Colorado residents traditionally have treated air conditioning as an optional amenity. That’s changing “as summers get hotter.' COwx
Heavier reliance on air conditioning to keep cool threatens toand Colorado officials this week are seeking utility “readiness” assurances after temps topped 100 degrees.
Colorado residents traditionally have treated air conditioning as an optional amenity. That’s changing. “As summers get hotter, we are, increasingly, going to see cooling as a real need,” Toor said. “We are entering into a world where AC is going to be more and more important for health and safety through these long heat waves.”
This spring, Xcel teams handled scheduled maintenance at power plants early to boost readiness for anticipated summer demands, Kenney said. And extra electricity generated for meeting peak demands has been increased. Around the West, rising demands for electricity have overwhelmed power grids in California, leading to rolling blackouts. In Texas, more than 200 people died when extreme winter storms in February 2021 led to blackouts.