Blackouts caused by superstorm Sandy and other recent destructive weather events–coupled with dramatic system failures like the great Northeast blackout of 2003–have undermined confidence in the U.S. electrical grid's ability to keep homes and businesses humming. Those with means are increasingly installing their own power generation, and thus raising a provocative question: could the nation soon have a two-tier power system in which reliable electricity is a luxury, as is the case in many developing countries?
Experts in electrical transmission tend to agree that the U.S. is indeed headed toward such a future, in which people with means and initiative will have more consistent power. But this scenario need not beget electrical “have-nots.” In fact, experts say the generation capacity installed to make some users more independent of the grid could actually strengthen the electrical backbone upon which everyone else depends.
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