2014. As that was the windy season, it seems unlikely that Ocotillo will beat the slightly less than 16% average they set for the first for year of operation (2013). Then there is what the Bureau of Land Management keeps refering to as "general maintenance."


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READER'S EDITORIAL: GET THE POLITICS OUT OF WIND ENERGY!

 

Originally Published in the ECOreport

by Roy L Hales

Stanford University has just published a glowing report about how Wind Farms “can provide a surplus of reliable clean energy to society.” I almost posted it. It is important to publish information that does not fit your beliefs but, in this case, I decided to voice my skepticism instead.


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