“SUPER POWER”

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LVI, 15 July 1924, Page 5

“SUPER POWER”

VAST ELEGTBJcTpRQJECT FOR AMERICA

The United States is now engaged upon au enterprise, characteristically big, which seems likely to produce in rhe next few years profound changes in the life of the nation. It is an attempt to unite the whole of the country’s pro* duction and distribution of mechanical energy in a single system. Already the plan has been carried a long way towards realisation, writes the New York correspondent of The Times. In tlio Pacific States an unbroken lino of electric power stations stretches for 1200 miles, and presently a similar unbroken line will stretch for 1600 miles between Canada and Mexico. In part of New England and over a group of the Southern States there are other large systems all ready to be a part of the great articulation. And but very recently nine light and power companies in Pennsylvania organised still another combination of plants which, when the time comes, will be fitted into the system. In the south-west there is a plan for putting the errant and destructive Colorado River to work, which will certainly result in the creation of yet ono more system than can he included in the eventual greater union. • It is not clear who originated the idea of a universal system of power, hut probably it gradually grew up out of the realisation that there must be co-opera-tion between States when rivers, which have scant respect for political boundaries, were to be utilised to produce electricity or any other form of power. More than that, there had to he cooperation with the Federal Government if rivers were to bo dammed for power plants, because all the navigable waters of the country are under the jurisdiction of the War Department. The Federal Government- took no really irnportant action for the encouragement of new power enterprises until about four years ago when Congress created the Federal Power Commission. In the short time, that the commission has been functioning it has issued licenses for tho installation of plants with a total capacity for producing 7,500,000_ h.p., and under its authority plants with a capacity of 2,400,000' h.p. have been built, or are being built. Previously three linrl "been built under Federal authorisation over a period of 20 years, plants with a capacity of hut 1,400,000 h.pr in all. , . How vast tlio development ot electric power has been in recent years can bo seen from the fact that, whereas in 1919 the output of all plants in the United States was 38.921,000 of kilowatt hours, bv 1923 it had risen to 55,928,000,000 of kilowatt hours. In the earlier year 37.5 per cent, of the total output of electric energy was produced hv water power and 62.5 per cent, by coal and other fuels; but in 1923 the proportion had changed to 35.1 and 64.9. per-cent. The alteration in the ratio is significant. It means, not a diminution in water power enterprises, hut an increase at a relatively faster rate of plants producing electricity from coal, oil, and other fuels. Garbo-electric plants are, ,of course, generally cheaper to install though not cheaper to maintain, than hydro-elect ric plants. And not only is coal comparatively inexpensive m the United States, hut improvements have been made in the methods of using it, so that only 2.41 b is required to produce , kilowatt hour of electricity, as against 3.21 b in 1919.