Title: Reinventing electric utilities
First published: 1997
Description: Traditionally protected as monopolies, electric utilities are now being caught in the fervor of deregulation that is sweeping the country. Nearly 40 states have enacted or are considering laws and regulations that will profoundly alter the way the electric utility industry is governed.

Concerned citizens are beginning to ponder the environmental implications of such a change, and while many fear that the pressure of competition will exacerbate environmental problems, others argue that deregulation provides a tremendous opportunity for citizens to work toward promoting cleaner energy and a more sustainable way of life.

In Reinventing Electric Utilities, Ed Smeloff and Peter Asmus consider the challenges for citizens and the utility industry in this new era of competition. Through an in-depth case study of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), a once-troubled utility that is now widely regarded as a model for energy efficiency and renewable energy development, they explore the changes that have occurred in the utility industry and the implications of those changes for the future.

The SMUD portrait is complemented by regional case studies of Portland General Electric and the Washington Public Power Supply System, the New England Electric Service, Northern States Power, the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas, and others.

These case studies highlight the efforts of citizen groups and utilities to eliminate unproductive and environmentally damaging sources of power and to promote the use of new, cleaner energy technologies through creative leadership, open and competitive markets, and the active participation of citizens.
Subjects: Decentralization, Efficiency, Electric power-plants, Electric utilities, Energy conservation, Environmental aspects, Environmental aspects of Electric power-plants, Renewable energy sources, Sacramento Municipal Utility District (Calif.)., Technische Innovation, TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING, Energies renouvelables, Energia, Electrical, Power Resources, Kernkraftwerk, Umweltschutz, Electricite, services publics, Wettbewerb, Electrical power industries, Management of land & natural resources, Privatization, Science/Mathematics, Electric Power Resources Management, Public Utilities, United States, Technology & Industrial Arts, Nuclear Energy, Electricity, Industries - Energy Industries, Technology / Environmental, Electric power-plants, environmental aspects
Places: Sacramento Municipal Utility District (Calif.), United States