CHAPTER
11
ENERGY
11.1 INTRODUCTION
The first part of this
chapter provides an overview of the energy trends and forecasts at the
state level and in Sutter County. The remaining sections focus on the existing
and potential types of energy production.
11.2 STATE TRENDS
The California Energy
Commission (CEC) is responsible for establishing Statewide energy policies
which guide energy development, distribution and conservation. In carrying
out this function, the CEC determines the probable demand for various energy
sources and develops programs to assure the efficient delivery of energy
resources to the consumer, at a reasonable price.
Despite the wide array
of energy options in California, oil and natural gas provide up to 85 percent
of the State's energy. California consumes an average of two million barrels
of oil and five billion cubic feet of natural gas each day. Of this, California
produces 50 percent of the oil and 20 percent of the natural gas, importing
the rest. While domestic supplies of natural gas are expected to remain
adequate, current sources of oil are expected to diminish over the next
20 years, forcing California to import increasing amounts of oil to make
up the difference.
Hydropower, nuclear,
geothermal, solar, wind, and waste to energy resources, most of which are
converted to electricity, constitute about 12 percent of the State's energy
supplies. The remaining three (3) percent comes from coal.
11.3 LOCAL TRENDS
Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) is a publicly held utility which provides electric and gas service to Sutter County. Since 1988 there has been a steady increase in electric energy use, while over the same period natural gas use has fluctuated somewhat, with a slight decrease in consumption. Table 11.3-1 shows the electricity and gas consumed by sector in Sutter County between 1988 and 1992. As the population of the County increases the demand for these energy sources will also increase.
TABLE 11.3-1
ELECTRIC
AND GAS CONSUMPTION
| Electric KWH |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
| Residential | 191,661,344 | 194,811,296 | 204,088,192 | 201,956,237 | 207,349,116 | 204,443,994 |
| Commercial | 115,325,712 | 121,478,832 | 121,012,896 | 126,387,512 | 134,183,817 | 144,481,742 |
| TCU | 17,392,272 | 16,427,039 | 16,492,327 | 25,693,269 | 8,112,396 | 17,424,763 |
| Assembly Industry | 10,536,652 | 8,213,620 | 8,994,338 | 9,333,412 | 10,362,156 | 9,571,152 |
| Process Industry | 23,012,464 | 24,597,952 | 24,020,464 | 23,108,153 | 24,683,487 | 25,396,437 |
| Mining & Construction | 1,535,391 | 1,428,499 | 1,196,370 | 1,026,204 | 959,687 | 794,132 |
| Ag. & Water Pump | 62,053,840 | 61,966,416 | 64,071,200 | 53,105,031 | 65,799,925 | 47,546,529 |
| Unclassified | 13,898,626 | 16,377,711 | 27,435,296 | 30,247,161 | 27,117,216 | 25,481,075 |
| Total | 435,416,301 | 445,301,365 | 467,311,083 | 470,856,979 | 478,567,800 | 475,139,824 |
| Gas THERMS | ||||||
| Residential | 11,812,900 | 12,225,395 | 11,362,070 | 12,703,860 | 13,053,754 | 11,951,686 |
| Commercial | 5,180,467 | 4,723,158 | 4,660,192 | 4,088,723 | 5,071,889 | 5,005,262 |
| TCU | 63,087 | 82,005 | 78,687 | 98,146 | 99,083 | 83,259 |
| Assembly Industry | 94,207 | 103,899 | 162,163 | 140,571 | 163,852 | 170,766 |
| Process Industry | 3,987,829 | 4,733,668 | 4,564,253 | 2,131,582 | 3,423,550 | 4,430,212 |
| Mining & Construction | 25,391 | 19,553 | 14,789 | 13,661 | 13,665 | 11,759 |
| Ag. & Water Pump | 1,025,886 | 378,190 | 134,198 | 88,420 | 140,752 | 144,424 |
| Unclassified | 458,505 | 7,806,957 | 1,145,691 | 708,028 | 2,834,777 | 1,295,872 |
| Total | 22,648,272 | 30,072,825 | 22,122,043 | 19,972,991 | 24,801,322 | 23,093,240 |
Source: California Energy Commission, Quarterly Fuel and Energy Report Database
11.4 FUTURE ENERGY
OPTIONS
Future energy demand
is difficult to pinpoint due to a variety of factors including fluctuations
in business cycles, the overall rate of economic growth in the state, technological
advances in the efficient use of energy, and improved conservation practices.
All these factors affect the pricing of energy supplies and the feasibility
of new energy source development.
The CEC develops energy
demand forecasts for various energy sources, however, they are of little
use for general plan purposes because they cover very large planning areas
and do not provide county-specific information. In addition, the forecasts
are based on economic demand and are subject to significant fluctuations.
Based on discussions
with PG&E officials, current gas and electricity supplies are expected
to meet demands in Sutter County for the foreseeable future.
An option to augment
existing electric power sources is cogeneration, and possibly waste to
energy development, which is considered a subset of cogeneration. This
resource has been utilized to a limited degree in Sutter County.
Another feasible energy
option, based on the County's climate, is solar energy. However, present
technology has not reached the level of economic feasibility needed to
stimulate new facility development.
Other energy types such
as wind, geothermal, and oil production are not expected to occur at any
significant levels. However, significant natural gas production is expected
to continue in the County.
Existing, proposed,
and future potential development is described for each energy resource
in the following sections. In addition, environmental issues and regulatory
requirements particular to each energy type are discussed.
11.5 TRANSMISSION
LINES AND SUBSTATIONS
EXISTING FACILITIES/EXPANSION
POTENTIAL
Electricity purchased
from PG&E by local customers is generated and transmitted to the County
by a large network of power plants and transmission lines located throughout
California. Sutter County is presently crossed and served by two general
types of transmission lines. The first type is the 500 kV transmission
line that is a part of the Pacific Intertie.
The purpose of this
line is to enhance service reliability throughout the western states. The
second type is the 60 kV - 230 kV transmission lines that serve the specific
energy needs in the County. Transmission and substation facilities located
in the County are shown in Figure 11.5-1.
FIGURE 11.5-1
SUTTER COUNTY TRANSMISSION LINES
REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT
The siting of new transmission
lines is regulated by the Public Utilities Commission. Currently, there
are no designated transmission line corridors in the County. Any new transmission
facilities would need to be evaluated on a case by case basis.
FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
According to PG&E,
there is no immediate need for new transmission lines or substations in
the County. Future development of these facilities will be demand driven,
based on the location, type and number of new electricity users in the
County.