For instance, for all its growth, California has not built a new power-generation facility in years. The Western power grid is already overworked because of the energy needs created by booming economies and population growth, but not just in California. My home state of Colorado, along with other Western states, have an increased demand for electricity, as well. The situation in the West is being intensified by a winter that has produced only a fraction of the rain and snow that usually fall. We all know that precipitation is crucial because so much of the region relies on water to produce electricity across the West.
Hydroelectric power is always somewhat controversial.
As my colleagues from the Pacific Northwest well know, that area relies on hydroelectric dams for a huge portion of its power. With the soaring price of electricity and the environmental concerns surrounding coal-fired generation plants, natural gas will play a key role in supplying our nation with sufficient power. But we are having problems with natural gas as well, and the electricity trend is repeating itself. Colorado's natural gas companies usually only raise rates once a year, but they claim that the skyrocketing prices for natural gas futures have caught suppliers by surprise, making further increases necessary. People, especially the most needy, pay close attention to their power bills and the prices they pay to fill their gas tanks at the station.