Energy News Digest for January 22, 2009

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)

- Tester Urges CFAC to Work with BPA
- Canada's Alcan aluminum cuts 1,100 jobs
- Snohomish County PUD Says Your Power Bill May Rise In April
- Chu confirmed as Secretary of Energy
- NWPPA Names New Staff Member
- Good News for Chinook Anglers
- San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed - To Save Salmon, Stop Subsidizing Toxic Farming
- Blackbird Pond Projects Wins Trout Unlimited Prize
- Three men posing as water company workers arrested after car chase in Santa Clara
- Massachusetts - Unpaid water and sewer bills could bring rate hike in Randolph
- Fixing the Tax Problems of Renewable Energy
- Massachusetts Governor Calls for 2,000 MW of Wind by 2020
- Alternative Energy Faces Power Line "Bottleneck" In U.S. West
- The New In-Crowd in Obama's Washington: the Renewable Energy Folks
- Wind power leading new source of electricity
- Conserving Energy at Home
- Energy Adviser: Ductless heat pump program to gauge savings
- Seattle Times Op/Ed - Stimulate Economy with Investments in Energy-Efficient Home Furnaces
- Seattle Times Op/Ed - Focus on energy efficiency to reduce emissions
- Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Project in Wallula Could Help Prevent Climate Change
- Study: Antarctica Joins Rest of Globe in Warming
- How much does your orange juice contribute to global warming?
- Permission to Regulate California Gases Is Sought
- Carbon Emissions: To Trade or Tax?
- 2009: A Year of Rural Broadband Musical Chairs?
- Want a Lower Broadband Bill? Maybe You Should Move
- Broadband's Cost Gives Non-Subscribers Pause
- Microsoft to Slash 5,000 Jobs; Misses on 2Q Profit
- Belfair Residents Unhurt in Fatal Mason County Crash
- Paid Family Leave Law Expansion Considered
- DOT Hires Victoria Express for Hood Canal Shuttle
- Washington State Investment Board Director Is Leaving
- Olympian Publisher Resigns

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

WORD OF THE DAY

Epigram • \EPP-ih-gram\ • noun - 1: a concise poem dealing pointedly and often satirically with a single thought or event and often ending with an ingenious turn of thought 2: a terse, sage, or witty and often paradoxical saying

Ben Franklin was a master at the epigram: Little strokes -- Fell great oaks.

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

Tester Urges CFAC to Work with BPA (Hungry Horse News)
http://www.hungryhorsenews.com/articles/2009/01/21/news/doc49775264049cc771734763.txt

Canada's Alcan aluminum cuts 1,100 jobs – Commodity costs down nearly 60% from last year “…more than two-thirds of aluminum operations around the world are losing money…” (United Press International)
http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2009/01/21/Canadas_Alcan_aluminum_cuts_1100_jobs/UPI-93441232549708/

Snohomish County PUD Says Your Power Bill May Rise In April (Everett Herald, WA)
http://heraldnet.com/article/20090122/NEWS01/701229900

Chu confirmed as Secretary of Energy (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=22&ARTICLE_ID=350947&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss

NWPPA NAMES NEW STAFF MEMBER - Gregg King has been named director of administrative services and finance for the Northwest Public Power Association, which represents and serves customer-owned, locally controlled utilities on the West Coast and in Canada. King will supervise the group's administrative services and direct its financial planning. King is a former controller for Pet Appeal Inc., an organic pet food company in Clackamas, Ore.

FISH & WILDLIFE

Good News for Chinook Anglers (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/article/20090121/SPORTS04/701229958/-1/SPORTS

San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed - To Save Salmon, Stop Subsidizing Toxic Farming
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/21/EDCK15EHJ5.DTL

Blackbird Pond Projects Wins Trout Unlimited Prize (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/article/20090121/NEWS04/701229916

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Three men posing as water company workers arrested after car chase in Santa Clara (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_11517096?source=most_viewed

Massachusetts - Unpaid water and sewer bills could bring rate hike in Randolph (Patriot Ledger, Quincy MA)
http://www.patriotledger.com/news/x1255645836/Unpaid-water-and-sewer-bills-could-bring-rate-hike-in-Randolph

RENEWABLE ENERGY

Fixing the Tax Problems of Renewable Energy (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/fixing-the-tax-problems-of-renewable-energy/

Massachusetts Governor Calls for 2,000 MW of Wind by 2020 (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=54550&src=rss

Alternative Energy Faces Power Line "Bottleneck" In U.S. West (Reuters)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/behindTheScenes/idUKTRE50K5P720090121

The New In-Crowd in Obama's Washington: the Renewable Energy Folks (US News & World Report)
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/national/2009/01/21/the-new-in-crowd-in-obamas-washington-the-renewable-energy-folks.html

Wind power leading new source of electricity- renewable energy peak oil (North Denver News, CO)
http://northdenvernews.com/content/view/1684/2/

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Conserving Energy at Home (MSNBC)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28784078/

Energy Adviser: Ductless heat pump program to gauge savings (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/article/20090122/LIVING/701229998

Seattle Times Op/Ed - Stimulate Economy With Investments In Energy-Efficient Home Furnaces
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2008655881_opinb22loeb.html?syndication=rss

Seattle Times Op/Ed - Focus on energy efficiency to reduce emissions
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2008655904_opinc22fulenwider.html?syndication=rss

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Project in Wallula Could Help Prevent Climate Change (KNDU-TV, Tri-Cities, WA)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=9712125

Study: Antarctica Joins Rest of Globe In Warming (Associated Press)
http://columbian.com/article/20090121/NEWS06/301219980/-1/news

How Green Is My Orange? How much does your morning glass of orange juice contribute to global warming? (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/business/22pepsi.html?_r=1

Permission to Regulate California Gases Is Sought (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/us/22brfs-PERMISSIONTO_BRF.html

Carbon Emissions: To Trade or Tax? (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/carbon-emissions-to-trade-or-tax/

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

2009: A Year of Rural Broadband Musical Chairs? Carriers dumping less profitable rural networks and unwanted users (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/2009-A-Year-Of-Rural-Broadband-Musical-Chairs-100356

Want a Lower Broadband Bill? Maybe You Should Move (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/01/21/want-a-lower-broadband-bill-maybe-you-should-move/

Broadband's Cost Gives Non-Subscribers Pause, Poll Finds (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/21/AR2009012103297.html?wprss=rss_technology

GENERAL NEWS

Microsoft to Slash 5,000 Jobs; Misses on 2Q Profit (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008658499_apearnsmicrosoft3rdldwritethru.html?syndication=rss

Belfair Residents Unhurt in Fatal Mason County Crash (The Kitsap Sun)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/jan/22/belfair-residents-unhurt-fatal-mason-county-crash/?partner=RSS

Paid Family Leave Law Expansion Considered (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/legislature/story/734853.html

DOT Hires Victoria Express For Hood Canal Shuttle (Associated Press)
http://columbian.com/article/20090121/NEWS06/301219984/-1/NLstatenews

Washington State Investment Board Director Is Leaving - Dear to work for California pension fund (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/396988_calpers22.html?source=rss

Olympian Publisher Resigns (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/localnewsfeed/story/735123.html

DIVERSIONS

In Tight Times, The Humble Noodle Rises - Sales of pasta products grow as cash-strapped shoppers turn to the pantry staple for affordable meals
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/601670.html

Texas Boys Find 95-Year-Old's Long-Lost Class Ring
http://www.kirotv.com/news/18530718/detail.html

Cat's Cries Save Family From Fire
http://www.kirotv.com/family/18515767/detail.html

Fleeing suspect picks the wrong place to hide
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090122/ap_on_fe_st/odd_fleeing_suspect;_ylt=Av8oJ2j51KmAI9Q9My.qeMntiBIF

SONG OF THE DAY

Classical Gas – Mason Williams (1968)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mguzKze1sYo