It seems everyone who cares about the environment is talking about the need for a smart electrical grid. Last week President Barack Obama told Congress we need to update "the way we get our electricity by starting to build a new smart grid that will save us money, protect our power sources from blackout or attack and deliver clean, alternative forms of energy to every corner of our nation."

What is a smart grid? "A smart grid delivers electricity from suppliers to consumers using digital technology to save energy and cost," according to Wikipedia. Roger N. Anderson of Columbia University defines smart grids as being "web-enabled, digitally controlled, intelligent delivery system."

The Honolulu Advertiser, in a recent article, defines a smart grid as featuring "self-healing capabilities to automatically avoid or mitigate power outages; coordinate and accommodate all generation and storage options; and enable the consumers to have electricity use options that also allow the utility to operate the grid more efficiently."

The website WorldChanging.com, touts the benefits of a smart electrical grid: it can manage energy supply "from a variety of distributed sources," and doesn't merely "prevent blackouts," but "actively encourages alternative energy."

A smart electrical grid allows consumers to adjust their electricity use. In fact, consumers can adjust their usage to prevent and not just ease peak power loads. Another big advantage to smart grids is their capacity to "handle the fluctuations in power when the wind ebbs or clouds thicken." In other words, smart grids can deal with the growing use of renewable energy sources like solar and wind.

"Widespread adoption of these technologies can help provide reliable clean energy," said Robert G. Pratt, program manager at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Investing in a smart grid is cost efficient because ultimately it will save money. Rob Pratt, program manager at Pacific Northwest National Lab, said, "We could save $70 billion in investments in the next 20 years by offsetting construction of new infrastructure that would otherwise be needed to meet load growth."

Last year the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest Laboratory released the results of its test of thermostats connected to the internet in 112 Seattle area homes. Pratt said the test showed that consumers are "willing to have utilities remotely dial down the appliances to lessen the load on a power grid and reduce their consumption."

It will take government investments to construct a smart grid. Two weeks ago the

Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, David Obey (D) introduced a stimulus package which includes $32 billion for energy initiatives, including $11 billion for research and development of a smart grid.

World leaders want smart grids

Smart grids were one of the main topics during the World Future Energy Summit's Green Energy Showcase on January 21. The Summit featured the CEO, Schoettle of Optimal Technologies Inc., which touts itself as the "leading developer of technologies to optimize power grid systems."

Many world leaders attend the Summit, including the Commissioner of Energy at the European Union, Andris Piebalgs, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Before the World Future energy Summit, Schoettle said, "Leaders across the globe are beginning to recognize the need for a truly smart grid in order to manage the transition to a renewable energy-based system of energy production."

Related Reading:
The Coming Energy Shift- Update
How Will Obama Solve the Energy and Climate Problem?

Image Credit:
Chicagoarerialtours.com