Energy News Digest for Setpember 11, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Battle over whether Jefferson PUD should become power provider heats up
- PSE ups ante in public power campaign
- MONTANA – BPA’s Libby to Troy Transmission Line rebuild draws significant local interest
- Business Man wants More Nuclear Power Production in Tri-Cities
- BPA Right of Way Encroachments – West Pasco Fences Have Residents Boxed In
- Faulty City of Richland Wire Fries Home Owner's Electronics, Allegedly
- ILLINOIS – High-powered changes in how you get electricity
- KBR lands deal for Louisiana clean coal plant
- Alaska chum eggs are liquid gold
- Chinook Salmon – Notorious non-biters are elusive as ever
- Puget Sound Coho fishery shows mixed results
- Activities celebrate importance of salmon
- To contain a fish-killing virus – Feds set fish shipment rules for Great Lakes
- Olympia Area to see increase in wastewater '09 fees
- OREGON – Klamath Tribes propose biomass energy plant
- Expanded Biodiesel Plant Opens in Oregon
- Former Refrigerator Factory to Produce PV Panels & Wind Turbines
- UTAH – Solar energy system offers a ray of hope to cash-strapped Clark Planetarium
- Green Power Generated From Cow Manure Flows on Ohio Electric Cooperative Lines
- CALIFORNIA – Energy-saving lights go up on 2 Bay Area bridges
- PenLight to send five free compact Fluorescent lights
- OREGON – Northern Wasco County PUD looks for new ways to save power
- Albuquerque Journal Op/Ed – T. Boone: Where's the Energy Conservation Piece?
- Study says old growth forests bank carbon dioxide
- British Columbia’s carbon tax could be axed for good
- Verizon, Your Hypocrisy is Showing
- Verizon leaps into digital TV
- Remains Are of North Mason Man Who Went Missing in Flood
- Washington human rights commissioner forced to quit
- MONTANA – Plum Creek cutting jobs
- Judge OKs White Pass resort expansion

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Circumlocution • \ser-kum-loke-YOO-shun\ • noun – 1: the use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea 2: evasion in speech

Abner’s presence at any public hearing made the small hairs on the back of the clerk’s neck stand up. His famed circumlocution was the stuff of legend, creating crippling injuries in the writing hands of news reporters clerks of boards, and more. The most amazing thing was that Abner had mastered the art of diaphragmatic breathing…so it appeared that during his hours long, droning testimony it appeared that he never had to stop for breath.

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Battle over whether Jefferson PUD should become power provider heats up (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080911/NEWS/809110303

PSE ups ante in public power campaign (Port Townsend Leader, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/Main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=21800

MONTANA – BPA’s Libby to Troy Transmission Line rebuild draws significant local interest (The Western News, Libby MT)
http://www.thewesternnews.com/articles/2008/09/10/news/news01.txt

Business Man wants More Nuclear Power Production in Tri-Cities (KNDO-TV, Tri Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=8988787

BPA Right of Way Encroachments – West Pasco Fences Have Residents Boxed In (KEPR-TV, Pasco, WA)
http://www.keprtv.com/news/local/28226194.html

Faulty City of Richland Wire Fries Home Owner's Electronics, Allegedly (KEPR-TV, Pasco, WA)
http://www.keprtv.com/news/local/28118924.html

ILLINOIS – High-powered changes in how you get electricity – State approves rate hike for ComEd to begin developing a new system; critics may appeal, saying customers shouldn't have to pay so much (Chicago Tribune)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-thu-electric-grid-sep11,0,1724894.story

KBR lands deal for Louisiana clean coal plant (Houston Business Journal, TX)http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2008/09/08/daily38.html?ana=from_rss

FISH & WILDLIFE

Alaska chum eggs are liquid gold (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008170888_apakchumcaviar.html?syndication=rss

Chinook Salmon – Notorious non-biters are elusive as ever (Yakima Herald-Republic , WA)
http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/7494

Puget Sound Coho fishery shows mixed results (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2008172082_fish11.html

Activities celebrate importance of salmon (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/378630_salmonbrief11.html?source=rss

To contain a fish-killing virus – Feds set fish shipment rules for Great Lakes (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008172630_apfishvirus.html?syndication=rss

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Olympia Area to see increase in wastewater '09 fees (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/581361.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

OREGON – Klamath Tribes propose biomass energy plant (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1581530~Klamath_Tribes_propose_biomass_energy_plant.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines

Expanded Biodiesel Plant Opens in Oregon (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53551&src=rss

Former Refrigerator Factory to Produce PV Panels & Wind Turbines (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53547&src=rss

UTAH – Solar energy system offers a ray of hope to cash-strapped Clark Planetarium (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/News/ci_10430277

Green Power Generated From Cow Manure Flows on Ohio Electric Cooperative Lines (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/green-power-generated-cow-manure/story.aspx?guid=%7BCC7CC4D8-CC4C-4F09-9BA8-C99A477D8059%7D&dist=hppr

CALIFORNIA – Energy-saving lights go up on 2 Bay Area bridges (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1581440~Energy_saving_lights_go_up_on_2_Bay_Area_bridges.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines

CONSERVATION

PenLight to send five free compact Fluorescent lights (The Peninsula Gateway, Gig Harbor, WA)
http://www.gateline.com/104/story/2323.html

OREGON – Northern Wasco County PUD looks for new ways to save power (The Dalles, Chronicle, OR)
http://www.thedalleschronicle.com/news/2008/09/news09-10-08-03.shtml

Albuquerque Journal Op/Ed – T. Boone: Where's the Energy Conservation Piece?
http://www.abqjournal.com/abqnews/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8592&Itemid=31

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Study says old growth forests bank carbon dioxide (Seattle Post Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/378569_oldgrowth11.html?source=rss

British Columbia’s carbon tax could be axed for good (The Hook, Canada)
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Election-Central/2008/09/09/LeeTax/

TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Verizon, Your Hypocrisy is Showing – Company’s effort to refute statistics used by organizations that claim the U.S. is falling behind in speed or has really pricey broadband compared with other nations (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/09/10/verizon-your-hypocrisy-is-showing/

Verizon leaps into digital TV – Its fiber-optic service offers 250 channels in Snohomish County (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080909/BIZ/709099896/0/NEWS01

GENERAL NEWS

Remains Are of North Mason Man Who Went Missing in Flood (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/sep/10/remains-are-of-man-who-went-missing-in-december/?partner=RSS

Washington human rights commissioner forced to quit – An audit showed improper use of rental cars and a state credit card (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/581336.html

MONTANA – Plum Creek cutting jobs – Plum Creek Timber is reducing jobs at its Columbia Falls plant that makes a type of board out of wood waste (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008173073_apmtplumcreeklayoffs.html?syndication=rss

Judge OKs White Pass resort expansion (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008172405_whitepass11m.html?syndication=rss

DIVERSIONS

Ashes from company barbecue started Portland fire
http://www.examiner.com/a-1581178~Ashes_from_company_barbecue_started_Portland_fire.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines

Screaming ads have TV viewers running – Stop to watch the scenery before you mute out Billy Mays
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/virgin/378575_virgin11.html?source=rss

City Forgets Location Of Time Capsule
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/17447794/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_nots&tmi=sea_nots_1_01000209112008&ts=H

Mouth To Meow-th: Firefighter Revives Cat
http://www.kirotv.com/family/17443402/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_nots&tmi=sea_nots_1_01000209112008&ts=H

Judge Tosses Lawsuits Against 'Borat' – Plaintiffs Signed Agreements, Accepted Money Court Says
http://www.kirotv.com/entertainment/17436389/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_4pm&tmi=sea_4pm_1_06000409102008&ts=H

26 pearls found in one oyster
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008172229_pearls11.html