Energy News Digest for October 26, 2011

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

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HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Noon Explosion Will Breach Condit Dam on Wednesday - Nearby roads, waterways airspace will be closed much of day (Vancouver Columbian, WA)

http://www.columbian.com/news/2011/oct/26/explosion-will-breach-condit-dam-nearby-roads-wate/

Clark PUD Raises Home Electricity Rates Some 3.9% - Customers won’t feel the bite during the next two years (Vancouver Columbian, WA)

http://www.columbian.com/news/2011/oct/25/residential-customers-of-clark-pud-to-pay-39-more/

Tightening of Boiler-Pollution Rules Could Be Trouble for Northwest Mills (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/10/25/1879117/tightening-of-boiler-pollution.html

Sun Sets on Three Norwegian Solar Plants as Renewable Energy Corporation Falls Short (Reuters)

http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL5E7LP1SW20111026

A Carbon Culprit: Rivers and Streams (NY Times)

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/a-carbon-culprit-rivers-and-streams/?partner=rss&emc=rss

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

• Clark PUD Raises Home Electricity Rates Some 3.9%
• Cowlitz County PUD Commissioners Approve Rate Increase
• Pacific County PUD Customers Facing Rate Increase
• Pacific County Electricity Rates on the Rise as Temps Fall
• Peninsula Light Company Plans Rate Hike for Spring
• City of Richland Power Rate Increase Expected in 2012
• Healthy Chelan PUD Budget Includes Fiber Optics
• Fitch Rates Chelan PUD's $164.4 Million Consolidated System Revenue Bonds at 'AA+'; Outlook Negative
• Beartooth Electric to Fight Southern Montana Electric Cooperative Bankruptcy Filing
• Member Co-Ops React to Southern Montana Electric Cooperative Filing for Bankruptcy
• Itron Laying Off 750 Worldwide
• Texas - Proposed Austin Energy Electric Rate Increases Target Poor, Could Hamper Conservation, Critics Say
• On the Front Lines of the Power Grid
• Noon Explosion Will Breach Condit Dam on Wednesday
• Condit Dam to be Demolished Wednesday
• Study: More Species in Washington State, British Columbia Need Protection
• Pikeminnow Anglers Earn Big Dollars & Save Salmon
• White Nose Syndrome: Fungus Fingered as Bat Killer
• PETA Sues SeaWorld Parks for 'Enslaving' Orcas
• China Takes a Loss to Get Ahead in the Business of Fresh Water
• Tightening of Boiler-Pollution Rules Could Be Trouble for Northwest Mills
• National Opponent of Biomass to Speak in Port Townsend
• Sun Sets on Three Norwegian Solar Plants as Renewable Energy Corporation Falls Short
• More Problems in Solar Sector: Bellwether Firm First Solar Ousts CEO, Stock Plummets
• Solar Jobs Report Shows 6.8% Growth over 2010
• US Installs Over 1,200 MW of Wind Power in the Third Quarter
• Alaska Energy Test Showed Power Use Cut by About 1-2 Percent
• A Carbon Culprit: Rivers and Streams
• White Roofs May Actually Add to Global Warming
• Coca Cola’s New Look: Polar-Bear White
• Smart Electric Grid Yields Jobs, Report Says
• A Breath of Fresh Canned Air - A Promising Solution to Chemical Dusting Canisters
• Telecom Chief Slams Interest Groups for FCC Lobbying
• Op/Ed - Fulfilling the Promise: Extending the Benefits of Broadband to Consumers in Rural America 
• Apple Building Solar Farm for North Carolina Data Center
• Google Opens Internet Research Institute
• A Decade On, Windows XP Is Still the World’s Most-Used Desktop OS
• Former Manager Charged With Stealing $250K from Seattle Schools
• Former Washington State Senator Alex Deccio Dies in Yakima
• Jay Inslee, Candidate for WA Governor, Chats With Grist about Clean Energy & Coal Ports
• Mason County Unemployment Up
• Federal Grant for Mason Transit Center
• US Road Travel Falls to Lowest Levels Since 2003
• People at Increased Risk of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Winter

WORD OF THE DAY

Pediculous • \pih-DIK-yuh-luss\ • Adjective - Infested with lice: lousy

“Scuse, me…pardon me…gangway,” shouted Ambrose on his way to a nearby Boots Pharmacy; plowing his way through a crowd of drawling Americans whom had made Trafalgar Square a pediculous mass of babbling, pointing and photo-snapping tourists.

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

Clark PUD Raises Home Electricity Rates Some 3.9% - Customers won’t feel the bite during the next two years (Vancouver Columbian, WA)

http://www.columbian.com/news/2011/oct/25/residential-customers-of-clark-pud-to-pay-39-more/

Cowlitz County PUD Commissioners Approve Rate Increase - Vow to go after $9 million owed for sales of wind energy to California utilities (Longview Daily News, WA)

http://tdn.com/news/local/article_91feedb6-ff75-11e0-b79e-001cc4c03286.html

Pacific County PUD Customers Facing Rate Increase (KXRO Radio, Aberdeen, WA)

http://kxro.wordpress.com/2011/10/26/pacific-county-pud-customers-facing-rate-increase/

Pacific County Electricity Rates on the Rise as Temps Fall (Chinook Observer, Long Beach, WA)

http://www.chinookobserver.com/news/electricity-rates-on-the-rise-as-temps-fall/article_0997ada6-ff5b-11e0-a464-001cc4c03286.html

Peninsula Light Company Plans Rate Hike for Spring - Penlight will increase its rates for all classes of service next spring (Peninsula Gateway, Gig Harbor, WA)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/10/25/1879508/peninsula-light-co-plans-rate.html

City of Richland Power Rate Increase Expected in 2012 (Tri-City Herald, WA)

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2011/10/26/1693804/power-rate-increase-expected-in.html

Healthy Chelan PUD Budget Includes Fiber Optics (Lake Chelan Mirror, WA)

http://lakechelanmirror.com/main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSectionID=5&ArticleID=5066

Fitch Rates Chelan PUD's $164.4 Million Consolidated System Revenue Bonds at 'AA+'; Outlook Negative (Market Watch)

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fitch-rates-chelan-puds-wa-1644mm-2011c-consolidated-sys-rev-bonds-at-aa-outlook-negative-2011-10-25

Beartooth Electric to Fight Southern Montana Electric Cooperative Bankruptcy Filing (Great Falls Tribune, MT)

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20111025/NEWS01/111025005/Beartooth-Electric-fight-SME-bankruptcy-filing

Member Co-Ops React to Southern Montana Electric Cooperative Filing for Bankruptcy (KFBB-TV, Great Falls, MT)

http://www.kfbb.com/news/local/Member-Co-ops-React-to-SME-Filing-for-Bankruptcy--132596013.html

Itron Laying Off 750 Worldwide (Puget Sound Business Journal, WA)

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2011/10/26/itron-laying-off-750-worldwide.html

Texas - Proposed Austin Energy Electric Rate Increases Target Poor, Could Hamper Conservation, Critics Say (Austin American-Statesman, TX)
http://www.statesman.com/news/local/proposed-electric-rate-increases-target-poor-could-hamper-1934092.html

On the Front Lines of the Power Grid (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/business/energy-environment/behind-the-power-grid-humans-with-high-stakes-jobs.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

FISH & WILDLIFE

Noon Explosion Will Breach Condit Dam on Wednesday - Nearby roads, waterways airspace will be closed much of day (Vancouver Columbian, WA)

http://www.columbian.com/news/2011/oct/26/explosion-will-breach-condit-dam-nearby-roads-wate/

Condit Dam to be Demolished Wednesday - White Salmon River project to be third-largest dam removal in the country (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2016606447_condit26m.html

Study: More Species in Washington State, British Columbia Need Protection (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2011/10/26/1852793/study-more-species-in-wash-bc.html

Pikeminnow Anglers Earn Big Dollars & Save Salmon (Bonneville Power Administration)

http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/1226499/

White Nose Syndrome: Fungus Fingered as Bat Killer (USA Today)

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/10/white-nose-syndrome-fungus-fingered-as-bat-killer/1?csp=34news

PETA Sues SeaWorld Parks for 'Enslaving' Orcas (TIME Magazine)

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/10/26/peta-sues-seaworld-parks-for-enslaving-orcas/

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

China Takes a Loss to Get Ahead in the Business of Fresh Water (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/world/asia/china-takes-loss-to-get-ahead-in-desalination-industry.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Tightening of Boiler-Pollution Rules Could Be Trouble for Northwest Mills (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/10/25/1879117/tightening-of-boiler-pollution.html

National Opponent of Biomass to Speak in Port Townsend (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20111025/NEWS/111029985/national-opponent-of-biomass-to-speak-in-port-townsend

Sun Sets on Three Norwegian Solar Plants as Renewable Energy Corporation Falls Short (Reuters)

http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL5E7LP1SW20111026

More Problems in Solar Sector: Bellwether Firm First Solar Ousts CEO, Stock Plummets (San Jose Mercury News, CA)

http://www.mercurynews.com/rss/ci_19189930

Solar Jobs Report Shows 6.8% Growth over 2010 (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/10/solar-jobs-report-shows-6-8-growth-over-2010?cmpid=rss

US Installs Over 1,200 MW of Wind Power in the Third Quarter (Reuters)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/25/us-utilities-awea-wind-idUSTRE79O6SQ20111025

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Alaska Energy Test Showed Power Use Cut by About 1-2 Percent (Anchorage Daily News, AK)

http://www.adn.com/2011/10/25/2138370/energy-test-showed-power-use-cut.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

A Carbon Culprit: Rivers and Streams (NY Times)

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/a-carbon-culprit-rivers-and-streams/?partner=rss&emc=rss

White Roofs May Actually Add to Global Warming (Discover Magazine)

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/10/20/white-roofs-may-actually-add-to-global-warming/

Coca Cola’s New Look: Polar-Bear White (Reuters)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/25/idUS203460485020111025

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Smart Electric Grid Yields Jobs, Report Says (SF Chronicle)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/25/BU2V1LM5CB.DTL

A Breath of Fresh Canned Air - A Promising Solution to Chemical Dusting Canisters (Sightline Daily)

http://daily.sightline.org/2011/10/26/a-breath-of-fresh-canned-air/

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Telecom Chief Slams Interest Groups for FCC Lobbying (The Hill, Washington, DC)

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/189717-telecom-chief-slams-interest-groups-for-fcc-lobbying

Op/Ed - Fulfilling the Promise: Extending the Benefits of Broadband to Consumers in Rural America (US Telecom Broadband Association)

http://www.ustelecom.org/Video_Blogs/Blog/index.php/2011/10/25/fulfilling-the-promise-extending-the-benefits-of-broadband-to-consumers-in-rural-america/

Apple Building Solar Farm for North Carolina Data Center (Gigaom)

http://gigaom.com/cleantech/apple-building-solar-farm-for-data-center/

Google Opens Internet Research Institute (Associated Press)

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Google-opens-Internet-research-institute-2235492.php

A Decade On, Windows XP Is Still the World’s Most-Used Desktop OS (Gizmodo)

http://gizmodo.com/5853388/a-decade-on-windows-xp-is-still-the-worlds-most+used-desktop-os

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

Former Manager Charged With Stealing $250K from Seattle Schools (KIRO Broadcasting, Seattle)

http://mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=567321

Former Washington State Senator Alex Deccio Dies in Yakima (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2011/10/26/1852761/former-washington-sen-deccio-dies.html

Jay Inslee, Candidate for WA Governor, Chats With Grist about Clean Energy & Coal Ports (Grist Online)

http://www.grist.org/election-2012/2011-10-25-jay-inslee-candidate-washington-governor-clean-energy-coal-ports

GENERAL NEWS

Mason County Unemployment Up (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.com/news/news-page/17030-mason-county-unemployment-up

Federal Grant for Mason Transit Center (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.com/news/news-page/17032-federal-grant-for-mason-transit-center

US Road Travel Falls to Lowest Levels Since 2003 (USA Today)

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2011/10/us-road-travel-falls-to-lowest-levels-since-2003/1?csp=34money

People at Increased Risk of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Winter (KNDU-TV, Tri-Cities, WA)

http://www.kndu.com/story/15874432/increased-risk-for-carbon-monoxide-poisoning-in-winter

DIVERSIONS

Fake Maple Syrup Sours Sweet Image - New York's U.S. senators seek federal felony for passing off the cheap stuff as the real thing

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Fake-maple-syrup-sours-sweet-image-2229085.php

69 Photos that Pull Your Eyes from Their Sockets

http://gizmodo.com/5853078/69-photos-that-pull-your-eyes-from-their-sockets

Beleaguered Flight Crews Could Soon Bunk With the Cargo

http://gizmodo.com/5853249/beleaguered-flight-crews-could-soon-bunk-with-the-cargo

Seven Filthy Things You Shouldn’t Touch on Your Way to Work

http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/2011/10/25/seven-filthy-things-you-shouldnt-touch-on-your-way-to-work/#1521-1

SONG OF THE DAY

Willie Nelson - Moonlight in Vermont

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ulyOQXjCso