El Nis returning, and this winter most Kansans’ bank accounts will be the better for it.

A periodic disrupter of oceanic and atmospheric systems that lead to drastic weather changes throughout the United States, El Niight save Kansans from a harsh winter and harsh heating bills.

“In this part of Kansas, El Nirings a warmer but wetter winter,” said Don Rogers, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Topeka.

That means Kansans in the Lawrence area will have some insulation from overall winter heating costs projected to be as much as $300 more expensive than last year’s national average cost for December through February.

Lawrence resident Charles Snow isn’t taking any chances. The 81-year-old has been chopping wood to supply the wood-burning stove he bought in 1980 to stave off winter heating bills.

Although he has a gas furnace, Snow said he only used gas for his cooking stove and water heater. His monthly gas bill is about $30.

“It pays for my summer air-conditioning bills,” Snow said.

A warmer winter means less demand for propane, natural gas and electricity.

“If your state is looking at a situation in which demand is down or flat from the year before, then you are not going to see dramatic (price) increases,” said David Costello, economist with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Information Administration in Washington, D.C.

In addition to El Ni benefits, supplies of both propane and natural gas are good, representatives from both industries said.

“Nationally, storage is well above normal,” Costello said of natural gas supplies.

Charles Snow of Lawrence loads up chopped wood to use in his wood-burning stove this winter. Snow bought the stove more than 20 years ago to combat high heating bills. This year, however, El Nis expected to bring warmer, wetter weather to Kansas and, with it, lower utility costs.

In the Midwest, natural gas is projected to cost $7.78 per thousand cubic feet, or $710 over the course of the winter, according to the department of energy. The projections are based on typical per household use in the region.

Midwest propane prices are projected at $1.20 per gallon through the winter.

But in Kansas they will be lower because of reduced transportation costs, said Justin Holstin, executive vice president of the Propane Marketers Assn. of Kansas. Kansans currently pay from 74 to 85 cents per gallon, he said.

Electricity prices are state regulated in Kansas. Westar Energy, which provides electricity for the Lawrence area, is charging 5.79 cents per kilowatt hour, and it won’t change until the summer cooling season begins in June.

While El Nieans an average winter temperature that is 2.5 degrees higher than normal, it also means about 2 inches of above-average moisture in the form of rain, sleet or snow, Rogers said.

¢ Local weather forecast¢ NOAA El Nino page¢ NASA’s El Nino site for kids

Normally, from December through March, moisture totals average 5.2 inches. During an El Niear, that goes up to 7.46 inches, Rogers said.

“We could have an anomaly,” Rogers said. “That doesn’t mean we won’t have winter.”

The Kansas Corporation Commission has set several rules about continuing to receive electrical or gas service from Nov. 1 to March 31, even for those having trouble paying bills.

Disconnections are prohibited if temperatures are forecast to drop below 35 degrees or to be in the mid- to low-30s in the next 24-hour period.

Customers may call the utility company or go by its office to report that they can’t pay the entire bill.

To sign up for payment arrangements under the rule, consumers must pay one-twelfth of the total amount owed and agree to pay the remainder under equal payments over the next 11 months.

For additional information about cold weather payments, call (800) 662-0027.