Government said Electric Grid Threats Should Have Been Classified

The Energy Department's inspector general said on Wednesday that information about the U.S. electric grid's vulnerability to physical attacks should have been classified for national security reasons, and called on federal regulators to change the way they handle such material.

As The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission briefed many utility executives, congressional leaders, trade groups and government officials about an attack by gunmen on an electrical substation in California in April 2013. The briefings included results of a computer model suggesting that knocking out a small number of critical transmission substations could result in cascading blackouts across North America.

 

The inspector general's office said that all this information "should have been classified and protected from release at the time it was created," according to a "management alert" released Wednesday, just ahead of a Thursday Senate hearing on grid vulnerabilities. The alert recommended that the independent energy commission take immediate steps to secure the information and prevent further public release. (Read More Here)

 

Now Quality Electric Service has started a petition about receiving more protection over the Electric Grid. So we please ask you to take the time and sign it. Sign Here

 

 Quality Electric Service
www.qualityelectricservice.com
609.861.1409

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The severe weather months are coming, you should be prepared!

Most severe storms strike between April to July. Long before storm season sets in, you should prepare for a storm and know how to stay safe.

Before the storm:

• Assemble a kit of essentials, like water, battery - operated flashlights and radios. Keep a list of emergency phone numbers that includes the electric utility. Be prepared for the possibility of a prolonged outage due to power line and electric equipment damage.
• During an outage, switch off lights and appliances to prevent overloading circuits and damaging appliances when power is restored. Leave one lamp or switch on as a signal for when your power returns.
• If severe weather is on its way, pay attention to local weather reports and recommendations. A tornado or severe storm watch means that conditions are favorable for those weather conditions forming. A warning means that dangerous weather conditions are developing.
• Lighting can travel up to ten miles away from a storm, so seek shelter as soon as you hear thunder.

After the storm:

• When venturing outside, stay away from downed power lines and be alert to the possibility that tree limbs or debris may hide an electrical hazard. Assume that any dangling wires you encounter are energized and dangerous. Warn others to stay away and contact the electric company.
• If you are driving and come upon a downed power line, stay in your vehicle, want others to stay away and contact emergency personnel or the electric company. Also when driving be careful at intersections where traffic lights may be out. Stop at all railroad crossings and treat road intersections with traffic signals as a four-way stop before proceeding with cautions.
• Before re-entering storm-damaged buildings or rooms, be sure all electric and gas services are turned off.
• Never step into a flooded basement or other area if water is covering electrical outlets, appliances or cords. Be alert to any electrical equipment that could be energized and in contact with water. Never touch electrical appliances, cords or wires while you are wet or standing in water.
• Do not use water damaged electronics until a qualified electrician has inspected them and ensured they are safe

Safe Electricity

Quality Electric Service
www.qualityelectricservice.com
609.861.1409


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Time to ditch private oversight of America's electric grid system

This was taken by Fox News: By Dr. George Baker, Thomas S. Popik    Published February 26, 2014     Fox News



In April of 2013, unknown parties used a high-powered rifle to shoot out seventeen transformers at a San Jose substation—but only after cutting the fiber optic cables alerting 911 emergency centers.

A prescient 2007 report by the National Academy of Sciences foresaw this grid attack, but the report’s release was suppressed by security classification at the Department of Homeland Security. Only recently has the national media begun to cover the San Jose substation attack and its implications for national security.

Most Americans probably don't know that standards for protection of electric grid facilities against terrorist attack are set not by the federal government, but by an electric power industry consortium located in Atlanta, Georgia -- the North American Electric Reliability Corporation or “NERC,” as it is called by industry insiders. 

NERC had spent years developing a standard for physical protection of transformer substations, but this effort was cancelled after the San Jose attack. For NERC and the electric utilities that control its governance, avoiding regulation looks to be more important than protecting against terrorists.

In November of last year, NERC sponsored its second voluntary “GridEx” grid security exercise. 

Southern California Edison, Pacific Gas and Electric, and other major utilities nationwide simulated cyber and physical attacks on the electric grid. In the make-believe world of GridEx II, Internet service and telecommunications among electric utilities and their control centers worked perfectly throughout the simulated three-day exercise. 

In the real world, utilities are dependent on commercial telecommunications equipment with on-site backup power that will be depleted within a few hours. GridEx II and other industry “work-around procedures” serve as expedient substitutes for the hard work of developing needed federal grid regulation.

In 1965 and again in 2003, regional blackouts hit the Northeastern United States, causing deaths and severe economic disruption. At the time of the 2003 Northeast Blackout, regulation of electric grid reliability was purely voluntary. 

Constituents pressured Congress to act, but electric utilities, concerned about their bottom lines, resisted formation of a federal regulator. In a compromise with industry, Congress converted a pre-existing trade association, the North American Electric Reliability Council, into a self-regulatory organization with the power to both set and enforce grid standards.

NERC remained a private corporation, governed by the vote of its membership. And as before, its membership consists mostly of private electric utility companies. In fact, seventy percent of NERC members are electric utilities.

One would expect that electric utilities would be reluctant to impose grid protection standards on themselves, especially when those standards might reduce profits and increase liability. 

The NERC track record since designation as a self-regulatory organization in 2006 has borne this out. Even the simplest standards take years to develop and approve.

For example, an errant tree branch was one cause of the 2003 Northeast Blackout affecting 50 million people, but NERC took ten years to approve a standard for tree-trimming.

On more complicated standards, such as those for cyber security, NERC inserts technical loopholes and questionable self-exemptions. For example, a 2011 NERC survey found that three-quarters of large electric generation plants—those with capacity over 300 megawatts—exempted themselves from cyber security standards. The current tenuous cyber-protection standards took forty-three months to write and approve.

In 2012, the persistent authors of the initially classified National Academy of Sciences report, “Terrorism and the Electric Power Delivery System,” succeeded in obtaining its declassification. Page 1 states: “A terrorist attack on the power system would lack the dramatic impact of the attacks in New York, Madrid, or London.…But if it were carried out in a carefully planned way, by people who knew what they were doing, it could deny large regions of the country access to bulk system power for weeks or even months.”

California is the heart of America’s high-tech industry, filled with data centers that need highly reliable grid power. Local businesses and homes cannot tolerate an electricity transmission system vulnerable to outages lasting “weeks or months.”

Last April’s transformer substation attack in San Jose demonstrates that terrorist threats to the grid are real and that voluntary standards are insufficient.

Californians and the entire country need a federal regulator that will mandate electric grid security, not a private consortium controlled by the interests of its electric utility members.

Quality Electric Service
www.qualityelectricservice.com
609.861.1409



 

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Winter Weather Check List

The winter and cold weather is here! You need to check for freezing popes and water leaks. Water can cause severe damage to your home. Check out these Winter and Cold Weather safety tips!

Winter Cold & Freezing Safety Checklist

aDress in several layers of lightweight

    clothing, wear mittens and a hat

aWear waterproof, insulated boots to keep

    your feet warm and dry.

aMinimize travel. If travel is necessary,

    keep a disaster supplies kit in your vehicle.

aListen to a NOAAWeather Radio or other

    local news channels for critical
    information from the NationalWeather
    Service (NWS).

aWinterize your vehicle and keep the gas

    tank full. A full tank will keep the fuel line
    from freezing.

aInsulate your home by installing storm

    windows or covering windows with plastic
    from the inside to keep cold air out.

aMaintain heating equipment and

   chimneys by having them cleaned and
   inspected every year.

aBring pets/companion animals inside

   during winter weather. Move other
   animals or livestock to sheltered areas
    with non-frozen drinking water.

aRunning water, even at a trickle, helps

    prevent pipes from freezing.

aAll fuel-burning equipment should be

   vented to the outside and kept clear.

 

Have any questions or concerns?! Do not hesitate to contact us!

Sincerely,

 

Quality Electric Service
www.qualityelectricservice.com
609.861.1409



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3 Electrical Upgrades that can save you money

Many people believe that the only time they need to call an electrician is when something is wrong in their home. That statement is false. There are a number of jobs you can call an electrician for that can make your home safer, more efficient and can save you money!
 
Light fixtures - Want to remodel a bedroom, family room, or den? Before you start knocking down walls, think of what a difference new lighting will make. With so many designs and styles of lighting, including recessed lighting and track lighting, you can create a truly new look without even changing the paint!
 
Ceiling Fans - Adding a ceiling fan to your bedroom or living room can help lower your heating and cooling costs, improve airflow in the room and can add some style to a room. There are a massive amount of ceiling fan designs and styles to choose from. Fans circulate air and keep things from getting stuffy and hot in the summer and even the winter months.
 
Bathroom Fans - adding or upgrading exhaust fans can actually make your home much safer and more comfortable. Bathroom fans pull in moisture from the bathroom when you take a shower (or from steam in the kitchen when cooking), which prevents water damage and inhibits the growth of mold and mildew. There are now bath fans available that include lights and heaters to add some warmth and light to your bathroom as well.
 
Upgrading your electrical system does not have to mean a complete overhaul of your home's wiring - a few minor tweaks can get you saving money and living more comfortably, day in and day out! If you are interested in any electrical upgrades in your home, call Quality Electric Service.

Quality Electric Service
609.861.1409
qualityelectricservice.com


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Coming soon in 2014..

WIN a "Whole House" Generator Installation

 

Coming soon in 2014:  Somers Point St. Joseph R.C. Church will be raffling off a "Whole House" Generator Installation worth $10,000. This whole package includes, Generac Generator and "Whole House" Automatic Transfer Switch (sized per code requirements, up to 20KW), Freight, delivery, installation & commissioning of equipment (within Atlantic, Cape May, or Cumberland County), All wiring and connections (within 20' of existing electric meter), All gas piping and connections (within 20' of existing gas meter), 5 - Year extended warranty from Generac,  All maintenance for 1st year, All municipal construction permits, inspections and fees and of course everything will be done by Quality Electric Service. 

The Raffle tickets will be $20 each and proceeds go to the Church. Keep checking back for more information. 

 

www.qualityelectricservice.com
609.861.1409

 

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Holiday Electrical Safety Tips

The holiday season is upon us once again and this is a time when many people decorate their home for the holidays. The key is to be safety conscious when decorating your home because no one wants the holidays to end in a disastrous accident.

1. Inspect Everything & Look for the UL label: Before using any holiday decorations, ensure that you inspect it closely. You will be looking for missing or broken bulbs, plugs or sockets that are cracked or damaged, wires that are loose or bare and any other type of damage. You will also want to inspect any extension cords that you use to connect holiday decorations. Remember, your holiday decorations have been in storage for the last year, holiday decorations can deteriorate or become damaged while in storage.
2. Do not overload electrical outlets: One of the most dangerous mistakes that people make decorating for the holidays is overloading electrical outlets. Ensure you only plug one high wattage appliance into each outlet. It is also a good idea to use extension cords or power strips with s built - in overload protector installed as another level of safety.
3. The Christmas Tree: Once a Christmas tree is cut, it can dry out quickly, so be sure to water your tree every day to keep it as fresh as possible and do not have it in the house for an extended period of time. Dried out Christmas trees are one of the top fire causing hazards in homes during the holiday season.
4. Candles: Most people love the look and scent of candles burning in their home during the holidays. Unattended candles cause more then half of holiday fires. If you must burn candles for your holiday celebrations, do so with caution. Never allow them to burn unattended and ensure that all candles are out when you to bed.
5. Keep Clearance around heat sources: If you are burning a fireplace, have an electric baseboard heater make sure all combustible materials are at least 3 feet from the heat source. Combustibles include furniture, curtains, gifts with wrapping paper, the Christmas tree and anything else that can catch fire easily and burn quickly.
6. Protect cords from Damage: When you are installing your holiday decorations always keep in mind where the cords will be when you are done. Ensure electrical and extension cords are protected from being damages. Make sure that they are not pinched by furniture, hit by a vacuum etc. If they are used outdoors, do not leave cords lying across driveways or walkways and make sure all connections are waterproof. Another thing to watch for is closing doors or windows will not damage electrical cords and keep them at least 3 feet from any heat. Never install cords through windows, walls or doors!
7. Stay in kitchen while cooking: This safety rule applies all year round. When you are cooking holiday meals and snacks stay in the kitchen. Pans can boil, unheated cooking equipment can malfunction etc.
8. Bedtime: The last person that goes to bed at night should make sure that all decorations are turned off, unplugged and extinguished. Unattended holiday decorations result in many home fires during the holiday season.

If you have an comments or concerns feel free to contact us!

609.861.1409
www.qualityelectricservice.com




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