- Conference
- 2008 Energy Service Group Conference
- Date
- 2 February 2008
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes with concern the dramatic effect flooding had across many parts of the UK during 2007. Most experts including the Environment Agency and many climatologists are attributing the events to global warming.
The 2007 floods showed how unprepared we are to deal with the consequences of localised flooding, let alone rising sea levels. The Walham Grid substation in Gloucestershire was nearly lost to the elements and only saved with massive support from the Army, emergency services as well as UNISON members across the service groups. The loss of a grid substation would result in tens or hundreds of thousands customers losing supply – hospitals, railways, airports, schools, shops, the list goes on. Even lower voltage primary and secondary substations would affect customer numbers in the hundreds or thousands. Widespread damage to such plant would put our grid under increased stress and result in customers being off supply for days or even weeks.
The cost of such events can be measured in several ways including financial, social and personal loss. Risk management experts have warned that the costs of not acting to protect our assets are many times greater than planning ahead and being prepared.
There have been, and will continue to be, many motions attempting to reduce individual and global carbon footprints to reduce the warming effect – but these are longer term goals. As the planet warms in the short term, we are more likely to experience similar weather related events in the years to come so we must take action now to minimise their impact.
Conference therefore calls upon the Energy Service Group Executive to:
1Engage with Ofgem to ensure that energy companies are not putting profit ahead of network security.
2Write to the Energy Minister expressing our concerns and inviting him to our seminar in November.
3Write to Energy branches encouraging them to engage with their employers to check that the risk is being taken seriously.
4Liaise with the other service groups utilising expertise to raise the issue throughout UNISON.
5Report back to conference 2009 with feedback from the above points.