California selfish in a whole new way

 Southern California Edison is working towards more eco-friendly processes of saving and generating energy.

California is one of the most populated and industrialized states in the nation, and the amount of energy consumed by households 
is appalling.

According to a study done in October 2007, the US uses about 12,000 kilowatts per capita of energy every year.  From that number, California alone spends 8,000 kilowatts, two-thirds of the nation’s energy consumption.  

To say the least, this information makes me a bit ashamed of 
being a self-absorbed, energy-hogging Californian.

The Pacific Gas and Energy Company are asking the Department of Energy for a stimulus of $25 million to fund a compressed air energy storage project. That sounds pretty eco-friendly, but if you’re like me, you probably have no idea how this project is going to help decrease our energy use.  

Here it is step-by-step: the compressed air energy storage takes excess energy from a power plant and uses it to run air compressors.  This then pumps air into some sort of underground cave where it is kept inside to build pressure.  The pressure powers a turbine, producing electricity. In other words, energy that would have been wasted is now used to create more electricity.

Many people are concerned about the $25 million that is probably going to come out of our own pockets, through taxes, but there lies a more foreboding issue, our environment and its diminishing supply of energy.

It’s hard to tell someone to turn off the TV in order to conserve energy while they’re watching their favorite episodes, but agreeing to use their already paid taxes towards an eco-friendly initiative is something of a more practical and useful nature.