Monday, December 21, 2009

Dec 21, 2009 - News Update - BPA & Alcoa Sign Power Contracts

Breaking News: Alcoa, BPA Reach Power Deal to Keep Intalco Open (Bellingham Herald, WA)

News Release - BPA Signs Power Sales Contract with Alcoa: Agreement saves jobs, benefits region and meets court mandates (Bonneville Power Administration)

Gregoire, BPA Boss to Visit Intalco Monday; Good News Coming? (Good News for Whom? Bellingham Herald, WA)

Energy News Digest for December 21, 2009

NOTE: Still trying to get the Windows 7 upgrade to allow normal posting of the news digest ehre on the blog. Hopefully I'll work it out soon. In the meantime, enjoy this wonderfully funky formatting.

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.


To subscribe, email jmyer@masonpud3.org


TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)


Gregoire, BPA Boss to Visit Intalco Monday; Good News Coming?


New Refinery - Alcoa, Saudi Arabia to Invest $11B in Venture


Decision Due on Montana’s Half-Billion Tons of Coal


Mason County PUD 3 to Discuss Johns Prairie Operations Center SEPA Appeal


$2.3 Million in State Money Could Go to Flood Authority


Oregon Objects to Federal OK of Coos Bay Gas Terminal


Sierra Club Challenges Wyoming Power Plant


City of Keizer Seeks Assurances on Power Plant


Florida - Tampa’s Seminole Electric Cooperative cancels plan for new coal plant


Report Finds Power Plants Cost Decline Is Slowing


Grant PUD Recognized by Soldiers - Employees Provide Gifts for Soldiers’ Children


Los Angeles Electricity Ratepayers to Benefit from Overcharge Settlement


A Year Later, TVA Chief Says Ash Spill `Painful’


EPA, USDA push farmers to use coal waste on fields


Utility Bill Is One More Casualty of Recession


Tracking Trout - A survey of the upper Rogue River will help develop the habitat, & the fishing possibilities


What Is the Most Abundant Fish in Puget Sound?


Alleged Drunk Driver Causes Friday Sewage Spill in Port Angeles


Editorial - Cleaner Spokane River worth the Cost


British Columbia Urged to Slow Green Power Development


Massachusetts Biomass Brouhaha – Group Says Governor’s Stance Will Halt NRG Energy’s Somerset Plant


Iowa - Biomass Generation Plant Planned for Rock Falls


Idaho Utilities Commission OKs Sale of Wind Power


Plans Progress for Wyoming Coal-to-Gasoline Plant


North Mason School District Getting Energy Grant


Massachusetts Pushing Whole Energy Efficient Neighborhoods


Many Take Dim View of New-Fangled Christmas Lights


Does Heating Homes Take Up More Energy Than Needed?


Climate Conference in Copenhagen Ends With Statement of Intent


What did the Copenhagen climate summit achieve?


AP Poll Shows Most See Climate Change as Serious


Northwest Scientists Keeping an Eye on Carbon


If Humans Didn’t Cause Past Global Warming & Cooling, Are They Now?


The Festive Side of Carbon Dioxide


Hard Questions for the Broadband Stimulus Program


Exploring Which Projects Got Broadband Stimulus Funds


Rackspace Data Center Outage Has Limited Impact


Norm Dicks Says Ethics Panel Inquiry Over, No Further Action Expected


When no News is News - No Holiday Display Ruckus This Year in Olympia


Pesky Frogs Hide in Christmas Trees


Polish Police Recover Auschwitz Gate Sign, Damaged


WORD OF THE DAY


Antinomian • \ant-tin-NOME-ee-un\ • noun – 1: one who holds that under the gospel dispensation of grace the moral law is of no use or obligation because faith alone is necessary to salvation 2: one who rejects a socially established morality.


Unused to the niceties of attending regular church services, the city’s new waste management official sauntered into the gracefully arched sanctuary exuding the very essence of his antinomian past. “Yep,” he uttered before his gravelly voice was drowned out by the organ, “I guessed that I should join y’all for singin’ and prayin’ at least once a year.”


WEATHER


Shelton Forecast & 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


Gregoire, BPA Boss to Visit Intalco Monday; Good News Coming? (Good News for Whom? Bellingham Herald, WA)


http://www.bellinghamherald.com/477/story/1210222.html


New Refinery - Alcoa, Saudi Arabia to Invest $11B in Venture (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010560503_apusalcoasaudiarabia.html?syndication=rss


Decision Due on Montana’s Half-Billion Tons of Coal (Associated Press)


http://www.examiner.com/a-2380099~Decision_due_on_Mont__s_half_billion_tons_of_coal.html?cid=rss-Montana_Headlines


Mason County PUD 3 to Discuss Johns Prairie Operations Center SEPA Appeal (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)


http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=907:pud-3-to-discuss-johns-prairie-operations-center-sepa-appeal&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50


$2.3 Million in State Money Could Go to Flood Authority – Some funds had previously gone to study Lewis PUD dam proposals (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)


http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/999753.html


Oregon Objects to Federal OK of Coos Bay Gas Terminal (Oregonian)


http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/12/post_34.html


Sierra Club Challenges Wyoming Power Plant (Courthouse News Service)


http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/12/21/Sierra_Club_Challenges_Wyoming_Power_Plant.htm


City of Keizer Seeks Assurances on Power Plant (Keizer Times, OR)


http://www.keizertimes.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=12142


Florida - Tampa’s Seminole Electric Cooperative cancels plan for new coal plant (St Petersburg Times, FL)


http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/article1059847.ece


Report Finds Power Plants Cost Decline Is Slowing (Power Engineering)


http://pepei.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=6&ARTICLE_ID=371988&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss


Grant PUD Recognized by Soldiers - Employees Provide Gifts for Soldiers’ Children (Columbia Basin Herald)


http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2009/12/18/news/doc4b2c1157d5075391778880.txt


Los Angeles Electricity Ratepayers to Benefit from Overcharge Settlement (Los Angeles Times, CA)


http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-refunds19-2009dec19,0,4030963.story


A Year Later, TVA Chief Says Ash Spill `Painful’ (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010544220_apuscoalashspilltennessee.html?syndication=rss


EPA, USDA push farmers to use coal waste on fields (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010558349_apusfarmscenecoalwaste.html?syndication=rss


Utility Bill Is One More Casualty of Recession (NY Times)


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/20/us/20utility.html


FISH & WILDLIFE


Tracking Trout - A survey of the upper Rogue River will help develop the habitat, & the fishing possibilities


http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091220/NEWS/912200334


What Is the Most Abundant Fish in Puget Sound? (Seattle Post Intelligencer)


http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/archives/188667.asp?source=pimail


WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT


Alleged Drunk Driver Causes Friday Sewage Spill in Port Angeles (Seattle Times)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/theblotter/2010554566_another_raw-sewage_this_one_in.html?syndication=rss


Spokesman Review Editorial - Cleaner Spokane River worth the Cost


http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/dec/20/cleaner-river-worth-the-cost/


RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY


British Columbia Urged to Slow Green Power Development (Vancouver Sun, BC)


http://www.vancouversun.com/health/urged+slow+green+power+development/2352063/story.html


Massachusetts Biomass Brouhaha – Group Says Governor’s Stance Will Halt NRG Energy’s Somerset Plant (Fall River Herald News, MA)


http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x1145293945/Group-Patricks-stance-will-halt-NRG-Energys-Somerset-plant


Iowa - Biomass Generation Plant Planned for Rock Falls (KWQC-TV, Davenport, IA)


http://www.kwqc.com/Global/story.asp?S=11688737


Idaho Utilities Commission OKs Sale of Wind Power (Associated Press)


http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/1077266.html


Plans Progress for Wyoming Coal-to-Gasoline Plant (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010544556_apuscoaltogasolineplant.html?syndication=rss


CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY


North Mason School District Getting Energy Grant (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)


http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=892:north-mason-school-district-getting-energy-grant&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50


Massachusetts Pushing Whole Energy Efficient Neighborhoods (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010560460_apusenergyefficientneighborhoodsmassachusetts.html?syndication=rss


Many Take Dim View of New-Fangled Christmas Lights (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010560243_apusvintagelights.html?syndication=rss


Does Heating Homes Take Up More Energy Than Needed? (Seattle Post Intelligencer)


http://www.seattlepi.com/local/413403_power17.html?source=rss


CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT


Climate Conference in Copenhagen Ends With Statement of Intent (Seattle Times)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2010551342_climate20.html


What did the Copenhagen climate summit achieve? (BBC, UK)


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8424522.stm


AP Poll Shows Most See Climate Change as Serious (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010548723_apclimateappoll.html?syndication=rss


Northwest Scientists Keeping an Eye on Carbon (Oregon Public Broadcasting)


http://news.opb.org/article/6425-northwest-scientists-keeping-eye-carbon/


If Humans Didn’t Cause Global Warming & Cooling in the Past, Is That Evidence They Also Aren’t Now? (Christian Science Monitor)


http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Bright-Green/2009/1220/If-humans-didn-t-cause-global-warming-and-cooling-in-the-past-is-that-evidence-they-also-aren-t-now


BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI


The Festive Side of Carbon Dioxide - Scientists Uncork Champagne’s Complexity & the Wondrous Micro-Mechanics of Bubbles (Wall Street Journal)


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126108284326695963.html


TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS


Hard Questions for the Broadband Stimulus Program (GigaOM)


http://gigaom.com/2009/12/18/hard-questions-for-the-broadband-stimulus-program/


Exploring Which Projects Got Broadband Stimulus Funds - Middle mile, single state telco & private-public plans dominate (Broadband Reports)


http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Exploring-Which-Projects-Got-Broadband-Stimulus-Funds-106080


Rackspace Data Center Outage Has Limited Impact (PC World)


http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20091219/tc_pcworld/rackspaceoutagehaslimitedimpact


GENERAL NEWS


Norm Dicks Says Ethics Panel Inquiry Over, No Further Action Expected (Seattle Times)


http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/999772.html


When no News is News - No Holiday Display Ruckus This Year in Olympia


http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=6563


Pesky Frogs Hide in Christmas Trees


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010552201_frogs20m.html?syndication=rss


Polish Police Recover Auschwitz Gate Sign, Damaged (Associated Press)


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2010558357_apeupolandauschwitzsign.html?syndication=rss


ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS


The Origins of Christmas (Finding Dulcinea)


http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/history/2009/Origins-of-Christmas.html


Silent Night’ Flap Ends on High Note


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010552205_silentnight20m.html


Stolen 1965 VW bus brings in nearly $30,000 at auction


http://blog.thenewstribune.com/crime/2009/12/21/stolen-1965-vw-bus-brings-in-nearly-30000-at-auction/


Japanese man takes video game character as wife


http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BJ1XX20091220?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews


Idaho Pharmacist Who Tackled Armed Robber Fired


http://www.examiner.com/a-2381235~Idaho_pharmacist_who_tackled_armed_robber_fired.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines


SONG OF THE DAY


David Bowie & Bing Crosby - Little Drummer Boy


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zMhSjDqvRs&feature=related