Energy News Digest for January 21, 2009 - Plus New Feature: Song of the Day

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.

The News Digest Is Also Available At The Following Web Site:
http://www.energynewsdigest.blogspot.com/

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Avista Customers Getting Big Bills
- State Auditor Critical of Centralia Utilities Spending
- Idaho Energy Czar: Give Transmission Priority Attention
- San Diego Gas & Electric Power Line to Desert Clears another Hurdle
- Nevada - Critics: Power Line Routes Favor Coal
- Texas - Electricity Rates Can Jolt the Unwary
- Endless Enron - Skilling's Attorneys File New Appeals
- Solar storms: how much grid liability they imply
- Lake Trout Harvest Gives Kokanee Shot at Comeback
- Green River - Damage Restricts Level at Howard Hanson Dam
- Seattle Times Op/Ed - Don't flush pharmaceuticals down the drain
- California Farmers Divided Over Sacramento Delta Canal Proposal
- States Join E.P.A. Study of Pathogens in Ohio River
- New Oregon Wind Farm Site Being Considered
- Solar Power Needs a Bailout Too
- Scripps News Service Op/Ed - Wind, Obama and the Energy Answer
- Phase-Out For Old-Style Light Bulbs Begins In 2012
- Smart Appliances Will Figure out How to Save You Energy
- BPA Surpasses Energy Efficiency Targets
- New Hampshire Hopeful about New Focus on Weatherizing Homes
- Gregoire Pushes Cap-And-Trade Bill
- Carbon Prices Tumble as Global Downturn Bites
- Does Broadband Need a Stimulus?
- Microsoft to delay starting new construction on Redmond campus
- FCC Fines Cable Operators over Channel Changes
- FCC Probes Comcast's Phone Practices
- Switch to Digital TV May Not Be as Smooth as Advertised
- Online Video of Inauguration Sets Records
- State stimulus plan a hard sell, officials say
- Washington State Bankruptcies Increase 40 Percent in 2008
- Port Of Shelton Commission Takes No Action on Manager
- Cox Replaces Hailey as State Rep

These And Links to More Stories in Today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Remora • \rih-MOR-uh\ • noun - 1: any of various marine fishes that have a suction disk on the head by means of which they cling especially to other fishes 2: hindrance, drag

Rudolph Valentino had many drags on his career as he rose to superstardom at the dawn of cinema. One of the least talked about is the presence of his “assistant” Fredo, who followed him, remora-like in hopes that the shine of Rudolph’s romantic reputation would rub off…benefiting him. It did not work, but the nagging presence continued for years, due to a mysterious favor from “Greasy Thumb” Cioppino that the actor could not refuse.

WEATHER

Shelton Forecast and Weather Alerts
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/mapclick.php?textfield1=47.213805&textfield2=-123.113412&site=all&smap=1&searchresult=shelton%2c%20wa%2c%20usa

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Avista Customers Getting Big Bills - Lots of Avista Utility Customers Are Getting a Surprise in Their Power Bill This Month (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008650779_apwaavistabills.html?syndication=rss

State Auditor Critical of Centralia Utilities Spending (KELA Radio, Centralia, WA)
http://www.kelaam.com/pages/localnews/?State-Auditor-Critical-of-Centralia-Util=1&blockID=36557&feedID=410

Idaho Energy Czar: Give Transmission Priority Attention (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/733160.html

San Diego Gas & Electric Power Line to Desert Clears another Hurdle (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/21/state/n044240S05.DTL&feed=rss.business

Nevada - Critics: Power Line Routes Favor Coal - And, they say, feds failed to adequately account for effects on wildlife (Las Vegas Sun, NV)
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jan/20/critics-power-line-routes-favor-coal/

Texas - Electricity Rates Can Jolt the Unwary (Dallas Morning News, TX)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/012109dnbuselectricity.3f58cc3.html

Endless Enron - Skilling's Attorneys File New Appeals (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/20/financial/f120807S75.DTL&feed=rss.business

Solar storms: how much grid liability they imply (Energy Pulse Commentary)
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1910

FISH & WILDLIFE

Lake Trout Harvest Gives Kokanee Shot at Comeback “…they gobble up endangered bull trout and Kokanee, a landlocked sockeye salmon that once formed the basis of a multimillion-dollar fishery in Lake Pend Oreille…” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420ap_id_mackinaw_harvest.html

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Green River - Damage Restricts Level at Howard Hanson Dam (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008650646_apwahowardhansondam.html?syndication=rss

Seattle Times Op/Ed - Don't flush pharmaceuticals down the drain
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2008651132_opinc21moore.html

California Farmers Divided Over Sacramento Delta Canal Proposal (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008652676_apfarmscenedeltafarmers.html?syndication=rss

States Join E.P.A. Study of Pathogens in Ohio River (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/21ohio.html?_r=1&th=&adxnnl=1&emc=th&adxnnlx=1232553269-00/ZPU14FTwbFJwYaeTjzQ

RENEWABLE ENERGY

New Oregon Wind Farm Site Being Considered (Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1806557~New_wind_farm_site_being_considered.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines

Solar Power Needs a Bailout Too (Time Magazine)
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1872345,00.html?xid=rss-health

Scripps News Service Op/Ed - Wind, Obama and the Energy Answer
http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/40139

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Phase-Out For Old-Style Light Bulbs Begins In 2012 (Associated Press)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090120/BIZ/701209778/0/NEWS01

Smart Appliances Will Figure out How to Save You Energy (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/01/smart_appliances_will_soon_fig.html

News Release - BPA Surpasses Energy Efficiency Targets, Plans For Even More Effective Programs (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/249901/

New Hampshire Hopeful about New Focus on Weatherizing Homes (Associated Press)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28750291/

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Gregoire Pushes Cap-And-Trade Bill - Emissions Would Come At a Cost (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/396852_cap20.html?source=rss

Carbon Prices Tumble as Global Downturn Bites - Remember that windfall from carbon auctions? Sorry Charlie (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/carbon-prices-tumble-as-global-downturn-bites/

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Does Broadband Need a Stimulus? (NY Times)
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/does-broadband-need-a-stimulus/

Microsoft to delay starting new construction on Redmond campus (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/2008651775_microsoft21.html

FCC Fines Cable Operators over Channel Changes (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/20/financial/f122828S07.DTL&feed=rss.business

FCC Probes Comcast's Phone Practices – May Be Discriminatory To Other VOIP Providers (Associated Press)
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/01/20/technology/AP-FCC-Comcast.html

Technical Difficulties - Switch to Digital TV May Not Be as Smooth as Advertised (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/20/AR2009012004015.html?nav=rss_email%2Fcomponents

Online Video of Inauguration Sets Records (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/21video.html?_r=1

GENERAL NEWS

State stimulus plan a hard sell, officials say - Budget woes, deadline dim hopes for Gregoire package (Associated Press)
http://columbian.com/article/20090121/NEWS02/701219923/-1/NEWS

Washington State Bankruptcies Increase 40 Percent in 2008 (Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1806065~Wash__bankruptcies_increase_40_percent_in_2008.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines

Port Of Shelton Commission Sets Officers for 2009 - No Action on Manager (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/smid/3468/ArticleID/6142/reftab/1632/t/PORT-COMMISSION-SETS-OFFICERS-FOR-2009---NO-ACTION-ON-MANAGER/Default.aspx

Cox Replaces Hailey as State Rep - Represents the Ninth District (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2009/01/20/news/doc497641f0d2c48736417990.txt

DIVERSIONS

France Looks Into "Magic Cheese" Case in South America
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE50J78920090120?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

At Art Exhibit – Indian Artist Finds Most of His Pictures on Display Are Fakes
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE50I13J20090120?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

Mayor Denies Kissing Ban, Invites All To Pucker Up
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090121/ap_on_fe_st/lt_odd_mexico_kissing_capital;_ylt=AoxRr_Qo2weWAuDJlMhnikztiBIF

Buried Box Yields Texas Treasures after Hurricane
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/21/national/a080309S62.DTL&feed=rss.business

SONG OF THE DAY

Stardust – Nat King Cole (1957)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFyKAUBkdOs