Energy News Digest for January 7, 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)

- Alcoa Plans to Close Plants and Trim Work Force
- Alcoa to Cut 13% of Its Work Force
- New layoffs coming at Alcoa’s Wenatchee Works
- Power Restored - Mason County PUD No. 3 customers affected by January 6 Windstorm
- Mason County PUD No. 3 Commissioner Tom Farmer Takes Oath of Office
- Jefferson County Public Power: Proposition 1 revisited
- Ruling Could Open Door to New Trial in Enron Case
- Portland General Electric Customer Questions Intelligence Of New Smart Meters
- Donation to Help Chelan PUD Customers Pay Power Bills
- Why Storms Are Good News for Fishermen
- Coastal Fishing Closure Won't Affect Inland Fisheries
- U.S. To Compensate B.C. Fishermen Under Latest Pact To Protect Salmon
- Seal Turns Massachusetts Hatchery Into All-You-Can-Eat Buffet
- Runoff Forecast Better, But Still Lacking
- Hundreds of Coal Ash Dumps Lack Regulation
- Company Seeks To Study Ocean Waves' Potential to Produce Electricity
- Canada - Biogas from sewage could power buses
- Wind Turbines Will Cut NYC Building's Electricity Bills in Half
- Cities Use Creative, Targeted Lending to Speed Energy Projects
- Scientists Flock to Rubber Duckies for Measuring Glacial Melt in Greenland
- In New York, Downturn Kills Free WiFi
- As Broadband Growth Slows, Telcos Lose Out
- Intel Writes Almost $1B Off Clearwire Investment
- Lewis County: Dire Flood Predictions Coming True
- Huge Molten Glass Leak Closes Kalama Bottle Plant
- Man Gets Two-Year Sentence for Phone-Wire Theft

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

WORD OF THE DAY

Dipsomaniac • \dips-uh-main-ee-ack\ • noun - One who has an uncontrollable craving for alcoholic liquors

“Aaahhh, Foster Brooks. Now that was a dipsomaniac’s dipsomaniac,” sighed Orson Welles, as he reached for the decanted bottle of Paul Masson Wine. “He really would drink wine before its time.”

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

Alcoa Plans to Close Plants and Trim Work Force “…falling energy and freight prices are helping aluminum makers, it is tough…to make money with aluminum prices at such low levels (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/business/07alcoa.html

Alcoa to Cut 13% of Its Work Force “Ed. Note: more details on where layoffs are occurring, Like EVERYWHERE…” (Associated Press)
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/01/06/business/AP-Alcoa-Job-Cuts.html

New layoffs coming at Alcoa’s Wenatchee Works “…Alcoa pays approximately $12 to $13 per megawatt hour for PUD power. The same power would currently cost $45 to $50 on the open market…” (Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/article/20090106/NEWS04/701079992

Power Restored - Mason County PUD No. 3 customers affected by January 6 Windstorm (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=494

Mason County PUD No. 3 Commissioner Tom Farmer Takes Oath of Office – Board Elects Officers For 2009 (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=492

Jefferson County Public Power: Proposition 1 revisited (Port Townsend Leader WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=55&ArticleID=22860&TM=44895.7

Ruling Could Open Door to New Trial in Enron Case “…judges called “troubling” indications of possible prosecutorial misconduct…” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/business/07enron.html

Portland General Electric Customer Questions Intelligence Of New Smart Meters - Rates spiked after he had the automated reading system installed (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/123130411766910.xml&coll=7

Donation to Help Chelan PUD Customers Pay Power Bills (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/article/20090106/NEWS04/701069966/1025/rss1025

FISH & WILDLIFE

Why Storms Are Good News for Fishermen (NewScientist)
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126881.700-why-storms-are-good-news-for-fishermen--.html

Coastal Fishing Closure Won't Affect Inland Fisheries (The Oregonian, Portalnd, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/outdoors/index.ssf/2008/03/notebook_closure_wont_affect_i.html

U.S. To Compensate B.C. Fishermen Under Latest Pact To Protect Salmon (CBC News)http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/01/06/bc-us-salmon-treaty.html

Seal Turns Massachusetts Hatchery Into All-You-Can-Eat Buffet (Associated Press)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090107/ap_on_fe_st/odd_hungry_seal;_ylt=ArjhBRMB.7J9G7Wu7O2plkftiBIF

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Runoff Forecast Better, But Still Lacking (Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/article/20090106/NEWS04/701069978

Hundreds of Coal Ash Dumps Lack Regulation (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/us/07sludge.html

RENEWABLE ENERGY & CONSERVATION

Company Seeks To Study Ocean Waves' Potential to Produce Electricity (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/395019_oceanenergy07.html

Canada - Biogas from sewage could power buses (BC Local News)
http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/37126169.html

Wind Turbines Will Cut NYC Building's Electricity Bills in Half (EcoGeek)
http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/2433/86/

Cities Use Creative, Targeted Lending to Speed Energy Projects (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/06/cities-use-creative-targeted-lending-to-speed-energy-projects/

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Scientists Flock to Rubber Duckies for Measuring Glacial Melt in Greenland (Wall Street Journal)
http://columbian.com/article/20090106/NEWS02/701059961/-1/NEWS

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

In New York, Downturn Kills Free WiFi (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/01/06/in-new-york-downturn-kills-free-wifi/

As Broadband Growth Slows, Telcos Lose Out (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/01/06/as-broadband-growth-slows-telcos-lose-out/

Intel Writes Almost $1B Off Clearwire Investment (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/01/07/intel-writes-almost-1b-off-clearwire-investment/

GENERAL NEWS

Lewis County: Dire Flood Predictions Coming True (The Chronicle, Centralia, WA)
http://www.chronline.com/storybreaking.php?subaction=showfull&id=1231349168&archive=&start_from=&ucat=4&

Huge Molten Glass Leak Closes Kalama Bottle Plant (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/718393.html

Man Gets Two-Year Sentence for Phone-Wire Theft – Copper worth $3,000; repairs cost $121,000 (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/01/07//area_news/doc49642fd097183078347836.txt

DIVERSIONS

Chew on This: We'll Soon Be Able to Grow Replacement Teeth
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008593860_teeth06.html?syndication=rss

Nebraska Man Sues Ex-Wife for Putting Recorder in Toy
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090107/ap_on_fe_st/odd_teddy_bear_spy;_ylt=Ao9ScFlp_h3P0NLUBsTKG_ftiBIF

Bummer: Man's Bottom Bared In Colorado Ski-Lift Mishap
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090107/ap_on_fe_st/odd_ski_mishap;_ylt=AsF4O4ojTsDm4mjgsoe6VKbtiBIF

Fahrenheit 451 - Indian teachers burn books to keep warm
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090106/od_afp/indiaweatherbooksoffbeat_newsmlmmd;_ylt=AiSIB9.7wjWfdeHwp0jKdBSgOrgF