Monday, June 28, 2010

Energy News Digest for June 28, 2010

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

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Bonneville Pledges Discount Power Rate for Fledgling Jefferson PUD System (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

2010 Sockeye Return Breaks Records as It Bursts Well Beyond Preseason Forecast (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

Grayland Wind Farm - “Win-Wind” Flipping Switch (Aberdeen Daily World, WA)

Biomass Developers Fight EPA Emissions Ruling “…It’s like they’re trying to kill the biomass industry in its infancy, said Congressman DeFazio…” (Sustainable Business Oregon)

Idaho Power Wants Energy Efficiency Expense Declared ‘Prudent’ - Trying to recover nearly $51 million investment in energy efficiency programs financed during 2008 & 2009 (iStock Analyst)

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

·         Bonneville Pledges Discount Power Rate for Fledgling Jefferson PUD System
·         Bonneville Power Administration Approves Jefferson PUD Request for Tier 1 Power
·         Bonneville Power Administration Ramps up Seismic Strengthening of Transmission Grid
·         Montana - NorthWestern Energy Has 5% Rate Hike, Others in Works
·         Montana - NorthWestern Energy Rates Have Been on Decline, Still Among Region’s Highest
·         Washington Senators Urge Fix to Slow Hanford Program
·         Op/Ed - Nuclear Power Gaining New Life
·         Is a New Reactor Rust-Prone?
·         Mason PUD 1 Commissioner Jack Janda elected Vice Chair of Energy Northwest Executive Board
·         Bond-Rating Agencies Look Well on Tacoma Power
·         Fitch Upgrades Eugene Water & Electric Board’s Bond Rating as ‘AA-’ from ‘A+’
·         North Dakota Consumers to Pay Higher Bills for Defunct Power Plant
·         Powering New Jersey - PJM Control Center in Pennsylvania Governs Electric Transmission in 13 States
·         New Hampshire - Woman Using Oxygen Dies after Utility Shuts Off Power
·         2010 Sockeye Return Breaks Records as It Bursts Well Beyond Preseason Forecast
·         Columbia River above Priest Rapids opening soon for sockeye fishing
·         Columbia Salmon Fishery Fit for a King - One of the Largest Returns since 2002
·         Editorial - Walla Walla Project Well Worth Price to Restore Salmon
·         Report to Governors Details BPA Fish/Wildlife Spending; $12 Billion since 1978
·         On the Columbia, Tribal Fishermen Risk Their Lives
·         Seafood Watchdog Warns to ‘Avoid’ Oregon Coast Salmon
·         Northern Spotted Owl Marks 20 Years on Endangered Species List
·         Clallam PUD: Find More Grants, Loans for Carlsborg Sewer Project
·         Spokane River Cleanup Plan Too Slow, Group Says
·         Bonneville Power Administration Explains Rationale behind Lake Pend Oreille Level Request
·         Big Headache: King County’s $1.8 Billion Brightwater Sewer Project in Court
·         Ban to Begin on Phosphate-Laden Dishwasher Soap
·         Grayland Wind Farm - “Win-Wind” Flipping Switch
·         Utilities Regulator Eyes National Grid Contract for Cape Wind Output
·         Biomass Developers Fight EPA Emissions Ruling
·         Montana - Firm Considers Biomass-to-Fuel Plant
·         Turning Waste Wood into Gas-Fueled Energy
·         Massachusetts - Wood Power Plant Hearings Slated
·         Michigan - Utility Looks to Public for Guidance on Local Electricity Generation
·         Maryland - Trash-Burning Power Plant in Fairfield Fires Debate
·         Pellets Potential Still Underused
·         Ask Pablo: Waste Incineration, Good or Bad?
·         Editorial - Confessions of a Green-Power Welfare Queen
·         Idaho Power Wants Energy Efficiency Expense Declared ‘Prudent’
·         Oregon - Hermiston Homes Set to Test Energy Use Monitor Technology
·         Utilities Try to Get Smarter About Selling Smart Grid
·         Lame-Duck Session Emerges as Possibility for Climate Bill Conference
·         Biofuel Venture Hasn’t Paid Off for Snohomish County
·         Green-Built Multifamily Housing Opens in Northeast Olympia
·         Some Say Fie on Fowl in the City
·         Government Plans to Double Available Wireless Spectrum
·         Broadband Availability to Expand
·         Gartner Research Says Cloud Services Should Bring in $68 Billion This Year
·         No Link Between Cell Towers, Kids’ Cancer Risk
·         US Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia Dead at 92
·         Public Opinion Poll Shows Murray & Rossi Even
·         Cantwell Vs Locke: A Fight over NOAA Fleet
·         From Silly to Serious, Initiative Efforts Abound
·         Mason County Father Held after 5-Year-Old Girl’s Throat is Slashed
·         Oops! DOT Reveals $900,000 Mistake on New Tacoma Ramp
·         Supreme Court Rules That Gun Rights Apply to Local Laws
·         Western Governors Consider Alternative Energy, Climate Change
·         Fireworks Stands Open Monday in Washington

WORD OF THE DAY

Sepulcher • \SEP-ul-ker\ • noun - *1: a place of burial: tomb 2: a receptacle for religious relics especially in an altar

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher must be a crowded place; what with all the Christian pilgrims and the polyglot of sects that have a role in overseeing the shrines and churches within. A diplomatic dance takes place every day amongst the Eastern Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Roman Catholic, Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox, and Syriac Orthodox Churches.

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS


ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Bonneville Pledges Discount Power Rate for Fledgling Jefferson PUD System (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

Bonneville Power Administration Approves Jefferson PUD Request for Tier 1 Power (Port Townsend Leader, WA)

Bonneville Power Administration Ramps up Seismic Strengthening of Transmission Grid (Northwest Public Radio)

Montana - NorthWestern Energy Has 5% Rate Hike, Others in Works (Billings Gazette, MT)

Montana - NorthWestern Energy Rates Have Been on Decline, Still Among Region’s Highest (The Missoulian, MT)

Washington Senators Urge Fix to Slow Hanford Program (Associated Press)

Op/Ed - Nuclear Power Gaining New Life (Covington Reporter, WA)

Is a New Reactor Rust-Prone? (NY Times)

Mason PUD 1 Commissioner Jack Janda elected Vice Chair of Energy Northwest Executive Board (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

Bond-Rating Agencies Look Well on Tacoma Power (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

Fitch Upgrades Eugene Water & Electric Board’s Bond Rating as ‘AA-’ from ‘A+’ (Business Wire)

North Dakota Consumers to Pay Higher Bills for Defunct Power Plant (Associated Press)

Powering New Jersey - PJM Control Center in Pennsylvania Governs Electric Transmission in 13 States (Newark Star Ledger, NJ)

New Hampshire - Woman Using Oxygen Dies after Utility Shuts Off Power (NY Times)

FISH & WILDLIFE

2010 Sockeye Return Breaks Records as It Bursts Well Beyond Preseason Forecast (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

Columbia River above Priest Rapids opening soon for sockeye fishing - Run size will be twice the size originally thought (Seattle Times)

Columbia Salmon Fishery Fit for a King - One of the Largest Returns since 2002 (Tri-City Herald, WA)

Editorial - Walla Walla Project Well Worth Price to Restore Salmon (East Oregonian, Pendleton, OR)

Report to Governors Details BPA Fish/Wildlife Spending; $12 Billion since 1978 (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

On the Columbia, Tribal Fishermen Risk Their Lives (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

Seafood Watchdog Warns to ‘Avoid’ Oregon Coast Salmon (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Northern Spotted Owl Marks 20 Years on Endangered Species List (Oregonian, Portland)

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Clallam PUD: Find More Grants, Loans for Carlsborg Sewer Project (KONP Radio, Port Angeles, WA)

Spokane River Cleanup Plan Too Slow, Group Says (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA)

Bonneville Power Administration Explains Rationale behind Lake Pend Oreille Level Request (Bonner County Daily Bee, Sandpoint, ID)

Big Headache: King County’s $1.8 Billion Brightwater Sewer Project in Court, Over Budget (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

Ban to Begin on Phosphate-Laden Dishwasher Soap (Associated Press)

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Grayland Wind Farm - “Win-Wind” Flipping Switch (Aberdeen Daily World, WA)

Utilities Regulator Eyes National Grid Contract for Cape Wind Output (Boston Herald, MA)

Biomass Developers Fight EPA Emissions Ruling “…It’s like they’re trying to kill the biomass industry in its infancy, said Congressman DeFazio…” (Sustainable Business Oregon)

Montana - Firm Considers Biomass-to-Fuel Plant (Daily Interlake, Kalispell, MT)

Turning Waste Wood into Gas-Fueled Energy (The Tyee, BC)

Massachusetts - Wood Power Plant Hearings Slated (Springfield Republican, MA)

Michigan - Utility Looks to Public for Guidance on Local Electricity Generation (Traverse City Record-Eagle, MI)

Maryland - Trash-Burning Power Plant in Fairfield Fires Debate - Environmentalists concerned about air pollution, recycling (Baltimore Sun, MD)

Pellets Potential Still Underused - Cheaper oil, warm winter & confusion thwart conversions (Kennebec Journal, Augusta ME)

Ask Pablo: Waste Incineration, Good or Bad? (TreeHugger)

Editorial - Confessions of a Green-Power Welfare Queen (Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV)

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Idaho Power Wants Energy Efficiency Expense Declared ‘Prudent’ - Trying to recover nearly $51 million investment in energy efficiency programs financed during 2008 & 2009 (iStock Analyst)

Oregon - Hermiston Homes Set to Test Energy Use Monitor Technology (Bend Bulletin, OR)

Utilities Try to Get Smarter About Selling Smart Grid (CNET News)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Lame-Duck Session Emerges as Possibility for Climate Bill Conference (NY Times)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Biofuel Venture Hasn’t Paid Off for Snohomish County - Market for canola fails to materialize (Everett Herald, WA)

Green-Built Multifamily Housing Opens in Northeast Olympia (Olympian, WA)

Some Say Fie on Fowl in the City (Seattle Times)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Government Plans to Double Available Wireless Spectrum (Associated Press)

Broadband Availability to Expand (NY Times)

Gartner Research Says Cloud Services Should Bring in $68 Billion This Year (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

No Link Between Cell Towers, Kids’ Cancer Risk (USA Today)

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

US Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia Dead at 92 (Associated Press)

Public Opinion Poll Shows Murray & Rossi Even (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

Cantwell Vs Locke: A Fight over NOAA Fleet (Crosscut Seattle)

From Silly to Serious, Initiative Efforts Abound (Seattle Times – And don’t forget to ask the petition gatherer how much they’re getting for your signature. It’s easy, and fun!)

GENERAL NEWS

Mason County Father Held after 5-Year-Old Girl’s Throat is Slashed (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

Oops! DOT Reveals $900,000 Mistake on New Tacoma Ramp (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

Supreme Court Rules That Gun Rights Apply to Local Laws (NY Times)

Western Governors Consider Alternative Energy, Climate Change (Associated Press)

Fireworks Stands Open Monday in Washington (Associated Press)

DIVERSIONS

Bee Swarms Seen in Seattle, Tacoma

Salmon Only Thing Smoked at Tacoma Hempfest

Wenatchee Squirrels: Unwelcomed, Welcomed Arrivals

Courting Danger: Storm Chasers Seek Thrill of Hunt

SONG OF THE DAY

Deep Purple - Smoke on the Water