Monday, December 15, 2014

Energy News Digest for December 15, 2014

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS

Weather Forecast for December 15, 2014

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HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Puget Sound Energy Faces Opposition over Options for Eastside Power-Line Route (Seattle Times, WA - Paywall Advisory)

Columbia Generating Station: Washington State’s Only Nuclear Power Plant Turns 30 Years Old (Associated Press)

Oregon: Biogas Power Plant near Junction City Mired in Legal Disputes (Eugene Register-Guard, OR)

From Carbon to Kids: Inslee Wants Climate Policy to Fund Schools (Washington State Wire, Olympia, WA)

Columbia River Salmon Anglers in 2014 Set Record Catch; Forecast Projects More Good Runs in 2015 (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
  1. Puget Sound Energy Faces Opposition over Options for Eastside Power-Line Route
  2. Columbia Generating Station: Washington State’s Only Nuclear Power Plant Turns 30 Years Old
  3. Leads Prove Elusive as Clallam Sheriff’s Office Investigates Theft of Copper, Power Outage West of Port Angeles
  4. California: Tiny Water District to Seize Pacific Gas & Electric Power Lines, Transformers
  5. Even Before Long Winter Begins, Energy Bills Send Shivers in New England
  6. In Navajo Country, Coal Gives Life - And Takes It, Some Say
  7. Fitch: Utility Sector Well Positioned to Manage Near-Term Risks
  8. Advanced Meter Fee Scam Hits South Carolina Co-op
  9. Columbia River Salmon Anglers in 2014 Set Record Catch; Forecast Projects More Good Runs in 2015
  10. Canada: Salmon Farmers to Spend $1.5 Million on Wild Fish Study
  11. Beavers’ Eagerness Is the Problem above Douglas PUD’s Wells Dam
  12. Op/Ed: Congress’s Hostile Takeover of Endangered Species Efforts
  13. Skagit County Water Fight Ruling Won’t Mean Battle Ends
  14. Scientist Prepare for another Wave of Tsunami Debris along PNW Coast, & More Invasive Species
  15. Oregon: Biogas Power Plant near Junction City Mired in Legal Disputes
  16. The Economist Explains: What Has Gone Wrong with Germany’s Energy Policy
  17. Eggnog & Efficiency: How the Holiday Season Affects Utilities
  18. West Richland Getting New LED Lights
  19. Marijuana Growers Sprout on Wall Street as Pot Goes Public
  20. La Center Mulls Marijuana Ban
  21. From Carbon to Kids: Inslee Wants Climate Policy to Fund Schools
  22. Pacific Gas & Electric CEO: A Price on Carbon Can Be Good for Utilities
  23. Arctic Sea Ice Volume Holds Up in 2014
  24. Northwest Environmental Conference: Sustainability Directors in Unlikely Places
  25. Capturing Carbon as a Byproduct of Running a Fuel Cell
  26. FCC Boosts Rural Broadband Speed Requirements to 10 Mbps
  27. Facebook Discards Microsoft Bing for Search
  28. Google among Major U-S Companies Researching Use of Color in Business Initiatives
  29. The Governor Unplugged: Inslee Warns Of ‘Malarkey’ & ‘Assault by Polluting Industries’
  30. Alpine Lakes, Manhattan Project National Park Pass U-S Senate
  31. In Final Spending Bill, Salty Food & Belching Cows Are Winners
  32. Mason County Shellfish Contamination Prompts Recall
  33. Judge’s Ruling Favors Cowlitz Tribe in Casino Case
WORD OF THE DAY

Nabob • \NAY-bob \ • Noun - A person of great wealth or importance.

Spiro T’s lament
Nattering nabobs no good
See you in prison.

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Puget Sound Energy Faces Opposition over Options for Eastside Power-Line Route (Seattle Times, WA - Paywall Advisory)

Columbia Generating Station: Washington State’s Only Nuclear Power Plant Turns 30 Years Old (Associated Press)

Leads Prove Elusive as Clallam Sheriff’s Office Investigates Theft of Copper, Power Outage West of Port Angeles (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

California: Tiny Water District to Seize Pacific Gas & Electric Power Lines, Transformers (SF Chronicle)

Even Before Long Winter Begins, Energy Bills Send Shivers in New England (NY Times)

In Navajo Country, Coal Gives Life - And Takes It, Some Say (Los Angeles Times, CA)

Fitch: Utility Sector Well Positioned to Manage Near-Term Risks (Utility Dive)

Advanced Meter Fee Scam Hits South Carolina Co-op (Electric Co-op Today)

FISH & WILDLIFE

Columbia River Salmon Anglers in 2014 Set Record Catch; Forecast Projects More Good Runs in 2015 (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

Canada: Salmon Farmers to Spend $1.5 Million on Wild Fish Study - Industry will appoint independent researchers to look at disease transmission, migration routes (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)

Beavers’ Eagerness Is the Problem above Douglas PUD’s Wells Dam (Wenatchee World, WA)

Op/Ed: Congress’s Hostile Takeover of Endangered Species Efforts (The Hill, Washington, DC)

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Skagit County Water Fight Ruling Won’t Mean Battle Ends (Skagit Valley Herald, Mount Vernon, WA)

Scientist Prepare for another Wave of Tsunami Debris along PNW Coast, & More Invasive Species (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Oregon: Biogas Power Plant near Junction City Mired in Legal Disputes (Eugene Register-Guard, OR)

The Economist Explains: What Has Gone Wrong with Germany’s Energy Policy (The Economist Magazine)

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Eggnog & Efficiency: How the Holiday Season Affects Utilities (Utility Dive)

West Richland Getting New LED Lights (KEPR-TV, Tri-Cities, WA)

KILOWATTS FOR CANNABIS

Marijuana Growers Sprout on Wall Street as Pot Goes Public (Mashable)

La Center Mulls Marijuana Ban - Pot businesses could be allowed in some areas or banned altogether (Vancouver Columbian, WA)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

From Carbon to Kids: Inslee Wants Climate Policy to Fund Schools (Washington State Wire, Olympia, WA)

Pacific Gas & Electric CEO: A Price on Carbon Can Be Good for Utilities (Utility Dive)

Arctic Sea Ice Volume Holds Up in 2014 (British Broadcasting Corporation)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Northwest Environmental Conference: Sustainability Directors in Unlikely Places (Portland Business Journal, OR)

Capturing Carbon as a Byproduct of Running a Fuel Cell (NY Times)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

FCC Boosts Rural Broadband Speed Requirements to 10 Mbps (eWeek)

Facebook Discards Microsoft Bing for Search (Puget Sound Business Journal, WA)

MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA

Google among Major U-S Companies Researching Use of Color in Business Initiatives (Associated Press)

All Google has to do is hire the characters Jane Lynch & John Michael Higgins played in the movie “A Mighty Wind.”

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

The Governor Unplugged: Inslee Warns Of ‘Malarkey’ & ‘Assault by Polluting Industries’ (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)

Alpine Lakes, Manhattan Project National Park Pass U-S Senate (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)

In Final Spending Bill, Salty Food & Belching Cows Are Winners “…requires the EPA to withdraw a new rule defining how the Clean Water Act applies to certain agricultural conservation practices…” (NY Times)

GENERAL NEWS

Mason County Shellfish Contamination Prompts Recall (South Sound Business Examiner)

Judge’s Ruling Favors Cowlitz Tribe in Casino Case (KATU-TV, Portland, OR)

DIVERSIONS

Job Title Not Convoluted Enough? Try This ‘Badass Advertising Job Titles’ Generator

Bunch of Grinches Take $2,000 in Christmas Trees from Cut-Your-Own Farm without Paying

The Hottest Gift You Aren’t Getting: Selfie Sticks (I’m sure there’s something Freudian about this!)

It’s ‘Culture.’ Merriam-Webster Unveils Its Word of the Year

SONG OF THE DAY

Boston – Long Time/Foreplay

LINKS & PAYWALL ADVISORY

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.

Note that as some newspapers migrate to a “paywall” system of access, some articles may not be available without forking over some cold hard credit card cash. However, some sites will allow a certain number of story accesses per month before holding out their hand. Sorry if this is an inconvenience.