This year an issue developed about why the electricity was not turned off at the Dallas Cowboys stadium but residents lights were turned off during rolling blackouts throughout Texas.
The superficiality of a football game being more important than a family staying warm during the winter is a good argument to debate however a closer look reveals that no family froze to death because of this.
This type of issue is a perfect example of how the news media will look for anything they can to tarnish the success of electricity deregulation and assist the liberal cause of putting electric service back under regulation under a single monopoly.
In reality commercial and industrial facilities always have precedent to keep their lights on when it comes to forced electricity blackouts. There are controls in place that also allow some commercial and industrial facilities to opt into a demand curtailment program.
Through a voluntary electricity demand curtailment program created and managed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas large facilities like the Dallas Cowboys stadium can voluntarily turn off their power during peak demand period of a day.
Because business is what puts food on your families table it only makes since that business facilities have the most accommodations when energy must be shut off for a short time.
This winter was extra cold and people were using way to much electricity and natural gas. Texas uses natural gas to create enough electricity during peak demand periods and so when natural gas heating thermostats are turned way up it causes problems.
The rolling blackouts in Texas were for 15 minute time periods and no one froze in the process. The Dallas Cowboys stadium needed to have electricity and natural gas on so that they could melt the snow on the roof.
The snow presented a hazard to Dallas Texas tourists and visitors who would be in the stadium. How do you think regular people get paid in Dallas TX? Tourism is a big part of the Dallas economy and especially when the Superbowl is in town.
Just because the stadium didn’t have to shut down shouldn’t cause people to become agitated as other large commercial and industrial facilities had opted in to cover for places that chose not to opt in by shutting down their facilities energy for a 15 minute interval.
The facilities that participated in the voluntary electricity demand curtailment this go around were handsomely compensated and places like the Dallas Texas Cowboys Stadium are thankful that their are businesses able to do this.
Residents would have had to participate in the rolling blackout regardless of what the Dallas Cowboys stadium decided to do as the ERCOT council uses this blackout plan only in emergency situations as they rely on voluntary opt ins to accomplish keeping the Texas electric grid reliable.
Thank God we don’t live in a state that requires us to only take hot showers on Mondays and other ridiculous government nanny behavior.
