Energy crisis, conservation topics discussed
By SCOTT DALTON
Of the Emerald
“We know we have the
capacity, but we don’t have the
water,” said Norm F. Stone. “We
could be accused of crying wolf,”
he added noting that heavy rains
this fall could relieve the water
shortage.
Stone, Director of Ad
ministrative Services for the
publicly owned' Eugene Water
and Electric Board (EWEB)
believes that the situation is
critical now and indicated that
future power demands may
exceed capacity.
Stone and Jim Soukup of
Pacific Power and Light (PPL)
were speakers at a luncheon
Batman
banned
Television shows such as
Batman and Superman will soon
no longer be seen by viewers of a
major Los Angeles television
station and precautionary
warnings to parents will be aired
before scores of other animated
cartoons under an agreement
announced Monday.
The agreement was reached
between the National Association
for Better Broadcasting and
KTTV Channel 11 and will remain
in force for the next four years.
The pact is the result of a two
year challenge by the NABB to
the operating license of the
station, owned by Metromedia,
Inc.
“For the first time parents will
have an opportunity to protect
their children from excessive
violence on commercial
television,” said NABB vice
president Frank Orme. “The
agreement is the most far
reaching and fundamental
revision of policy related to
violence ever undertaken by any
commercial broadcaster in the
United States.”
He said the agreement would
be used as a pattern in at
tempting to get other television
stations to adopt “responsible
policies in the presentation of
programs viewed by children and
youth.
Orme said the agreement, filed
with the Federal Com
munications Commission, calls
for 42 violent television shows to
be banned within the next 90 days
and pre-broadcast “caution to
parents” warnings displayed
before another 81 programs. The
warning signs will be displayed
beginning in two weeks time.
Although the agreement covers
a total 123 children’s shows,
KTTV-ll actually broadcasts
only three of the programs that
are to be banned altogether. They
are “Superman,” “Batman” and
“Aquaman.”
The warning consists of a video
slide “Caution to Parents” while
two bongs are sounded on a soft
chime. An announcer’s voice will
say: “Parents,we wish to advise
that because of violence or other
possibly harmful elements
certain portions of the following
program may not be suitable for
young children.”
The NABB said that in
formation provided by the station
indicated that by no longer
showing “Batman” and the other
banned programs it would lose at
least $60,000 and would have to
spend more than $70,000 in
production of other series.
meeting of the Eugene
Metropolitan Civic Club Friday,
October 5 at the Valley River Inn.
The topic of discussion was
“Credibility of the Energy
Crisis.”
Stone noted incidents where an
editor of one paper had dismissed
the shortage as “contrived,” and
another where an environmental
group had indicated that they did
not consider the statements of the
utility credible.
Pointing out that tran
sportation accounts for 25 per
cent of the energy consumed in
the United States, Stone attacked
the national administration for
failing to deal with the crisis on
an emergency basis.
“We are dissappointed in the
r
failure of the national ad
ministration to institute a crash
program of mass tran
sportation,” he said.
While generally applauding
efforts of environmental groups,
Stone was sharply critical of the
Consumer advocate Ralph
Nader’s proposal to stop nuclear
plant construction stating that
such an action ‘‘would mean total
economic disaster,” and
‘‘smacks of an authoritarian
approach.”
Stone indicated that no group
possesses inherent credibility in
today’s society. He related the
problem to the McCarthy era of
the fifties, the U-2 incident, and
Watergate as the kinds of events
which have helped create an
atmosphere of distrust.
Soukup, Manager of Customer
Service and Technical Supervisor
for the privately owned (PPL) in
Springfield introduced a new
public relations program aimed
at energy conservation.
Soukup stated that public and
company surveys indicate that a
substantial number of people do
not accept the energy crisis. He
explained the P.P.&L. is laun
ching a program to convince
customers to voluntarily cut bade
on their consumption of power.
Otherwise consumers will face
“mandatory curtailment,” he
added.
Noting that many consumers
waste electricity, Soukup
distributed sheets with hints on
how to save energy at home. He
noted that while a black and
white tv uses approximately 30
kilowatt hours of electricity in a
month, a color tv uses 50 kwh in
the same period.
Soukup said that when a con
sumer buys a tv which features
“instant on,” that television set
will consume an additional 46
kwh per month more than sets
without the feature.
Soukup indicated that the
slogan of the (PPL) program is
“Use What You Need, Save What
You Can,” and added that a
company representative would
be willing to come out to anyone’s
home to help show areas where
electricity can be saved.
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OCTOBER 8th - 14th