NEW ORLEANS — Power outages, upon power outages, some parts of Southeast Louisiana were without power for days after Hurricane Ida. It’s a storm we will never forget and nor will New Orleans City Council members. Wednesday, two resolutions were passed that aim at making our energy grid more resilient.
On August 29, 2021, Hurricane Ida hit Southeast Louisiana. A collapsed transmission tower was the reason why hundreds of thousands of people were without power.
The city council is now working to make sure we aren't without power like we were three years ago. City council's Climate Committee passed two resolutions aimed at making the city’s energy grid more resilient during storms.
City Council President Helena Moreno said, "What we're looking to do is have much stronger poles, lines and equipment. Those are the complaints you hear about all the time."
Moreno says these improvement costs won’t be passed on to residents, saying, "What we're doing is applying credits from that huge settlement we got, roughly $252 million in a settlement we got from Entergy New Orleans, we're going to apply those credits so there's not going to be any bill impacts on this $100 million price tag."
One member of the public said during public comment, "I just wanted to commend the council for this vote today and negating the ratepayer impacts for these investments."
A second resolution proposes using $32 million from the same settlement funds from Entergy New Orleans, for public microgrid projects, like community lighthouses – solar paneled Hubs that provide shelter during outages.
Those who spoke during public comment showed excitement for more microgrid projects. One resident said, "I am elated to once be here in favor of something." Another said, "We were an early community lighthouse we opened for the first time after Francine things went smooth as silk... I want to speak in favor of having more lighthouses [throughout] the city."
An Entergy New Orleans spokesperson said, "The impact of stronger and more severe weather makes investing in Resilience absolutely critical to the future of our city. We thank the climate committee for taking this important first step towards hardening the grid and protecting the city’s infrastructure, and we look forward to the vote of the full Council.”
Both resolutions passed and will now head to full council for final approval.
