Weathering the Storm -- Report of the Grid Resiliency Task Force

In September of 2012, a 131-page comprehensive report was issued by the Grid Resiliency Task Force in Maryland. This task force was created in response to an executive order from Governor O'Malley in July 2012.  The goal was to obtain input and recommendations from experts on how to improve the resiliency and reliability of the Maryland electric distribution system.

The foundational principles that guided the Task Force recommendations included the following:

 The current level of reliability and resiliency during major storms is not acceptable.

 Increased reliability and resiliency during major storms is the goal of the Task Force and will inform the recommendations.

 Severe weather events resulting from climate change are likely to continue to occur. It is unacceptable for anyone involved in response efforts to continue to be surprised by the “worst storm” the system or the State has ever seen. Utilities, government and citizens must be prepared for severe weather events.

 If done strategically and appropriately, increased expenditures by the utilities to improve resiliency and harden the gird – to literally ensure that the electric distribution system can weather the storm – will lead to fewer outages during storms and shorter outages when interruptions happen.

To read Executive Summary and Full Report,  CLICK HERE.