Seattle's 'KCTS 9 Connects' Presents: Transition of Power

Here's another regionally focused follow-up discussion to the Beyond the Light Switch documentary—this one coming to us from Seattle's PBS station, KCTS 9. For their BTLS Grant panel discussion, an episode of weekly news and information show KCTS 9 Connects was devoted to the topic of energy use. KCTS 9 Connects is hosted by Enrique Cerna, an award-winning producer/reporter and Executive Director of Production for KCTS.

The video explores an important energy issue for the Pacific Northwest and for the nation as a whole—raising the question "what does it really take to move away from coal-fired power plants?" The discussion was sparked because an agreement has finally been reached to move Washington state off of coal-fired power generation...

By 2025, the TransAlta plant in Centralia will be completely converted to natural gas. The panelists discuss why it will take so long for the switch to take place, and what the health and environmental impacts are going to be in the meantime. The discussion is broken into 3 chapters: The Transition of Power From Coal to Gas, Explaining Carbon Capture, and Professor Mohammed El-Sharkawi on the "Smart Grid"

Click here to visit KCTS 9's website, here to read the Producer's Notes on the episode, and here to watch more episodes of KCTS 9 Connects.

Transition of Power premiered on Friday, April 15 at 7 PM on KCTS 9.