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US Government, Defense Department: We Are Concerned About Energy Shortages In America

US Government, Defense Department: We Are Concerned About Energy Shortages In America

energy

Photo by Pok Rie

Is the U.S. headed for an energy shortage? The White House and U.S. The Department of Defense is worried that the U.S. may experience one.

The U.S. is also concerned about an energy shortage in Europe, which will have a ripple effect in the U.S.

“We’re concerned about potential energy shortages in Europe as the winter approaches,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Aug. 29. “This is something we’re going to stay focused on as the fall turns to winter, and we’ll be latched up with allies and partners to try to do what we can to alleviate any shortages coming through.”

The signs of a possible energy crisis are already there.

In the West, they have been dealing with water and power shortages.

In early August, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) warned that two of the largest reservoirs in the U.S. are at dangerously low levels due to the climate crisis and overconsumption of water. This has the potential to affect the water and electricity supply for millions in six western states and Mexico. Lake Mead and Lake Powell are at their lowest levels ever and are at risk of reaching “dead pool status”; this would mean that the water in the dams would be so low it could no longer power hydroelectric power stations, the United Nations reported.

Lake Mead, located in Nevada and Arizona, was created in the 1930s by the construction of the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River. It is the largest artificial body of water in the U.S. Lake Powell, located in Utah and Arizona, is the second largest and was created in the 1960s with the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam.

“The conditions in the American west, which we’re seeing around the Colorado River basin, have been so dry for more than 20 years that we’re no longer speaking of a drought,” said Lis Mullin Bernhardt, an ecosystems expert at UNEP. “We refer to it as ‘aridification’ – a new, very dry normal.”  

Lake Mead and Lake Powell supply water and electricity to tens of millions of people in the states of Nevada, Arizona, California, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, and in Mexico, as well as irrigation water for agriculture.

On top of this the fuel shortages are also causing a crisis.

Recently, an oil refinery fire stoked concerns of a fuel shortage in four states.

On Aug. 28, the federal government declared a regional emergency in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Wisconsin following a fire that broke out at a BP-owned refinery in Whiting, Indiana, OilPrice.com reported.

The fire affected the supply of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel across the four states, according to the Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

It’s not just the U.S. Over in the UK; officials are also warning there could be an energy shortage there this winter. With 40% of UK electricity coming from gas-fired generation, an analyst told Yahoo News UK. “If we don’t get that gas the lights will go out and we will have power cuts.”

Photo by Pok Rie: https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-metal-current-posts-157827/