The federal government under the Biden Administration is seeking to implement prohibitive carbon-monoxide emission limits on gas-powered generators. Early analysis shows the new regulations would make almost all existing models non-compliant.
Critics of the move – included a noted Vermont author and energy expert – say the regulation, if enacted, will put Americans at risk during natural disasters, such as the recent flooding.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) put out a document warning the public that these new rules will be under consideration. It states in its summary that they have “preliminarily determined that there is an unreasonable risk of injury and death associated with acute carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning from portable generators. To address this hazard, the Commission proposes a rule under the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) that limits CO emissions from portable generators and requires generators to shut off when specific emissions levels are reached.”
The Portable Generator Manufacturers’ Association has commented to the CPSC that the types of modifications required to make their machines compliant will make machines much hotter and create a higher risk for fires. They further said that the best way for users to avoid CO emissions is to use the machines properly. They are already built with CO detectors that trigger a shut off if levels get too high.
They also emphasized that the majority of existing models would not meet the new standards, and another challenge is manufacturers would have only six months to revamp those models, a process that usually takes multiple years.
These laws may impact at least one Vermont company, Vermont Generator Systems located in Hartford. According to their website, they do sales, installations, and other services but not manufacturing. The company did not return request comments.
More power outages expected?
Vermonters rely on gas-powered generators during power blackouts – such as happened this winter during a lengthy blizzard, and last month during July flooding. Scientific American reports that government data indicates blackouts nationwide are becoming increasingly common.
“Government data show that blackouts are worsening in number and duration, and a new study shows they disproportionately affect already vulnerable communities,” their report states.
Meredith Angwin, a Wilder, Vermont resident and a published author on grid reliability, wrote a book that came out in 2020 called Shorting the Grid: The Hidden Fragility of Our Electric Grid. She took some time to speak with VDC.
She noted that as demands on the grid continue to increase, so will the need for generators.
“The extra strain on the grid from electrifying everything or however far we get with that process, and the extra strain on the grid with having more intermittent power plants on the grid, however far we get with that process, both those processes will make the grid more fragile,” Angwin said.
She suggested that targeting generators at this time amounts to “cruelty.”
She added, “So people will want generators and so anything that blocks people from getting generators, it’s really a kind of cruelty in my opinion. People want to protect themselves the easiest way possible and I get quite upset by the idea that we’re going to try and make it harder for people to protect themselves.”
Susan Orenga, the executive director of the Portable Generator Manufacturers’ Association, told the Epoch Times last week that the timing for these new restrictions is questionable because of potential mass blackouts.
She said, “The timing of the CPSC’s proposed changes are particularly concerning, given repeated warnings that two-thirds of North America is currently facing an energy shortfall this summer during periods of high demand.”
Marc Morano, co-founder of ClimateDepot.com, recently spoke with NewsMax TV about the gas generator ban. He also alluded to the notion that more blackouts may be in the nation’s future.
Morano said, “The LA Times is saying they want to use blackouts now to meet our climate goals and to fight climate change, the blackouts which they are intentionally creating in our power grid, we can’t mitigate with gas-powered generators at home.”
He continued that the federal government has also been targeting pizza ovens, gas stoves, air conditioners, and even meat-eating and using ice cubes.
Morano added, “But this is particularly insane because their policies are going to create blackouts which necessitate gas-powered generators.”
