PORTLAND Ore. – This Thursday, people across the Pacific Northwest will use ovens to bake turkeys, air fryers to crisp vegetables, mixers to fluff mashed potatoes and OLED televisions to gawk at parades and sportsball. Likely, many people are grateful for the conveniences that make Thanksgiving preparations and entertainment relatively easy and enjoyable. However, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers humbly recommends giving appreciation for consistent, affordable and easily dispatchable hydropower (of course, USACE would suggest that).
What connects hydropower to Thanksgiving?
Thanksgiving is a unique experience for power providers. That’s because people tend to consume electricity unusually, compared to normal, non-turkey cooking...
11.24.2025 | PORTLAND, OREGON, US |
Story by Tom Conning
When thinking about professional development within the Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Leadership Development Program is the gold standard. That’s why fiscal year 2024 LDP graduate, security specialist Jason Smith, took his year two LDP project to the next level — developing an internal mentorship application that focuses on leveraging the principles he and other district senior leadership learned in LDP and...
People tend to consume electricity unusually, compared to normal, non-turkey cooking days. Data from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) shows electricity demand peaks higher than normal on Thanksgiving morning within its transmission area.
People tend to reduce electricity usage at a steep rate on Thanksgiving afternoon compared to the day before. Is this tied to a carbohydrate crash? Perhaps. Either way, demand dropped later in the afternoon and evening.
Public meetings are normally held each spring and fall from Montana to Missouri and offer attendees an opportunity to provide feedback and voice concerns related to water management of the reservoirs. Due to the lapse in appropriations, in-person public meetings on Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir system operations, were canceled. In their place, a virtual meeting was held and recorded on Oct. 30.
