America’s electrical grid is a product of the 1930s. Therefore, just as Americans will need new highway infrastructure for the autonomous cars of the future, they will also need a new electrical infrastructure for 21st century energy sources such as wind and solar. Since Texas pretty much has its own grid, Hurricane Harvey had little impact on electrical transmission outside the state. However, if a similar storm had impacted the Eastern or Western grids, the “cascade” effect could have blacked out much of the country.
