Abstract

During the 2000-2001 winter, California experienced a severe imbalance in electricity supply and demand that resulted in blackouts and brownouts. The state legislature initiated a number of emergency programs, one of which (Senate Bill 5x) was targeted for irrigation districts. The primary goal of SB 5x is to reduce peak period electricity demand. The California Energy Commission (CEC), acting under authority of Section 5(b) of the legislation, developed the "Agricultural Peak Load Reduction Program". The program was announced on June 1, 2001, and Cal Poly ITRC administers the irrigation district portion of the program for CEC. During the first 9 months of implementation, the irrigation districts voluntarily participated in load shifting, utilizing approximately $6.2 million in cost-sharing grant money. In addition, approximately 550 pumps were tested and pump repairs were made, resulting in an estimated savings of 16 million kWh.

Disciplines

Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering

Number of Pages

10

Publisher statement

Publisher website: United States Committee on Irrigation and Drainage

COinS
 

URL: https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/bae_fac/60