In the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, Entergy New Orleans, the local power company, failed to restore power to more than 80% of residents within the first week after the storm. The power failure disproportionately impacted individuals with chronic conditions or who are medically frail and residents with low incomes, many of whom could not afford to evacuate or relocate. Entergy now seeks approval from the New Orleans city council to charge residents higher rates to cover storm costs. Louisiana advocates are speaking out to hold Entergy accountable for its failure to invest in infrastructure improvements and to ensure residents have consistent, high quality, affordable gas and electricity.
Of the deaths in New Orleans attributed to Hurricane Ida, nine were from “excessive heat during an extended power outage,” the Orleans Parish coroner found. Some also died from carbon monoxide poisoning as families used generators to power their homes.
Residents with low incomes in New Orleans already face a staggering burden in paying their utility bills. An analysis from NPR and ProPublica found that low-income residents in New Orleans face one of the highest energy burdens in the U.S., second only to Memphis, TN, according to a 2016 study from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. Half the city's low-income households spend more than 9.8% of their earnings on energy and a quarter of them pay more than 18.9%. In contrast, households across the nation pay about 3.5% of their income on average.
As on example, NPR reports: “Grace Hollins is among the New Orleanians spending a disproportionate amount on electricity. Typically, she pays $300 a month for power, almost a fifth of her and her son's total monthly disability checks of $1,600. ‘It's money I don't have,’ she said. In most American cities, a $300 power bill for a 1,200-square-foot apartment would be excessive, and Hollins has struggled to keep up with hers. Six days after Ida knocked out Hollins' power, her son, Carl Hollins, dozed in the still afternoon heat of their shotgun apartment, its glass windows blown out by the storm.”
Despite previous hurricane damage that left its grid damaged, Entergy has not made significant investments in its power grid. Unless Entergy makes bold investments now, future storms will bring more prolonged outages. Rather than take responsibility for failure to improve their infrastructure, though, Entergy has asked for a rate increase to cover storm costs.
The Greater New Orleans Housing Alliance (GNOHA) – an advocacy partner of HousingLOUISIANA, an NLIHC state partner – and the Alliance for Affordable Energy have launched a campaign demanding action and accountability from Entergy and the New Orleans City Council and the Louisiana Public Service Commission. Their petition calls for an audit and investigation into Entergy, as well as no additional rate increases until Entergy is held accountable. The advocates call for a community-driven set of solutions, including a climate resilient power grid.
“The situation in Louisiana is a stark reminder that the high price for utilities isn’t simply affecting the folks struggling to pay those bills every month – it impacts the planet,” said Andreanecia Morris, president of GNOHA. “Harsh winters and blistering summers increase usage, increase emissions, spur climate change, and then those effects result in Hurricane Ida – a storm intensified by climate change. Combating climate change and ending housing insecurity are battles in the same fight, and we need better weapons: healthy, energy efficient housing and access to long-term support when a crisis hits.”
Louisiana advocates hope to shift the focus of disaster recovery from resilient individuals to resilient communities that build sustainable infrastructure and design standards that mitigate risk, decrease environmental impacts, and reduce households’ energy costs. The advocates also hope to shift how resiliency itself is measured, pushing the message that resiliency should no longer be measured by how much devastation a community can survive but by the community’s ability to protect and shelter the most vulnerable people from disasters, whether they are a pandemic, a hurricane, systemic racism, or crisis-caused changes in the local economy.