Is Electricity an essential service in Australia?

I think the people of Eyre Peninsula SA are now asking ourselves this question after the closure of the Port Augusta power station has seen our region left without enough power!

Regardless of stormy weather, the power has always randomly gone off at our place, even before Pt Augusta closed. But what we are experiencing now is totally different. Long periods without power. Power flicking on and off, yesterday evening ours flicked off and on 6 times in a period of 40 minutes. My oven blew up (mid-Pavlova!), which I can only assume was due to the constant power outages of the previous 24 hours. At least we still HAD power some of the time, the Western Coast of EP had none, and over the Christmas period at that!

Are we expecting too much that our Adelaide based politicians might include our region in their Electricity plans for the state? 

Was there a government analysis undertaken of the ramifications of Pt Augusta closing? Or were the Whetherill government too excited about boasting to their greeny mates about closing another coal power station?

Certainly, the word around EP was Pt Augusta's closure would affect our power supply...... and whadaya know... it has! Go figure!!

So instead of the usual praying for mobile signal, we are now praying for a reliable Electricity supply. Even Afghanistan has 3 hours of electricity per day.

Is it really too much to ask that a region that contributes several billion dollars to this state's economy each year in Agriculture, Aquaculture and Mining, is considered worthy enough to receive a reliable power supply?

Is Electricity an essential service for all Australians? It would appear not to the people of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.

We accept that bad weather can cause interruptions, we've always accepted that. We are always grateful to those technicians that help restore our power as quickly as they can. But this current arrangement is so unacceptable for a first world country and a region that is already isolated from the mainstream of the state.

You can no longer do business or even live on Eyre Peninsula unless you get yourself a generator, you just have to have one. So to all the greenies I say, 'suck it up sunshine', we are churning so much toxic fuel through those suckers it'd make your head spin, so Bravo people, what a great outcome for the ozone layer!!!

I'm not anti renewable's by any means, but what we work towards for the future health of the planet MUST be kept within 'sensible' parameters so as not to ruin our economy and the livelihoods and wellbeing of our communities.

Basically, I don't care who's fault this is, I don't care what is state or federal responsibility, I don't give a shit about the political blame game blah blah, I just want our elected government to get off their arse and fix it!

p.s. the power went off twice while trying to write this post!

Machinery Height - do you actually know how close the Powerlines are?

I did some sums on the safe clearance distance for powerlines in my local area of Eyre Peninsula, SA.

A high number of the powerlines on Eyre Peninsula are attached to the older, shorter 9m poles. (many SWER lines, 19000v)

With areas on Eyre Peninsula getting into temperatures of 45-48 degrees or more at times, the powerlines droop in this extreme heat.

Currently, ETSA do not attend to this type of powerline unless it is drooping below 5.5m in height.

The illustration above is a calculation of our Header height, including tyres, aerials etc.

It shows clearly that we can easily exceed the safe clearance distance, especially in summer when the lines droop in the heat.

I guess the main thing to do is be aware of this scenario, especially when:

• Extending your auger to unload
• Travelling under powerlines with a  full box
• Parking the machine to get out
• And when purchasing new machinery

 It is surprising how close we actually come to this electricity risk. 

      Safe Clearance Distances as per the Electricity Regulations 2012:

Voltage	Clearance distance in all directions (in metres)
Under 11 000 volts	0.6
19 000 volts (SWER)	0.9
33 000 volts	0.9
66 000 volts	1.4
132 000 volts	2.4
275 000 volts	3.2
330 000 volts	4.6
500 000 volts	5.5

No Power, No Shower!

My pet hate when the electricity goes off is the fact I can't have a shower. Our house runs on rain water so without power for the pump, we have to endure the dreaded 'pommy shower'.

After some very active lightening storms early this week, we saw ourselves without electricity for 19 hours. Which was better than the predicted outage time of 25 hours so thank you to those techies who got it fixed.

Due to the almost non-existent mobile phone service here, I dig out 'the old faithful' to keep contact with the outside world. Although, in our closest town, they didn't have power or telephone because the phone lines need repairs and when it rains the land lines don't work properly! Really great when I wanted to contact the primary school where my children were.

We have thought about getting a generator, but really, our power is never out too long and we have a car fridge and thump-er pack to put fridge items in to stop them from spoiling. It's just he shower thing that gets on my wick.


In October we visited some relatives on Glen Station at Cue. They had an impressive power setup with solar panels and battery packs.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit with Kerry & Morrie Seivwright and would love to have stayed longer. 

Stunning Scenery

I could have sat up here all day with a deckie and a scotch, it was truly beautiful and peaceful. My poor photography skills don't do it justice.

Cattle have replaced sheep due to the wild dog problem

RYAN family decendants