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Public commenter urges steady, practical steps to reduce winter risk
Summary
Fred of the Northwest Energy Coalition praised coordination efforts, urged calm planning and recommended accelerating energy efficiency, demand response and batteries rather than a rapid rush to new gas infrastructure.
Fred, representing the Northwest Energy Coalition during public comment, commended the symposium and the growing attention to gas–electric coordination while urging a measured approach to risks this winter. He recommended deploying energy efficiency, demand‑response, batteries and transmission upgrades as near‑term measures to reduce winter peaks.
"The very first thing to do is not to panic," Fred said, adding that while the January 2024 event was serious it also revealed clear levers—demand reduction, storage and transmission upgrades—that can be deployed and accelerated. He cautioned that new gas infrastructure and pipeline builds are multi‑year, multi‑billion‑dollar efforts and advised weighing those options against faster alternatives such as batteries and demand‑side measures.
