Planning for the power system is challenging. As planners, we try to determine how much electricity we will need over the next 20 years by evaluating uncertainty about weather, fuel prices, and changes in technology. As energy technologies, from solar to electric vehicles, have advanced, planning to ensure that the Northwest will have a reliable and affordable power supply has become an increasingly complex endeavor. Adding to the puzzle is the question of how the region's hydrosystem can adapt to this changing mix of generation.
The Federal Columbia River Power System is a 20th century engineering marvel and the backbone of the region's power system since the 1930s. But it is a multipurpose system, providing flood control, benefits to fish and wildlife, and irrigation, along with generating electricity. Regional planners must account for how the system is managed to meet these different needs; whether water is stored in a reservoir, allowed to flow down the river to generate electricity, or spill through the dams to help migrating fish.
The Bonneville Power Administration, the federal agency that markets the system's electricity, owns and operates more than three-fourths of the region's transmission grid. It delivers federal power to public utilities, a significant proportion of electricity use in the Northwest. Accounting for the agency's legal requirements and debt considerations for public utilities is critical for regional planning.
