Monday, September 25, 2017

Energy News Digest for September 25, 2017

Occasionally clear the cache & history of your internet browser. It will help when trying to access news sites that count your visits.

The Energy News Digest is on Facebook.

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS


HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

SolarWorld: We’ll Rehire 200, Ramp Up Production after Trade Ruling (Portland Business Journal, OR)

Residential Electricity Prices Up 3% in First Half of 2017 (U-S Energy Information Administration)

Carbon Tax War among Conservatives Heats Up (Washington Examiner)

Surplus Hatchery Salmon Released Into Northern Idaho Creek (Associated Press)

Verizon Says Some Cut-Off Rural Customers Can Stay, But They Must Ditch Unlimited Data Plans (Consumerist)

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
  • Residential Electricity Prices Up 3% in First Half of 2017
  • Cowlitz PUD Considers 2.5-Percent Rate Hike
  • Columbia River PUD to Change Office Hours for 2018
  • Puerto Rico Power Grid ‘Devastated’ by Maria, Says Local Utility CEO
  • Puerto Rico Dam Holding; Some Local Officials Say Threat Overblown
  • Puerto Rico’s Best Hope for Keeping the Lights On
  • Canada Has Too Much Clean Electricity. Anybody Want It?
  • Utilities Will Spend Billions on Cybersecurity as Threat Grows
  • When One Power Company Got a Letter from a Little Girl Asking for a Hamster, It Did the Right Thing
  • Surplus Hatchery Salmon Released Into Northern Idaho Creek
  • Monarch Butterflies Might Vanish from Pacific Northwest Summers
  • Evidence of Invasive Grass Carp Signals Threat to Lake Erie
  • Competing for Your Trash: The Huge, Hidden Landfills of the Columbia River Gorge
  • SolarWorld: We’ll Rehire 200, Ramp Up Production after Trade Ruling
  • Microsoft Makes a ‘Crazy’ Bet on Fuel Cells to Feed Power-Hungry Data Centers
  • Nebraska: Wind Energy & Public Power Ownership Bring Out Strong Opinions at State Capitol
  • Want to Understand ‘Smart’ Electric Technologies? Benton PUD Has a Meeting for That
  • Carbon Tax War among Conservatives Heats Up
  • Charging Cars – Volkswagen Settlement Provides Funding Opportunities for Electric Utilities
  • Verizon Says Some Cut-Off Rural Customers Can Stay, But They Must Ditch Unlimited Data Plans
  • NoaNet & COS Systems Partners to Support Mason PUD 3 in Major Fiber Expansion
  • Charter Blasted for Awful Service in Wake of Hurricane Irma
  • Electric Cooperatives Stepping in to Fill the Rural Broadband Gap
  • Apple Switching from Bing to Google Search Results for Siri, Spotlight Queries
  • With Its First Campaign, Verizon’s Oath Promises Brand Safety & Scale
  • Cautionary Tale: KB Home to Cut CEO’s Bonus after His Rant against Kathy Griffin
  • Russians Tried to Hack Washington State Elections, Feds Say
  • Communications Tactics You Should Be Using Internally to Help Your Own Team
  • Silverdale: Microsoft Opens Mysterious Office in Small Town a Ferry Ride Away from Seattle
  • Look, It’s Heidi – 40/40: Local Hometown Booster & Banking On Future
  • Portland on Short List to Get a Major League Baseball Team
WORD OF THE DAY

Legerity ● /luh-JAIR-uh-tee/ ● Noun – Alert facile quickness of mind or body.

Brad’s court vision was amazing. His legerity was eerily supernatural. It helped that his conscious mind was one second ahead of his corporeal being.

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Residential Electricity Prices Up 3% in First Half of 2017 (U-S Energy Information Administration)

Cowlitz PUD Considers 2.5-Percent Rate Hike (Longview Daily News, WA)

Columbia River PUD to Change Office Hours for 2018 (St Helens Chronicle, OR)

Puerto Rico Power Grid ‘Devastated’ by Maria, Says Local Utility CEO (Utility Dive)

Puerto Rico Dam Holding; Some Local Officials Say Threat Overblown (USA Today)

Puerto Rico’s Best Hope for Keeping the Lights On (Slate Magazine)

Canada Has Too Much Clean Electricity. Anybody Want It? (E&E Publishing)

Utilities Will Spend Billions on Cybersecurity as Threat Grows (Forbes Magazine)

When One Power Company Got a Letter from a Little Girl Asking for a Hamster, It Did the Right Thing (Mashable)

FISH & WILDLIFE

Surplus Hatchery Salmon Released Into Northern Idaho Creek (Associated Press)

Monarch Butterflies Might Vanish from Pacific Northwest Summers (Seattle Times, WA – Paywall Advisory)

Evidence of Invasive Grass Carp Signals Threat to Lake Erie (Associated Press)

ENVIRONMENTAL FOOT LOCKER

Competing for Your Trash: The Huge, Hidden Landfills of the Columbia River Gorge (Northwest Public Radio)

RENEWABLE ENERGY & SELF STORAGE

SolarWorld: We’ll Rehire 200, Ramp Up Production after Trade Ruling (Portland Business Journal, OR)

Microsoft Makes a ‘Crazy’ Bet on Fuel Cells to Feed Power-Hungry Data Centers (Seattle Times, WA – Paywall Advisory)

Nebraska: Wind Energy & Public Power Ownership Bring Out Strong Opinions at State Capitol (Omaha World-Herald, NE)

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Want to Understand ‘Smart’ Electric Technologies? Benton PUD Has a Meeting for That (Tri-City Herald, Kennewick, WA)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Carbon Tax War among Conservatives Heats Up (Washington Examiner)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI – SEETHING STEW OF SCIENCE

Charging Cars – Volkswagen Settlement Provides Funding Opportunities for Electric Utilities (JDSupra)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Verizon Says Some Cut-Off Rural Customers Can Stay, But They Must Ditch Unlimited Data Plans (Consumerist)

NoaNet & COS Systems Partners to Support Mason PUD 3 in Major Fiber Expansion (Fiber Broadband Association)

Charter Blasted for Awful Service in Wake of Hurricane Irma (Broadband Reports)

Electric Cooperatives Stepping in to Fill the Rural Broadband Gap (Cellular News)

MARKETING & MEDIA

Apple Switching from Bing to Google Search Results for Siri, Spotlight Queries (Consumerist)

With Its First Campaign, Verizon’s Oath Promises Brand Safety & Scale (AdWeek)

Cautionary Tale: KB Home to Cut CEO’s Bonus after His Rant against Kathy Griffin (NY Times)

GOVERNANCE & MANAGEMENT

Russians Tried to Hack Washington State Elections, Feds Say (KIRO Broadcasting, Seattle, WA)

Communications Tactics You Should Be Using Internally to Help Your Own Team (AdWeek)

GENERAL NEWS

Silverdale: Microsoft Opens Mysterious Office in Small Town a Ferry Ride Away from Seattle (GeekWire)

Look, It’s Heidi – 40/40: Local Hometown Booster & Banking On Future (South Sound Business Examiner)

Portland on Short List to Get a Major League Baseball Team (Oregonian, Portland)

COOL AS THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PILLOW – DIVERSIONS

How Air-Conditioning Invented the Modern World

After 60 Year Ban – Caffeinated Soda Now on Sale at Brigham Young University

Coffee Sold in California Could Carry Cancer Warning Labels

The Reich Fit - Adolf Hitler’s Underpants Sold for £5,000 at an Auction in the US

SONG OF THE DAY

Kool & the Gang – Too Hot

SUBSCRIBE TO THE ENERGY NEWS DIGEST

To subscribe, email jmyer@masonpud3.org.

GET SOCIAL WITH THE NEWS DIGEST

The Energy News Digest is on Facebook.

Follow the news digest on Twitter for breaking news & notices.

LINKS & PAYWALL ADVISORY

Links in the news digest lead to current stories. Media organizations update their websites regularly, which may result in broken links. There may be paywall barriers, unless you are willing to fork over some dough or if you have a clean browser history.