We need national grid system like UK
The recent failures in the electrical power supply across Texas have highlighted the shortcomings in the way our power suppliers mismanage their state systems. Texas may have been subjected to unusually low temperatures this time, but few would deny it is often subject to unusually high temperatures. If the margin of system capacity over average conditions is that low, who is to say it is not also liable to fail on ultra-hot days.
Texas is not alone. For example, like other states, in our heavily forested state of Tennessee we rely on vulnerable overhead transmission lines instead of buried ones. Time after time, falling tree branches cause unnecessary power outages, which may last for days. Repairing such damage is costly, yet we cannot find a way to finance a long-term program to bury power lines and eventually benefit from lower maintenance costs. The UK had similar problems until it completed its national grid system some 80 years ago. We need a similar grid system in the U.S. with common generating standards in each state to share the burden of unusual demands. Let Biden put that on his to-do list when considering updating our infrastructure.
Malcolm Bowden
McDonald, Tennessee