DEP sends out $15M to lower rural power outage risk

(The Center Square) — Rural communities will get $15 million from the Department of Environmental Protection to lower the risk of power outages.

Part of the Pennsylvania Grid Resilient Grant program, the money comes as state officials worry the future holds more and longer power outages.

“The impacts of these targeted investments across the Commonwealth are clear; power outages will be prevented and outage time when they occur will be reduced,” DEP Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley said in a press release. “The PA GRG funding will result in a more resilient and reliable electric grid for Pennsylvanians while enabling the expansion of clean energy generation, energy sector job creation, and investments in environmental justice and underserved communities.”

The money, received from the federal government through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, is expected to benefit almost 60,000 residents in 18 mainly rural counties, bringing “significant improvements in their electric grid resilience and reliability,” DEP noted.

The work includes power line pole inspection and vegetation clearing to prevent trees from taking down lines during storm; equipment upgrades at 20 substations and smart grid sensors at 16 substations; and “over 200 pieces of cutting-edge smart grid equipment” to protect systems and monitor the grid for power outages.

“These grid enhancements will reduce outage time in some areas from hours to seconds,” DEP officials noted.

Threats to Pennsylvania’s grid, the Department argued, come from population growth that boosts energy demands, severe weather caused by climate change, and old infrastructure.

The biggest awardee is United Electric Cooperative in Jefferson, Clearfield, and Elk Counties: There, $5 million will go to improve the electric grid, upgrade an outdated substation, replace power lines, and trim trees.

In Sullivan County, its Rural Electric Cooperative will get $3.3 million to relocate and “future-proof” a substation, which is expected to reduce outage durations by 97%.

And Claverack Rural Electric Cooperation will get $2.1 million for work in eight counties across the Northern Tier to track almost 3,000 miles of power lines using satellite imagery and machine learning technology. DEP expects the project to reduce outage duration from 34 hours to fewer than 7 hours by 2028.

Grid problems pop up statewide and tie into concerns about the 13-state regional electric grid to which Pennsylvania belongs. In February, a joint Ohio-Pennsylvania legislative hearing highlighted how bureaucracy and state policy have shut down power plants before replacement power is available. A desire by some legislators to boost renewable energy and lower emissions has exacerbated reliability issues.