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.
WORD OF THE DAY
Terrestrial • \tuh-RESS-tree-ul\ • adjective – 1a: of or relating to the earth or its inhabitants b: mundane in scope or character: prosaic 2a: of or relating to land as distinct from air or water *b: living on or in or growing from land
“Golly mister,” the adenoidal fan-boy said to the green-skinned visitor, “are you an extra-terrestrial.” “No sonny,” the visitor squeaked, his antenna swiveling. “I’m the only one.”
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Former PacifCorp Exec – BPA adds Anita Decker as chief operating officer (Portland Business Journal)
http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/10/08/daily17.html
Bonneville cleanup targets 'hot spots' – In 1969, workers disposed of three old electrical capacitors by simply shoving them into the Columbia River. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2007/10/10112007_Bonneville-cleanup--targets-hot-spots.cfm
BPA is in this report – Joint Statement of Henry M. Paulson, Jr., Secretary of the Treasury, And Jim Nussle, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, on Budget Results for Fiscal Year 2007 (US Treasury – Scroll down to see summary of Bonneville Power Administration results)
http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/hp603.htm
Kittitas Co. going to court to block wind farm near Ellensburg – Kittitas County officials have decided to appeal Gov. Chris Gregoire's approval of a wind farm 12 miles northwest of town, saying it would be too close to homes and a blight on the rural landscape. (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/335056_windfarm11.html?source=rss
Recall Charges Filed Against Kittitas County Commissioners – The debate over wind farms in Kittitas County has taken a new turn. A local man files charges against all three Kittitas County Commissioners to have them removed from office. (KNDO-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=7198044
Seattle Times Guest columnist – (Governor’s) Decision on wind farm sets a dangerous precedent
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003940563_windfarm11.html
Natural gas price dip likely won’t last – Natural gas customers had better enjoy the drop in their bills this winter, because the rate relief probably won't last. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/240596.html
Meanwhile, Natural gas supply good -- for now, but LNG terminal needed – Officials say the natural gas supply in Washington is good - at least for this winter. (The Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/240880.html
Rail line into Montana coal country gets OK from feds (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/display_article/308577/6/ARTCL/Display/none/Rail-line-into-Montana-coal-country-gets-OK-from-feds/
Port Angeles City Council moves ahead with sale of city light building (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3167
West Virginia – PSC can't determine cause of deadly Canaan Valley explosion. A cracked pipeline caused a deadly natural gas explosion that killed four men at a Canaan Valley home building site in April 2006, according to a state Public Service Commission report. (Charleston Daily Mail)
http://dailymail.com/static/apnews/?story=ap0016r.php
Michigan – Electrical workers say no to DTE pact. Rejection could start clock on strike deadline at energy supplier's plants, including Fermi II and Monroe. (The Detroit News)
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071010/BIZ/710100390
Illinois – Ameren unveils its ‘real-time’ power plan. Residential customers of AmerenCIPS, AmerenIP and AmerenCILCO have the option of enrolling in a “real-time pricing” program, which would let them pay hourly, market-based prices for electricity instead of traditional flat rates. (Springfield Journal Record)
http://www.sj-r.com/News/stories/17849.asp
Ohio Supreme Court hears AEP/PUCO case – The Supreme Court of Ohio is considering an appeal from the Ohio Consumers' Counsel asking that nearly $24 million American Electric Power Company Inc. charged to Ohio customers between 2006 and 2007 be returned. (Columbus Business First)
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/10/08/daily21.html?ana=from_rss
Regulator's discussions about KCP&L rate case violated Missouri law, watchdog says (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgehioqlTTeb%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
Pelosi Plans Informal Negotiations on Energy Bill – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told key committee chairmen yesterday that she does not plan to convene a formal conference committee on an energy bill but that informal negotiations will be held to produce a final measure. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/10/AR2007101002399.html?nav=rss_politics
EPA Joins Settlement of Lawsuit but Adds a Waiver – Although the Environmental Protection Agency joined in a legal settlement this week to force the largest power-plant pollution cleanup in U.S. history, the Bush administration signaled in the agreement that it has no intention of taking enforcement actions against the utility for the same kind of Clean Air Act violations in the future. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/10/AR2007101002389.html?nav=rss_business
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
New danger to Puget Sound orcas – Government biologists say a new threat to Puget Sound orcas comes from our computers, our clothes, or even your TV. (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/10439367.html
Samish Tribe tries to regain fishing rights it lost 2 decades ago – The Samish Tribe was back in federal court Wednesday, arguing for a motion to revisit a landmark ruling that stripped the Northwest tribe of its fishing rights more than 25 years ago. (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/335064_samish11.html
River fishing slows; chum trickle into Hood Canal, South Sound – Fishing slowed in southwest Washington rivers this week compared with the previous week, but overall fishing continues to be fair. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/240573.html
Columbia River Gorge's poor air quality fuels alarm – Gorge air is still grimy, gritty and hazy, while the pollution solution is needlessly evasive. It doesn't require a plume of black smoke visible from Vancouver to determine there's an air pollution problem in the Columbia River Gorge. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/opinion/news/2007/10/10102007_Gorges-poor-air-quality-fuels-alarm.cfm?newsletter=1
Court reversal: Water will flow to Eastside farmland; city to appeal – A Douglas County judge changed his mind Friday and will allow the East Wenatchee Water District to expand into 4,000 rural acres several miles east of East Wenatchee, but the city plans to appeal the ruling. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071010/NEWS04/710100042/1001
Congressional Research Reports – Safe Drinking Water Act: Selected Regulatory and Legislative Issues
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL34201
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Oregon – How pure is your power? Turbines - Forest Grove Light & Power lets customers buy electricity generated by the wind (The Forest Grove News-Times)
http://www.forestgrovenewstimes.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=119205113796274400
Ethanol push could threaten water supplies – When it comes to solving the fossil fuel crisis, it seems like every silver lining comes accompanied by a dark cloud. (The Associated Press, via Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071010.wethanol1010/BNStory/Science/home
Students compete to design solar homes – Full-size 'Solar Decathlon' entries populate Washington's Mall Oct. 12-19. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1011/p13s02-sten.html
CONSERVATION
Canada – Deregulation trashes conservation (Edmonton Sun)
http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2007/10/11/4566947-sun.html
Pennsylvania – Who will pull plug on electric use? With electricity bills across most of Pennsylvania set to jump in a couple years when rate caps expire, a scramble is on at the Capitol to see how that might be averted. (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/newstex/AFX-0013-19947661.htm
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Calculating the carbon cost of more lanes of Seattle freeway – Environmentalists like those of the Sierra Club aren't happy about the pavement portion of Proposition 1, the $17 billion roads-and-transit measure on the November ballot. So in terms of the carbon footprint, how bad is it? (Crosscut)
http://crosscut.com/transportation/8130/Calculating+the+carbon+cost+of+more+lanes+of+freeway/
British Columbia to legislate greenhouse gas limits – The B.C. government will turn its promise to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into law over the next year, including legislated limits for industrial emitters, Premier Gordon Campbell announced recently. (The Golden Star)
http://www.thegoldenstar.net/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=100&cat=48&id=1079675&more=0
Michigan – Environmentalists demand state regulate CO2 emissions – The Consumers Energy Co. plant near Lake Michigan released more than 9 million tons of the greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, last year -- the second most of any facility in the state, federal reports show. (grand Rapids Press)
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2007/10/environmentalists_demand_state.html
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
(AOL Ad Trial) E-Mails in First Trial May Haunt Johnson – Three weeks into the trial of technology company executives who allegedly engaged in sham advertising deals, prosecutors pulled aside defense lawyer Preston Burton and told him he had a problem. E-mails produced by his client apparently had been fabricated (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/10/AR2007101002444.html?nav=rss_business
Blazingly Fast Internet2 Gets 10x Boost – The ultrahigh-speed Internet2 network just got 10 times faster, partly in anticipation of rising demand for capacity after the world's largest particle collider opens near Geneva next year. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/10/10/financial/f131648D99.DTL&feed=rss.news
GENERAL NEWS
Washington 11th best in U.S. for taxes, says study (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2007/10/08/daily19.html?ana=from_rss
Icing likely didn't cause Kapowsin crash, says investigator – A state official says there's no indication that ice built up on the wings of a plane that crashed in the Cascades, killing 10. (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071011/NEWS01/710110062&news01ad=1
Schools honored by state (Seattle P-I – includes Grapeview Elementary & Middle Schools)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334974_schools11.html
City audit finds a backdoor to some hiring by Portland – About one in 20 Portland workers gets hired through a mix of special methods that avoids open competition for jobs meant to improve civil service (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1192067724247030.xml&coll=7
With $390 million lost, no day trader has ever had a day as bad as this – Morgan Stanley, the world’s second- biggest securities firm, said Wednesday that its quantitative-strategy traders lost $390 million on a single day in August as their computer models failed to account for “widespread” investor selling. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/176448.html
DIVERSIONS
Misleading Headline Alert! – Beatles reunited online as Harrison goes digital
http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyid=2007-10-10T195958Z_01_L10124019_RTRUKOC_0_US-HARRISON.xml&src=nl_ustechnology
Hungry 6-Year-Old Tries To Drive To Restaurant – In the process he hit a transformer cutting power to dozens of townhouses
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14310738/detail.html
HOPEFULLY THERE IS NO CURARE INVOLVED – Police believe other pedestrians in Chehalis may have been targeted with blow darts. Three Twin City teens were arrested after an adult and a girl were struck while walking in separate areas of town. Police say it appears the trio was randomly shooting at people while in a passing car. The girl required medical attention after being struck in the leg. KELA Radio, Centralia/Chehalis)
In soup-kitchen freezers, more meat from hunters
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20071011/ts_csm/ahunters
“Hammer Time” follow up – Comcast Guide To Handling Irate Customers (Broadband Reports – Note: comments may include PG-13 language)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Comcast-Guide-To-Handling-Irate-Customers-88312
Furniture beware! Judge allows California cities to ban cat declawing
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/11/BA4MSO436.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
News Digest for October 10, 2007
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.
WORD OF THE DAY
Betwixt • \bih-TWIKST\ • adverb or preposition – between
Isn’t it redundant, superfluous, and repetitious to say something is betwixt and between?
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Tacoma foundry blast may delay Stehekin turbine job – Fallout from Sunday's dramatic tanker-truck explosion at a Tacoma foundry will be felt as far away as the remote town of Stehekin on the northwest tip of Lake Chelan, a Chelan County PUD official said Monday. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071009/NEWS04/710090031/1001
News Tribune Opinion – Basalt + CO2 = clean coal? Let’s hope so. Coal-burning power plants would not seem to have a bright future in a world worried about global warming.
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/175336.html
Utah – Groups appeal plant expansion. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to let a coal-fired power plant expand has three conservation groups appealing the permit (Casper Star-Tribune)
http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2007/10/10/news/regional/8eeccabece9bedab8725736f0073d0eb.txt
EPA's record settlement with utility could lead to other deals – AEP agreed Tuesday to spend $4.6 billion to install pollution controls on 16 power plants. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1010/p25s04-usgn.html
News Release – More Americans Support Building Power Plants According to New Survey from Saint Consulting. Data Also Shows Wind Farms Most Preferred Power Plant (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071010/20071010005919.html?.v=1
British Columbia – Hydro rates could get big boost, one expert fears fees could go up by 15%. Nanaimo's Ian Gartshore is concerned electrical rates for B.C. Hydro's residential customers could be hiked 10 times higher than what was originally recommended. (Times-Colonist, Victoria, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=0e29ca70-984a-4070-9878-e4e2d6695035&k=17141
Snoqualmie Pass junction boxes welded shut to stop copper theft (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-981285~Snoqualmie_Pass_junction_boxes_welded_shut_to_stop_copper_theft.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
California – City repairs traffic signal after thieves steal wire. Police say metal thefts damage lights, cause traffic congestion and high repair bill (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_7135476?nclick_check=1
Aquila shareholders vote for sale to Great Plains (Kansas City Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2007/10/08/daily15.html?ana=from_rss
Report shows industry ramping up debit and credit card acceptance options – With consumers increasingly using credit and debit for everyday purchases, utilities are pumping up electronic options to cater to "generation plastic" (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/307446/22/ARTCL/none/none/Report-shows-industry-ramping-up-debit-and-credit-card-acceptance-options/
Willamette Week “Murmurs” – Some mid-level staff shuffling in Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s office. The guv’s energy adviser, Peter Cogswell , leaves for the Bonneville Power Administration; Kulongoski’s general counsel, David Reese , will take a post at Portland State University. And his transportation advisor, Chris Warner , heads off to the Oregon Department of Transportation. A gubernatorial spokesperson says no replacements have been named yet.
North Carolina – Celebrating public power: Kinston utility officials have planned a number of ways to reach out to the community this week as the city observes Public Power Week. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarkets.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgefowsrXSmk%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
Game Maker Joins Forces With Energy Company – Marking a new form of collaboration between the entertainment industry and corporations seeking to highlight a social or political agenda, Electronic Arts, the No. 1 video game publisher, plans to announce today that it has collaborated with BP, the energy company, in developing the latest installment of the hit SimCity computer game series. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/arts/10sims.html?_r=1&ex=1349755200&en=68ca80dbc80703fe&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Fisheries service endorses recovery plan – Federal authorities have released a final plan for restoring populations of Chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout on the upper Columbia River. (The Associated Press, via the News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/175348.html
Oregon fisheries must take new look at Coho – A federal judge Tuesday smacked down an attempt by Oregon and the federal government to keep the Oregon coast coho salmon off the endangered species list. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191984941137200.xml&coll=7
Hunting and fishing debated as ecotourism activities – Sustainability is the key, tour operators in Canada and the U.S. say However: “…Hunting tourism and ecotourism are two different market segments of the tourism pie and should not be confused with each other…” (Times-Colonist, Victoria, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=897379c8-7e9d-438c-af5e-5c4752b4c749&k=86458
In the shadow of Celilo – New trails and restored petroglyphs reawaken a spiritual site near The Dalles (Eugene Register Guard)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?mid=206
Supreme Court hears sewer project dispute – Costly legal disputes left over from the $12 million sewer-installation project in downtown Olympia six years ago went before the state Supreme Court on Tuesday. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/239631.html
Fed funds to help Waterville look for more water – The town of Waterville was named for the discovery of water in 1886, but having enough has been a repeated theme throughout much of its history. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071009/NEWS04/710090032/1001
California – Water district sues pair over diplomas. The Fair Oaks Water District has sued two of its former senior managers, saying they misused $1,200 in public money to buy bachelor's degrees from an online diploma mill, then used the credentials to get thousands more in bonuses and pay raises. (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/424010.html
Bumblebees Make Sudden Disappearance (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/bumblebees-make-sudden-disappearance/
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
PacifiCorp to invest another $100 million in wind (The Oregonian)
http://blog.oregonlive.com/business/2007/10/pacificorp_to_invest_another_1.html
News Release – BPA adds more clean, carbon-free energy to its federal power portfolio
Agency to buy 50 megawatts of wind capacity from Klondike III project (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/177682/
Region's wind farms gathering force – PacifiCorp will expand its facility, PGE will start running its farm soon, and BPA makes a deal to buy wind energy (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1191986710187180.xml&coll=7
Compressed Air – Catching The Wind In A Bottle. A group of Midwest utilities is building a plant that will store excess wind power underground (Business Week)
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_41/b4053092.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – U.S. mobilization needed on energy. Co-written by Rep. Jay Inslee, "Apollo's Fire: Igniting America's Clean Energy Economy" celebrates the drive and ingenuity of grass-roots Americans while damning the lethargy of the federal government.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/334892_joel10.html?source=rss
Silicon firm to expand northward – A fast-growing Vancouver silicon firm has announced plans to expand its manufacturing operations north into Cowlitz County. (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2007/10/10092007_Silicon-firm-to-expand-northward.cfm
CONSERVATION
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Recommends Easy, Inexpensive Steps to Save Energy (BusinessWire via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071009/20071009006344.html?.v=1&printer=1
Wal-Mart To Push Suppliers On Energy Efficiency (Environmental News Network)
http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/23334
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
All eyes on Calif. climate-change fight (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2007-10-09-warming-regulations_N.htm
Utah is Ground Zero for Global Warming? Really. Governor’s Blue Ribbon Panel Turns up Startling Facts — And 200 Ways to Fix the Problem (The Daily Green)
http://www.thedailygreen.com/2007/10/10/utah-is-ground-zero-for-global-warming-really/7680/
News Release – National Survey: In Age of Global Warming Politics, Consumers Dogged by 'Clueless' Factor. Role of Coal-Fired Plants in Greenhouse Gas Emissions Eludes Consumer Awareness; Auto Emissions Erroneously Blamed as Top Culprit; More Consumers Say They Want Renewable Power -- But Just What Is It? (PR Newswire, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/071009/cltu077.html?.v=96
Climate change fix raises numerous quandaries across Montana (Havre Daily News)
http://www.havredailynews.com/articles/2007/10/09/local_headlines/state.txt
Vancouver companies honored for green efforts (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2007/10/10092007_Vancouver-companies-honored-for-green-efforts.cfm?newsletter=1
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
When Does FTTH Yield Just 6Mbps? When it's AT&T's U-Verse, customers complain... (Broadband Reports – Note that there may be PG-13 language in the comment section)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/When-Does-FTTH-Yield-Just-6Mbps-88284
Montana – Communication improves in Ruby Valley. It’s been a year of major changes in telecommunications in the Ruby Valley. Since raising concerns regarding telecommunications upgrades are happening. (The Montana Standard – see if you can find the spelling error in the Butte Produce ad on this page. Oops!)
http://www.montanastandard.com/articles/2007/10/10/threerivers/hjjcijjaigfafb.txt
GENERAL NEWS
Answers sought in plane crash that killed 10 (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071010/NEWS01/710100063
FIREARMS TAKEN IN SHELTON VEHICLE PROWL – The Shelton Police Department is investigating a vehicle prowl in which three firearms were stolen. According to a news release, sometime overnight Sunday, a Remington 17HMR and two Remington 870's were taken from a vehicle in the 1600 block of Laurel Street. The vehicle was NOT locked. Now that hunting season is upon us, Police remind hunters to NEVER leave a firearm unattended in their vehicles. And remember to ALWAYS lock up your vehicle when you are away. At this time there is no suspect or witness information. If you know anything about this crime you are urged to contact Shelton Police Detectives at 426-4441. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
High Rate of Failure with Smoke Detectors Older Than 10 Years (KNDO-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=7192161
News Release – Cabela's Set to Open 1st Washington State Store in Lacey November 16, 2007. Destination superstore could become one of state's top tourist attractions (PR Newswire)
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/10-10-2007/0004679351&EDATE=
Seattle’s Recycling Success Is Being Measured in Scraps (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/us/10recycle.html?ex=1349668800&en=60163704711af23a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Vancouver Sun Columnist – Garbage strike has turned us into smugglers. The mayor says the garbage strike has made us all better recyclers. Maybe. But I'd say it's also turning us into a city of smugglers, if my experience is any guide.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=121ada0d-59db-49f7-9d32-08c6a9aae9ec&k=95690
Can Someone Cut-And-Paste Your Logo? KIRO 7 has learned that it's so easy to cut and paste online that someone can claim you as a business partner -- without you even knowing it.
http://www.kirotv.com/money/14303398/detail.html
DIVERSIONS
Traveling Salesman Donates Kidney After Learning Of Man's Illness During Sales Call
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14301356/detail.html
Man Jailed After Trying To Use $1M Bill At Grocery Store
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14301274/detail.html
Blanchett, Dench Talk of Smelly “old” England
http://www.examiner.com/a-981396~Blanchett__Dench_Talk_of_Smelly_England.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
WORD OF THE DAY
Betwixt • \bih-TWIKST\ • adverb or preposition – between
Isn’t it redundant, superfluous, and repetitious to say something is betwixt and between?
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Tacoma foundry blast may delay Stehekin turbine job – Fallout from Sunday's dramatic tanker-truck explosion at a Tacoma foundry will be felt as far away as the remote town of Stehekin on the northwest tip of Lake Chelan, a Chelan County PUD official said Monday. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071009/NEWS04/710090031/1001
News Tribune Opinion – Basalt + CO2 = clean coal? Let’s hope so. Coal-burning power plants would not seem to have a bright future in a world worried about global warming.
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/175336.html
Utah – Groups appeal plant expansion. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to let a coal-fired power plant expand has three conservation groups appealing the permit (Casper Star-Tribune)
http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2007/10/10/news/regional/8eeccabece9bedab8725736f0073d0eb.txt
EPA's record settlement with utility could lead to other deals – AEP agreed Tuesday to spend $4.6 billion to install pollution controls on 16 power plants. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1010/p25s04-usgn.html
News Release – More Americans Support Building Power Plants According to New Survey from Saint Consulting. Data Also Shows Wind Farms Most Preferred Power Plant (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071010/20071010005919.html?.v=1
British Columbia – Hydro rates could get big boost, one expert fears fees could go up by 15%. Nanaimo's Ian Gartshore is concerned electrical rates for B.C. Hydro's residential customers could be hiked 10 times higher than what was originally recommended. (Times-Colonist, Victoria, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=0e29ca70-984a-4070-9878-e4e2d6695035&k=17141
Snoqualmie Pass junction boxes welded shut to stop copper theft (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-981285~Snoqualmie_Pass_junction_boxes_welded_shut_to_stop_copper_theft.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
California – City repairs traffic signal after thieves steal wire. Police say metal thefts damage lights, cause traffic congestion and high repair bill (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_7135476?nclick_check=1
Aquila shareholders vote for sale to Great Plains (Kansas City Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2007/10/08/daily15.html?ana=from_rss
Report shows industry ramping up debit and credit card acceptance options – With consumers increasingly using credit and debit for everyday purchases, utilities are pumping up electronic options to cater to "generation plastic" (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/307446/22/ARTCL/none/none/Report-shows-industry-ramping-up-debit-and-credit-card-acceptance-options/
Willamette Week “Murmurs” – Some mid-level staff shuffling in Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s office. The guv’s energy adviser, Peter Cogswell , leaves for the Bonneville Power Administration; Kulongoski’s general counsel, David Reese , will take a post at Portland State University. And his transportation advisor, Chris Warner , heads off to the Oregon Department of Transportation. A gubernatorial spokesperson says no replacements have been named yet.
North Carolina – Celebrating public power: Kinston utility officials have planned a number of ways to reach out to the community this week as the city observes Public Power Week. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarkets.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgefowsrXSmk%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
Game Maker Joins Forces With Energy Company – Marking a new form of collaboration between the entertainment industry and corporations seeking to highlight a social or political agenda, Electronic Arts, the No. 1 video game publisher, plans to announce today that it has collaborated with BP, the energy company, in developing the latest installment of the hit SimCity computer game series. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/arts/10sims.html?_r=1&ex=1349755200&en=68ca80dbc80703fe&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Fisheries service endorses recovery plan – Federal authorities have released a final plan for restoring populations of Chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout on the upper Columbia River. (The Associated Press, via the News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/175348.html
Oregon fisheries must take new look at Coho – A federal judge Tuesday smacked down an attempt by Oregon and the federal government to keep the Oregon coast coho salmon off the endangered species list. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191984941137200.xml&coll=7
Hunting and fishing debated as ecotourism activities – Sustainability is the key, tour operators in Canada and the U.S. say However: “…Hunting tourism and ecotourism are two different market segments of the tourism pie and should not be confused with each other…” (Times-Colonist, Victoria, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=897379c8-7e9d-438c-af5e-5c4752b4c749&k=86458
In the shadow of Celilo – New trails and restored petroglyphs reawaken a spiritual site near The Dalles (Eugene Register Guard)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?mid=206
Supreme Court hears sewer project dispute – Costly legal disputes left over from the $12 million sewer-installation project in downtown Olympia six years ago went before the state Supreme Court on Tuesday. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/239631.html
Fed funds to help Waterville look for more water – The town of Waterville was named for the discovery of water in 1886, but having enough has been a repeated theme throughout much of its history. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071009/NEWS04/710090032/1001
California – Water district sues pair over diplomas. The Fair Oaks Water District has sued two of its former senior managers, saying they misused $1,200 in public money to buy bachelor's degrees from an online diploma mill, then used the credentials to get thousands more in bonuses and pay raises. (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/424010.html
Bumblebees Make Sudden Disappearance (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/bumblebees-make-sudden-disappearance/
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
PacifiCorp to invest another $100 million in wind (The Oregonian)
http://blog.oregonlive.com/business/2007/10/pacificorp_to_invest_another_1.html
News Release – BPA adds more clean, carbon-free energy to its federal power portfolio
Agency to buy 50 megawatts of wind capacity from Klondike III project (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/177682/
Region's wind farms gathering force – PacifiCorp will expand its facility, PGE will start running its farm soon, and BPA makes a deal to buy wind energy (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1191986710187180.xml&coll=7
Compressed Air – Catching The Wind In A Bottle. A group of Midwest utilities is building a plant that will store excess wind power underground (Business Week)
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_41/b4053092.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – U.S. mobilization needed on energy. Co-written by Rep. Jay Inslee, "Apollo's Fire: Igniting America's Clean Energy Economy" celebrates the drive and ingenuity of grass-roots Americans while damning the lethargy of the federal government.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/334892_joel10.html?source=rss
Silicon firm to expand northward – A fast-growing Vancouver silicon firm has announced plans to expand its manufacturing operations north into Cowlitz County. (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2007/10/10092007_Silicon-firm-to-expand-northward.cfm
CONSERVATION
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Recommends Easy, Inexpensive Steps to Save Energy (BusinessWire via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071009/20071009006344.html?.v=1&printer=1
Wal-Mart To Push Suppliers On Energy Efficiency (Environmental News Network)
http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/23334
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
All eyes on Calif. climate-change fight (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2007-10-09-warming-regulations_N.htm
Utah is Ground Zero for Global Warming? Really. Governor’s Blue Ribbon Panel Turns up Startling Facts — And 200 Ways to Fix the Problem (The Daily Green)
http://www.thedailygreen.com/2007/10/10/utah-is-ground-zero-for-global-warming-really/7680/
News Release – National Survey: In Age of Global Warming Politics, Consumers Dogged by 'Clueless' Factor. Role of Coal-Fired Plants in Greenhouse Gas Emissions Eludes Consumer Awareness; Auto Emissions Erroneously Blamed as Top Culprit; More Consumers Say They Want Renewable Power -- But Just What Is It? (PR Newswire, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/071009/cltu077.html?.v=96
Climate change fix raises numerous quandaries across Montana (Havre Daily News)
http://www.havredailynews.com/articles/2007/10/09/local_headlines/state.txt
Vancouver companies honored for green efforts (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2007/10/10092007_Vancouver-companies-honored-for-green-efforts.cfm?newsletter=1
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
When Does FTTH Yield Just 6Mbps? When it's AT&T's U-Verse, customers complain... (Broadband Reports – Note that there may be PG-13 language in the comment section)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/When-Does-FTTH-Yield-Just-6Mbps-88284
Montana – Communication improves in Ruby Valley. It’s been a year of major changes in telecommunications in the Ruby Valley. Since raising concerns regarding telecommunications upgrades are happening. (The Montana Standard – see if you can find the spelling error in the Butte Produce ad on this page. Oops!)
http://www.montanastandard.com/articles/2007/10/10/threerivers/hjjcijjaigfafb.txt
GENERAL NEWS
Answers sought in plane crash that killed 10 (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071010/NEWS01/710100063
FIREARMS TAKEN IN SHELTON VEHICLE PROWL – The Shelton Police Department is investigating a vehicle prowl in which three firearms were stolen. According to a news release, sometime overnight Sunday, a Remington 17HMR and two Remington 870's were taken from a vehicle in the 1600 block of Laurel Street. The vehicle was NOT locked. Now that hunting season is upon us, Police remind hunters to NEVER leave a firearm unattended in their vehicles. And remember to ALWAYS lock up your vehicle when you are away. At this time there is no suspect or witness information. If you know anything about this crime you are urged to contact Shelton Police Detectives at 426-4441. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
High Rate of Failure with Smoke Detectors Older Than 10 Years (KNDO-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=7192161
News Release – Cabela's Set to Open 1st Washington State Store in Lacey November 16, 2007. Destination superstore could become one of state's top tourist attractions (PR Newswire)
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/10-10-2007/0004679351&EDATE=
Seattle’s Recycling Success Is Being Measured in Scraps (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/us/10recycle.html?ex=1349668800&en=60163704711af23a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Vancouver Sun Columnist – Garbage strike has turned us into smugglers. The mayor says the garbage strike has made us all better recyclers. Maybe. But I'd say it's also turning us into a city of smugglers, if my experience is any guide.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=121ada0d-59db-49f7-9d32-08c6a9aae9ec&k=95690
Can Someone Cut-And-Paste Your Logo? KIRO 7 has learned that it's so easy to cut and paste online that someone can claim you as a business partner -- without you even knowing it.
http://www.kirotv.com/money/14303398/detail.html
DIVERSIONS
Traveling Salesman Donates Kidney After Learning Of Man's Illness During Sales Call
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14301356/detail.html
Man Jailed After Trying To Use $1M Bill At Grocery Store
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14301274/detail.html
Blanchett, Dench Talk of Smelly “old” England
http://www.examiner.com/a-981396~Blanchett__Dench_Talk_of_Smelly_England.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
News Digest for October 9, 2007
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.
WORD OF THE DAY
Jactitation • \jak-tuh-TAY-shun\ • noun – A tossing to and fro or jerking and twitching of the body
“What a groovy, ginchy party,” panted Daisy to her date. It was a dream encounter: a great band, flashing lights and pulsing bass…her date was everything she had hoped for. That is, until they started dancing. His moves were better described as wild jactitation, which nearly sent two party-goers to the hospital for eye injuries. “Can I call you again?” he asked at the end of the evening. “Not until you get a subscription for Requip,” she responded.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Warm winter predicted across most of United States (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2007-10-09-winter-prediction_N.htm?csp=34
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Heating Costs to Jump This Winter – U.S. households that depend on heating oil will see costs jump sharply this winter, while those using natural gas will experience more moderate price increases, the government said Tuesday. Electricity will cost 2 percent more (Associated Press via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/10/09/financial/f072926D17.DTL&feed=rss.business
Jack Welch, former (Grays Harbor County) PUD commissioner, dies at 88 – Jack Welch, former PUD Commissioner and Washington Public Power Supply System official, died Sunday night at Channel Point in Hoquiam, surrounded by family. He was 88. (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2007/10/08/local_news/03news.txt
Public Power Week – Franklin PUD Gives Away Fluorescent Light Bulbs (KVEW-TV, Kennewick)
http://www.kvewtv.com/news/?sect_rank=1§ion_id=1&story_id=3566
Near the Snoqualmie Summit – Copper wire thieves disable state highway signs, safety lighting (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10092007news211329.cfm
Germany – Shock burns cable thief beyond recognition (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0824316120071008?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Colorado – Utility offers education to reduce snagging of power lines by trucks (Glenwood Springs Post-Independent)
http://www.postindependent.com/article/20071009/VALLEYNEWS/110090029
Big Utility Says It Will Settle 8-Year-Old Pollution Suit – American Electric Power, one of the nation’s largest utilities, is expected to announce that it has reached an agreement to settle a long-running lawsuit over emissions from its coal-fired power plants. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/business/09power.html?ex=1349582400&en=5bbea2ff48acde6b&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Convicted Dynegy exec wants retrial – Jamie Olis claims prosecutors 'stacked the scales ' when he was sentenced to six years on fraud charges. (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/08/news/companies/dynegy_exec.ap/index.htm?section=money_news_companies
Market fix rests on bright ideas – If Texas' deregulated electricity market is broken enough to need fixing -- and that's debated -- will it take a few drops of solder or a full-scale rewiring? (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgdmpnmpZSlj%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Canada – Rivers Inlet mystery: What happened to the sockeye? (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/editorial/story.html?id=76f86c85-ea55-4770-8f29-d91864830209
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Green power a new clean mantra in Silicon Valley – Like any industry worth its lobbyists, Silicon Valley pushes hard for the legislation it wants. And this year, it wants a new federal energy law. A climate change law, too. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/09/BUATSM699.DTL&feed=rss.business
Pond Scum! The right way to grow fuel – The new ethanol plant at Boardman is a welcome arrival, but it will be "greener" if it converts from the use of food crops (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/editorials/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1191893107139760.xml&coll=7
CONSERVATION
Report questions Energy Star labels – The credibility of blue Energy Star labels that consumers use to identify energy efficient TVs and other home electronics could be damaged because many products are tested in standby mode rather than when turned on (Vancouver Sun, BC)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=d078b496-9138-4531-9598-7bc2574f94e9
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Obama Proposes Capping Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Making Polluters Pay (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/us/politics/09obama.html?ex=1349582400&en=188e60c7f6bf3845&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Internet's creators say it's outdated; offer remedies (the Wall Street Journal, via the Lincoln Journal-Star)
http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2007/10/09/news/business/doc4706b4a2d156e555137305.txt
A Settlement by Vonage Over Patents – Vonage, the Internet phone-calling pioneer, has settled its patent dispute with Sprint Nextel for $80 million and agreed to license Sprint’s Internet-calling technology, the two companies said yesterday. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/business/09vonage.html?ex=1349582400&en=f7a7a145be773c5f&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
NO SURVIVORS IN CENTRAL WASHINGTON CRASH OF SHELTON-BASED AIRPLANE – At least seven people were found dead in the wreckage of a Shelton-based plane carrying 10 people that crashed in the Cascade mountains. Ground searchers followed the smell of fuel yesterday and found the wreckage of the plane carrying nine skydivers and a pilot. Emergency officials say seven bodies had been found by late last night, and the search resumed today. Jim Hall, director of Yakima Valley Emergency Management, says all aboard died in the crash Based on radar transmissions and a hunter's report of seeing a plane flying low Sunday evening and then hearing a crash, the search was focused on a steep, densely forested area near White Pass, about 45 miles west of Yakima. The plane was registered to Kapowsin Air Sports. But the nine passengers were associated with a skydiving company called Skydive Snohomish. They were returning from a gathering of skydivers in Idaho when the plane disappeared. Names of the victims have not been released; however their families have been notified. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash.
Effort under way to recover 10 bodies from Cascade plane crash (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-979302~Effort_under_way_to_recover_10_bodies_from_Cascade_plane_crash.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
Gas leak blamed for blast – Investigators point to faulty hose or connectors between truck, tank. Tacoma Fire Department investigators said Monday that faulty hoses or faulty connections between stationary propane tanks and a delivery truck likely caused “a very significant leak” that led to devastating explosions Saturday at a Tacoma foundry. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/174395.html
Escape attempt thwarted at Washington State pen – An escape attempt at the Washington State Penitentiary ended when a guard fired a warning shot into the air. (Associated Press via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10092007news211549.cfm
Young man setting off fireworks blamed for big Spokane fire – A young man setting off fireworks has been blamed for a massive fire that destroyed a fuel distribution center in Spokane. (Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/238618.html
Lying Legally, and the Right to Speech – Last week, the Washington State Supreme Court struck down a 1999 law that banned political candidates from lying about their opponents. In the decision, the majority said the law was an affront to free speech. (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15100964&ft=1&f=2
DIVERSIONS
Taking a hammer to Comcast – "What the hell, I'm 75," said Bristow resident Mona Shaw about heading into the Comcast office in Manassas with a hammer and using it on a telephone and computer keyboard, after trying for days to have her phone service connected. Shaw was arrested for disorderly conduct after she took a hammer to several items in the office - all the while saying, "Have I got your attention now?" (Northern Virginia.com)
http://www.insidenova.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=ISN/MGArticle/WPN_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1173353015622
Man sentenced in "pride" killing of ostrich
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN0625560220071008?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Golden retriever nurses stray kitten
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071009/NEWS02/710090072/-1/RSS01
A bad relationship can cause heart attack?
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0824271720071009?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
WORD OF THE DAY
Jactitation • \jak-tuh-TAY-shun\ • noun – A tossing to and fro or jerking and twitching of the body
“What a groovy, ginchy party,” panted Daisy to her date. It was a dream encounter: a great band, flashing lights and pulsing bass…her date was everything she had hoped for. That is, until they started dancing. His moves were better described as wild jactitation, which nearly sent two party-goers to the hospital for eye injuries. “Can I call you again?” he asked at the end of the evening. “Not until you get a subscription for Requip,” she responded.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Warm winter predicted across most of United States (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2007-10-09-winter-prediction_N.htm?csp=34
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Heating Costs to Jump This Winter – U.S. households that depend on heating oil will see costs jump sharply this winter, while those using natural gas will experience more moderate price increases, the government said Tuesday. Electricity will cost 2 percent more (Associated Press via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/10/09/financial/f072926D17.DTL&feed=rss.business
Jack Welch, former (Grays Harbor County) PUD commissioner, dies at 88 – Jack Welch, former PUD Commissioner and Washington Public Power Supply System official, died Sunday night at Channel Point in Hoquiam, surrounded by family. He was 88. (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2007/10/08/local_news/03news.txt
Public Power Week – Franklin PUD Gives Away Fluorescent Light Bulbs (KVEW-TV, Kennewick)
http://www.kvewtv.com/news/?sect_rank=1§ion_id=1&story_id=3566
Near the Snoqualmie Summit – Copper wire thieves disable state highway signs, safety lighting (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10092007news211329.cfm
Germany – Shock burns cable thief beyond recognition (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0824316120071008?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Colorado – Utility offers education to reduce snagging of power lines by trucks (Glenwood Springs Post-Independent)
http://www.postindependent.com/article/20071009/VALLEYNEWS/110090029
Big Utility Says It Will Settle 8-Year-Old Pollution Suit – American Electric Power, one of the nation’s largest utilities, is expected to announce that it has reached an agreement to settle a long-running lawsuit over emissions from its coal-fired power plants. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/business/09power.html?ex=1349582400&en=5bbea2ff48acde6b&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Convicted Dynegy exec wants retrial – Jamie Olis claims prosecutors 'stacked the scales ' when he was sentenced to six years on fraud charges. (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/08/news/companies/dynegy_exec.ap/index.htm?section=money_news_companies
Market fix rests on bright ideas – If Texas' deregulated electricity market is broken enough to need fixing -- and that's debated -- will it take a few drops of solder or a full-scale rewiring? (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgdmpnmpZSlj%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Canada – Rivers Inlet mystery: What happened to the sockeye? (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/editorial/story.html?id=76f86c85-ea55-4770-8f29-d91864830209
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Green power a new clean mantra in Silicon Valley – Like any industry worth its lobbyists, Silicon Valley pushes hard for the legislation it wants. And this year, it wants a new federal energy law. A climate change law, too. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/09/BUATSM699.DTL&feed=rss.business
Pond Scum! The right way to grow fuel – The new ethanol plant at Boardman is a welcome arrival, but it will be "greener" if it converts from the use of food crops (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/editorials/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1191893107139760.xml&coll=7
CONSERVATION
Report questions Energy Star labels – The credibility of blue Energy Star labels that consumers use to identify energy efficient TVs and other home electronics could be damaged because many products are tested in standby mode rather than when turned on (Vancouver Sun, BC)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=d078b496-9138-4531-9598-7bc2574f94e9
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Obama Proposes Capping Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Making Polluters Pay (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/us/politics/09obama.html?ex=1349582400&en=188e60c7f6bf3845&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Internet's creators say it's outdated; offer remedies (the Wall Street Journal, via the Lincoln Journal-Star)
http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2007/10/09/news/business/doc4706b4a2d156e555137305.txt
A Settlement by Vonage Over Patents – Vonage, the Internet phone-calling pioneer, has settled its patent dispute with Sprint Nextel for $80 million and agreed to license Sprint’s Internet-calling technology, the two companies said yesterday. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/business/09vonage.html?ex=1349582400&en=f7a7a145be773c5f&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
NO SURVIVORS IN CENTRAL WASHINGTON CRASH OF SHELTON-BASED AIRPLANE – At least seven people were found dead in the wreckage of a Shelton-based plane carrying 10 people that crashed in the Cascade mountains. Ground searchers followed the smell of fuel yesterday and found the wreckage of the plane carrying nine skydivers and a pilot. Emergency officials say seven bodies had been found by late last night, and the search resumed today. Jim Hall, director of Yakima Valley Emergency Management, says all aboard died in the crash Based on radar transmissions and a hunter's report of seeing a plane flying low Sunday evening and then hearing a crash, the search was focused on a steep, densely forested area near White Pass, about 45 miles west of Yakima. The plane was registered to Kapowsin Air Sports. But the nine passengers were associated with a skydiving company called Skydive Snohomish. They were returning from a gathering of skydivers in Idaho when the plane disappeared. Names of the victims have not been released; however their families have been notified. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash.
Effort under way to recover 10 bodies from Cascade plane crash (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-979302~Effort_under_way_to_recover_10_bodies_from_Cascade_plane_crash.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
Gas leak blamed for blast – Investigators point to faulty hose or connectors between truck, tank. Tacoma Fire Department investigators said Monday that faulty hoses or faulty connections between stationary propane tanks and a delivery truck likely caused “a very significant leak” that led to devastating explosions Saturday at a Tacoma foundry. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/174395.html
Escape attempt thwarted at Washington State pen – An escape attempt at the Washington State Penitentiary ended when a guard fired a warning shot into the air. (Associated Press via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10092007news211549.cfm
Young man setting off fireworks blamed for big Spokane fire – A young man setting off fireworks has been blamed for a massive fire that destroyed a fuel distribution center in Spokane. (Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/238618.html
Lying Legally, and the Right to Speech – Last week, the Washington State Supreme Court struck down a 1999 law that banned political candidates from lying about their opponents. In the decision, the majority said the law was an affront to free speech. (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15100964&ft=1&f=2
DIVERSIONS
Taking a hammer to Comcast – "What the hell, I'm 75," said Bristow resident Mona Shaw about heading into the Comcast office in Manassas with a hammer and using it on a telephone and computer keyboard, after trying for days to have her phone service connected. Shaw was arrested for disorderly conduct after she took a hammer to several items in the office - all the while saying, "Have I got your attention now?" (Northern Virginia.com)
http://www.insidenova.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=ISN/MGArticle/WPN_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1173353015622
Man sentenced in "pride" killing of ostrich
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN0625560220071008?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Golden retriever nurses stray kitten
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071009/NEWS02/710090072/-1/RSS01
A bad relationship can cause heart attack?
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0824271720071009?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Monday, October 8, 2007
News Digest for October 8, 2007
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.
WORD OF THE DAY
Orgulous • \OR-gyuh-lus\ • adjective: proud
“Pride goeth before a fall,” muttered Ambrose as his opponent strutted to the center circle of the arena at the National Tiddlywinks Championships. The hand-slapping lap around the stadium, the orgulous appearance, the tossing of personalized chips into the stands did nothing to hide the weakness of Ambrose’ opponent: an obvious hangnail on his thumb. “I must break you,” was the first thing Ambrose growled as they met at the center table.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Seattle readies for winter storms – City and county urge residents to be prepared (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334569_winter06.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
PUBLIC POWER WEEK THIS WEEK – Mason County PUD No. 3 is celebrating Public Power Week this week along with more than 2,000 other electric utilities that provide their citizens electricity services on a not-for-profit basis. Public Power Week celebrates affordable electricity and wholesale telecommunications services for customers in Mason County. The week-long observation also honors the democratic tradition of community decision-making that led to the founding of the PUD in the 1934 general election. PUD 3 began serving homes with electricity in 1939. PUD 3's Public Power Week activities include a daily drawing (Monday through Friday) for a multi-pack of compact fluorescent light bulbs at both the Shelton and Belfair offices. Public Power Week is celebrated in conjunction with the American Public Power Association (APPA) in Washington, D.C. APPA is a national service organization for community and state-owned electric utilities. Mason County PUD No. 3 is a locally controlled public utility that provides electricity to nearly 32,000 customer/owners in most of Mason County and small portions of Kitsap and Grays Harbor Counties. PUD 3 also provides wholesale telecommunications services to its customers through a fiber optic network. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Tri-County Electric marks National Cooperative Month – "Cooperatives: Owned by Our Members, Committed to Our Communities" is the theme of the national annual celebration of cooperatives. (The Times Democrat, Orangeburg, SC)
http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2007/10/08/business/12773658.txt
County, feds seek public opinion on gas terminal – Cowlitz County and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will host a series of open houses this fall to gather public's opinion of a Houston company's plans to build a liquefied natural gas terminal in Bradwood, Ore. (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/10/07//area_news/news04.txt
Carbon issue raises quandary – Beneath the towering smokestacks of the state's largest single producer of greenhouse gases -- the Colstrip coal-fired power plant -- Montana lawmakers last week began to unravel the daunting legal and economic questions raised by the state's drive to mitigate climate change. (Jackson Hole Star-Tribune)
http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/10/08/news/regional/502c2d63c974d70a8725736d00210886.txt
Nuclear Power Primed for Comeback – Demand, Subsidies Spur U.S. Utilities (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/07/AR2007100701324.html?nav=rss_business
Case could benefit Enron investors – High Court's Fraud Case Widely Seen as Stand-In for Enron (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100402254.html?nav=rss_business
Ohio – Ohio's electric utilities divided on Strickland energy proposal. What had so far been a united front presented by Ohio's utilities fractured yesterday as the parent of Toledo Edison trashed Gov. Ted Strickland's energy plan and another utility serving the Cincinnati area largely endorsed it (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgdhiksvYSig%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
Western energizes first segment of transmission line along Colorado River in Arizona – The Western Area Power Administration (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/307301/22/ARTCL/none/none/Western-energizes-first-segment-of-transmission-line-along-Colorado-River-in-Arizona/
New York – Region's energy needs debated. Is the massive power line that could slice our region necessary? (Times Herald Record, Hudson Valley)
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071007/NEWS/710070341
California – 'Flying rope' is tool for Pacific Gas & Electric – Copter lowers lines to utility workers atop power poles. (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/placer/story/411263.html
FERC News Release – Commission accepts consensus, orders facilitation for PJM Settlement Case
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2007/2007-3/10-05-07.asp
United Kingdom – Energy firms 'plagued' by thieves. Theft of copper cables from power substations in the East Midlands continues to plague electricity firms and customers. (THE- BBC)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/derbyshire/7031744.stm
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Chinook count at Ballard Locks hits record level – A record number of threatened Chinook salmon are passing through the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks in Ballard this year, bound for East King County rivers. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003929130_salmonrun06e.html
Cormorants conquer the Columbia – Once ignored, a fish-hungry bird overruns an island at the gateway to endangered salmon runs, leaving biologists at a loss (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191808516157130.xml&coll=7
Yakima River has bad grass “… it covers salmon spawning grounds and fishing holes…(and) begins to extract from the water oxygen needed by fish and aquatic animals…” (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/story/9362356p-9276019c.html
Shampoo, coffee, etc., harming fish in area rivers (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/10/08/top_story/news01.txt
Maggots may be answer to fatter trout, less waste – Cow manure. Fish guts. Black soldier fly maggots. It could soon be dinner, if you're an Idaho rainbow trout. (The Associated Press via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003931083_enron07.html?syndication=rss
Canada - Salmon need help to survive climate change. Warming waters will render some streams uninhabitable as global warming takes its toll (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20071005.BCSALMON05/TPStory/Environment
Canada – Conservation group says its not too late to save Pacific salmon fishery. The collapse of last summer's Fraser River sockeye run was the latest red flag that climate change may be threatening the once abundant stocks of B.C. salmon. (The Canadian Press)
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gBWHJ-DySYiWmhYgz9rhnayMXxow
Oil found beneath old Port Angeles landfill (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3157
Ephrata water rates increase – Funds to be used for road repairs (Columbia Basin Herald: Now here’s a unique use of enterprise fund revenues)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/10/05/news/news03.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Washington State a leader in new energy sources – The Evergreen State is getting greener. When it comes to developing renewable energy sources, Washington is among the fastest growing states in the U.S. It ranks No. 3 this year (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/173749.html
Tapping tidal energy: the wave of the future – The future of clean power in the Northwest may look like the 75-foot-tall yellow buoy now bobbing like a cork in the waves off the Oregon coast. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003931009_wavepower07m0.html
Ethanol plant begins production – The Northwest's first ethanol plant rises from an arid tract of land along the Columbia River, where trainloads of Midwest corn are being turned into 200-proof alcohol motor fuel and cattle feed. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003930970_ethanol7m0.html
The drive for bio-fuels – A refinery boom emerges as questions arise about the benefits of using food crops for fuel “...Much of the green fuel produced in the Northwest could end up in other states…” (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191652019118090.xml&coll=7
Florida – Wind making great strides as energy provider (Palm Beach Post)
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/business/content/business/epaper/2007/10/07/m1a_WIND_POWER_1007.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=6
Australia – Energy plan confuses wind farm companies. The federal government's clean energy target - expected to replace state-based schemes by 2010 - is causing uncertainty for renewable energy providers, a company behind plans to build a $2 billion wind farm in NSW says. (The West Australian)
http://www.thewest.com.au/aapstory.aspx?StoryName=425315
Scaling Geothermal for Reliable Baseload Power (Renewable Energy Access)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=50159&src=rss
Energy Lost From Hot Engines Could Save Billions If Converted Into Electricity (Science Daily)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071003154956.htm
CONSERVATION
Kansas – Energy efficiency moving to front burner. Utilities might be forced to establish conservation programs (Lawrence Journal-World)
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2007/oct/07/energy_efficiency_moving_front_burner/
News Release – Esurance Helps Light the Way for Energy Conservation in San Francisco. Auto Insurance Company Works With Lights Out San Francisco (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/AQW08003102007-1.htm
News Release – Detroit Edision Offers Tips To Save Energy and Manage Heating Bills This Winter (Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/071008/clm085.html?.v=44
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Seattle P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – For West, climate change is about water
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/334592_joel08.html?source=rss
Seattle P-I Guest Columnist – Neo-Terraforming? The last green taboo: engineering the planet
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/334444_hari07.html?source=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Portland, OR – Free Wi-Fi's future seems up in the air – The future of Portland's experiment with free wireless Internet access appears precarious after city officials said wireless contractor MetroFi Inc. plans to stop expanding the Wi-Fi network. (The Oregonian – Ha, Ha…very clever headline)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191637550264110.xml&coll=7
(Meanwhile, who’s on first?) MetroFi says wireless network will expand – The company that administers Portland's free wireless Internet system said a miscommunication with the city may have led to reports that it will no longer expand the network. (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/10/01/daily37.html?ana=from_rss
High-speed broadband network could be a cash cow for Edmonds (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071008/NEWS01/710080044&news01ad=1
Major Internet hubs' influence declines as ad networks extend (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10072007news210927.cfm
Internet's unsung guardians labor in obscurity to keep Web moving – Ask Derek Schlecht what he does for a living and he'll tell you he's an IBX site engineer. He may then hit you with a string of technical jargon about cooling units and backup power systems. What Schlecht's job really is, though, is keeping the Internet running. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/07/BUR6S4N9R.DTL&feed=rss.business
Users' complaints to FTC show another side of Google (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/08/MN5JSA9MV.DTL&feed=rss.news
Texas – Verizon, Time Warner going head-to-head. In a world of fiber optic wonder, there’s little room to fathom what could possibly be next. (Plano Courier-Star)
http://www.planostar.com/articles/2007/10/07/plano_star-courier/news/0000000000000000000000000000000001news.txt
Server farm goes solar – A data storage company generates all its own power using solar panels. (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/03/technology/solar_servers.biz2/?postversion=2007100404
The Greening of Google – Corporate rooftops are the latest frontier in solar energy generation (Spectrum Online)
http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/oct07/5568
Preoccupations – E-Mail Is Easy to Write (and to Misread) (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/jobs/07pre.html?_r=1&ex=1349409600&en=d1896dd06f203f16&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
GENERAL NEWS
Fuel leak suspected in Tacoma blast – Investigators say it could take days to determine what caused a propane tanker truck to explode, igniting a massive fireball that shut down a highway, cut power to thousands and injured four. (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334652_tacoma08.html?source=rss
LOOK! We’re in the New York Times! Law on Lies by Politicians Is Found Unconstitutional (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/us/07lying.html?ex=1349409600&en=54438bcf6c551518&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
When it’s metal, even scrap is precious – World market raises value of copper, aluminum, more (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/173275.html
For Wood Carver and Business Owner, Allyn Story Pole ‘Is Our Lasting Contribution' – What was once a more than 80-foot tall cedar tree sitting in front of Keith Chamberlain's Allyn business will soon be transformed into a 40-foot story pole complete with salmon, owls, orca, great blue herons, evergreen trees and an eagle thanks to George Kenny's carving skills. (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/oct/07/for-wood-carver-and-business-owner-allyn-story/
DIVERSIONS
That appendix might be useful to you after all – Some scientists think they have figured out the real job of the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: It produces and protects good germs for your gut.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/health/334535_appendix06.html?source=rss
Giant pumpkin secrets told – Gourd growers go for the gusto in the quest for great girth. Rumor has it there's a giant among giant pumpkins -- a 1,600-pounder -- growing in Don Young's Iowa garden.
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071008/NEWS02/710080041/-1/RSS01
Helium shortage threatens to deflate balloon business
http://www.timesfreepress.com/absolutenm/templates/local.aspx?articleid=22864&zoneid=77
Oops! Bush's Visit Takes Wind Out of Antique Airplane Show
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/07/AR2007100701376.html?nav=rss_metro
(From the gimme a break file) Case Tests Boundaries of Prayer in Sports
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/06/AR2007100601254.html?nav=rss_nation
WORD OF THE DAY
Orgulous • \OR-gyuh-lus\ • adjective: proud
“Pride goeth before a fall,” muttered Ambrose as his opponent strutted to the center circle of the arena at the National Tiddlywinks Championships. The hand-slapping lap around the stadium, the orgulous appearance, the tossing of personalized chips into the stands did nothing to hide the weakness of Ambrose’ opponent: an obvious hangnail on his thumb. “I must break you,” was the first thing Ambrose growled as they met at the center table.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Seattle readies for winter storms – City and county urge residents to be prepared (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334569_winter06.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
PUBLIC POWER WEEK THIS WEEK – Mason County PUD No. 3 is celebrating Public Power Week this week along with more than 2,000 other electric utilities that provide their citizens electricity services on a not-for-profit basis. Public Power Week celebrates affordable electricity and wholesale telecommunications services for customers in Mason County. The week-long observation also honors the democratic tradition of community decision-making that led to the founding of the PUD in the 1934 general election. PUD 3 began serving homes with electricity in 1939. PUD 3's Public Power Week activities include a daily drawing (Monday through Friday) for a multi-pack of compact fluorescent light bulbs at both the Shelton and Belfair offices. Public Power Week is celebrated in conjunction with the American Public Power Association (APPA) in Washington, D.C. APPA is a national service organization for community and state-owned electric utilities. Mason County PUD No. 3 is a locally controlled public utility that provides electricity to nearly 32,000 customer/owners in most of Mason County and small portions of Kitsap and Grays Harbor Counties. PUD 3 also provides wholesale telecommunications services to its customers through a fiber optic network. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Tri-County Electric marks National Cooperative Month – "Cooperatives: Owned by Our Members, Committed to Our Communities" is the theme of the national annual celebration of cooperatives. (The Times Democrat, Orangeburg, SC)
http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2007/10/08/business/12773658.txt
County, feds seek public opinion on gas terminal – Cowlitz County and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will host a series of open houses this fall to gather public's opinion of a Houston company's plans to build a liquefied natural gas terminal in Bradwood, Ore. (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/10/07//area_news/news04.txt
Carbon issue raises quandary – Beneath the towering smokestacks of the state's largest single producer of greenhouse gases -- the Colstrip coal-fired power plant -- Montana lawmakers last week began to unravel the daunting legal and economic questions raised by the state's drive to mitigate climate change. (Jackson Hole Star-Tribune)
http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/10/08/news/regional/502c2d63c974d70a8725736d00210886.txt
Nuclear Power Primed for Comeback – Demand, Subsidies Spur U.S. Utilities (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/07/AR2007100701324.html?nav=rss_business
Case could benefit Enron investors – High Court's Fraud Case Widely Seen as Stand-In for Enron (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100402254.html?nav=rss_business
Ohio – Ohio's electric utilities divided on Strickland energy proposal. What had so far been a united front presented by Ohio's utilities fractured yesterday as the parent of Toledo Edison trashed Gov. Ted Strickland's energy plan and another utility serving the Cincinnati area largely endorsed it (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgdhiksvYSig%23%3A%40%24bfem%5Ev
Western energizes first segment of transmission line along Colorado River in Arizona – The Western Area Power Administration (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/307301/22/ARTCL/none/none/Western-energizes-first-segment-of-transmission-line-along-Colorado-River-in-Arizona/
New York – Region's energy needs debated. Is the massive power line that could slice our region necessary? (Times Herald Record, Hudson Valley)
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071007/NEWS/710070341
California – 'Flying rope' is tool for Pacific Gas & Electric – Copter lowers lines to utility workers atop power poles. (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/placer/story/411263.html
FERC News Release – Commission accepts consensus, orders facilitation for PJM Settlement Case
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2007/2007-3/10-05-07.asp
United Kingdom – Energy firms 'plagued' by thieves. Theft of copper cables from power substations in the East Midlands continues to plague electricity firms and customers. (THE- BBC)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/derbyshire/7031744.stm
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Chinook count at Ballard Locks hits record level – A record number of threatened Chinook salmon are passing through the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks in Ballard this year, bound for East King County rivers. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003929130_salmonrun06e.html
Cormorants conquer the Columbia – Once ignored, a fish-hungry bird overruns an island at the gateway to endangered salmon runs, leaving biologists at a loss (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191808516157130.xml&coll=7
Yakima River has bad grass “… it covers salmon spawning grounds and fishing holes…(and) begins to extract from the water oxygen needed by fish and aquatic animals…” (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/story/9362356p-9276019c.html
Shampoo, coffee, etc., harming fish in area rivers (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/10/08/top_story/news01.txt
Maggots may be answer to fatter trout, less waste – Cow manure. Fish guts. Black soldier fly maggots. It could soon be dinner, if you're an Idaho rainbow trout. (The Associated Press via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003931083_enron07.html?syndication=rss
Canada - Salmon need help to survive climate change. Warming waters will render some streams uninhabitable as global warming takes its toll (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20071005.BCSALMON05/TPStory/Environment
Canada – Conservation group says its not too late to save Pacific salmon fishery. The collapse of last summer's Fraser River sockeye run was the latest red flag that climate change may be threatening the once abundant stocks of B.C. salmon. (The Canadian Press)
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gBWHJ-DySYiWmhYgz9rhnayMXxow
Oil found beneath old Port Angeles landfill (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3157
Ephrata water rates increase – Funds to be used for road repairs (Columbia Basin Herald: Now here’s a unique use of enterprise fund revenues)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/10/05/news/news03.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Washington State a leader in new energy sources – The Evergreen State is getting greener. When it comes to developing renewable energy sources, Washington is among the fastest growing states in the U.S. It ranks No. 3 this year (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/173749.html
Tapping tidal energy: the wave of the future – The future of clean power in the Northwest may look like the 75-foot-tall yellow buoy now bobbing like a cork in the waves off the Oregon coast. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003931009_wavepower07m0.html
Ethanol plant begins production – The Northwest's first ethanol plant rises from an arid tract of land along the Columbia River, where trainloads of Midwest corn are being turned into 200-proof alcohol motor fuel and cattle feed. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003930970_ethanol7m0.html
The drive for bio-fuels – A refinery boom emerges as questions arise about the benefits of using food crops for fuel “...Much of the green fuel produced in the Northwest could end up in other states…” (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191652019118090.xml&coll=7
Florida – Wind making great strides as energy provider (Palm Beach Post)
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/business/content/business/epaper/2007/10/07/m1a_WIND_POWER_1007.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=6
Australia – Energy plan confuses wind farm companies. The federal government's clean energy target - expected to replace state-based schemes by 2010 - is causing uncertainty for renewable energy providers, a company behind plans to build a $2 billion wind farm in NSW says. (The West Australian)
http://www.thewest.com.au/aapstory.aspx?StoryName=425315
Scaling Geothermal for Reliable Baseload Power (Renewable Energy Access)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=50159&src=rss
Energy Lost From Hot Engines Could Save Billions If Converted Into Electricity (Science Daily)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071003154956.htm
CONSERVATION
Kansas – Energy efficiency moving to front burner. Utilities might be forced to establish conservation programs (Lawrence Journal-World)
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2007/oct/07/energy_efficiency_moving_front_burner/
News Release – Esurance Helps Light the Way for Energy Conservation in San Francisco. Auto Insurance Company Works With Lights Out San Francisco (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/AQW08003102007-1.htm
News Release – Detroit Edision Offers Tips To Save Energy and Manage Heating Bills This Winter (Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/071008/clm085.html?.v=44
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Seattle P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – For West, climate change is about water
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/334592_joel08.html?source=rss
Seattle P-I Guest Columnist – Neo-Terraforming? The last green taboo: engineering the planet
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/334444_hari07.html?source=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Portland, OR – Free Wi-Fi's future seems up in the air – The future of Portland's experiment with free wireless Internet access appears precarious after city officials said wireless contractor MetroFi Inc. plans to stop expanding the Wi-Fi network. (The Oregonian – Ha, Ha…very clever headline)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191637550264110.xml&coll=7
(Meanwhile, who’s on first?) MetroFi says wireless network will expand – The company that administers Portland's free wireless Internet system said a miscommunication with the city may have led to reports that it will no longer expand the network. (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/10/01/daily37.html?ana=from_rss
High-speed broadband network could be a cash cow for Edmonds (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071008/NEWS01/710080044&news01ad=1
Major Internet hubs' influence declines as ad networks extend (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10072007news210927.cfm
Internet's unsung guardians labor in obscurity to keep Web moving – Ask Derek Schlecht what he does for a living and he'll tell you he's an IBX site engineer. He may then hit you with a string of technical jargon about cooling units and backup power systems. What Schlecht's job really is, though, is keeping the Internet running. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/07/BUR6S4N9R.DTL&feed=rss.business
Users' complaints to FTC show another side of Google (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/08/MN5JSA9MV.DTL&feed=rss.news
Texas – Verizon, Time Warner going head-to-head. In a world of fiber optic wonder, there’s little room to fathom what could possibly be next. (Plano Courier-Star)
http://www.planostar.com/articles/2007/10/07/plano_star-courier/news/0000000000000000000000000000000001news.txt
Server farm goes solar – A data storage company generates all its own power using solar panels. (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/03/technology/solar_servers.biz2/?postversion=2007100404
The Greening of Google – Corporate rooftops are the latest frontier in solar energy generation (Spectrum Online)
http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/oct07/5568
Preoccupations – E-Mail Is Easy to Write (and to Misread) (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/jobs/07pre.html?_r=1&ex=1349409600&en=d1896dd06f203f16&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
GENERAL NEWS
Fuel leak suspected in Tacoma blast – Investigators say it could take days to determine what caused a propane tanker truck to explode, igniting a massive fireball that shut down a highway, cut power to thousands and injured four. (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334652_tacoma08.html?source=rss
LOOK! We’re in the New York Times! Law on Lies by Politicians Is Found Unconstitutional (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/us/07lying.html?ex=1349409600&en=54438bcf6c551518&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
When it’s metal, even scrap is precious – World market raises value of copper, aluminum, more (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/173275.html
For Wood Carver and Business Owner, Allyn Story Pole ‘Is Our Lasting Contribution' – What was once a more than 80-foot tall cedar tree sitting in front of Keith Chamberlain's Allyn business will soon be transformed into a 40-foot story pole complete with salmon, owls, orca, great blue herons, evergreen trees and an eagle thanks to George Kenny's carving skills. (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/oct/07/for-wood-carver-and-business-owner-allyn-story/
DIVERSIONS
That appendix might be useful to you after all – Some scientists think they have figured out the real job of the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: It produces and protects good germs for your gut.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/health/334535_appendix06.html?source=rss
Giant pumpkin secrets told – Gourd growers go for the gusto in the quest for great girth. Rumor has it there's a giant among giant pumpkins -- a 1,600-pounder -- growing in Don Young's Iowa garden.
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20071008/NEWS02/710080041/-1/RSS01
Helium shortage threatens to deflate balloon business
http://www.timesfreepress.com/absolutenm/templates/local.aspx?articleid=22864&zoneid=77
Oops! Bush's Visit Takes Wind Out of Antique Airplane Show
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/07/AR2007100701376.html?nav=rss_metro
(From the gimme a break file) Case Tests Boundaries of Prayer in Sports
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/06/AR2007100601254.html?nav=rss_nation
Friday, October 5, 2007
News Digest for October 5, 2007
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.
WORD OF THE DAY
Umbra • \UM-bruh\ • noun – 1: a shaded area * a: a conical shadow excluding all light from a given source; specifically: the conical part of the shadow of a celestial body excluding all light from the primary source b: the central dark part of a sunspot
Joel was becoming concerned. Having left his sunscreen at home, the diminishing umbra of the shade tree that was protecting his bald pate was leading him to plan for a liberal dosing of aloe vera gel that would be necessary that evening to soothe the impending sunburn.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Summer of 2007: Driest ever recorded on east slopes of Cascades (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/10250616.html
Warm U.S. winter expected to worsen drought conditions (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2007-10-05-warm-winter_N.htm?csp=34
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
State fines Energy Northwest $120K for improper waste handling – The Washington state Department of Ecology on Thursday fined Energy Northwest $120,000 for improperly handling chemical and hazardous waste at the state's only nuclear power plant. (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10052007news209403.cfm
Oregon – PacifiCorp agrees to refund $2.2 million to customers. The utility -- the latest one to repay users -- will reimburse over collected Multnomah County taxes (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/119146836044580.xml&coll=7
Southern California Edison to appeal $200 million in fines, refunds – The company says it plans to appeal a judge's decision that would require the utility to pay $200 million in fines and ratepayer refunds for rigging customer satisfaction surveys. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgddfjjoYSge%23%3A%40%24bfem%5E%21
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Will Spend $12 Million on Vegetation Management in 2007 (Business Wire)
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20071004005291&newsLang=en
Green City: Pacific Gas & Electric’'s two faces – Seeking to water down environmental standards (San Francisco Bay Guardian)
http://www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=4650&catid=&volume_id=317&issue_id=318&volume_num=42&issue_num=01
PPL could bill customers 42 percent more – PPL Electric Utilities Corp.'s residential, small commercial and small industrial customers who do not choose competitive electricity suppliers could be shocked by bill increases in 2010. (Central Pennsylvania Business Journal)
http://www.centralpennbusiness.com/article.asp?aID=62860
European Union Bears Its Teeth on Energy Unbundling – With the European Commission adopting plans that would force European energy markets to be open to more competition and utilities to unbundle their operations, battle lines have been drawn. (PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5CgddgpwwYSge%23%3A%40%24bfem%5E%21
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oregon study: Hatchery steelhead less successful spawning in wild (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-21/1191528770124770.xml&storylist=orlocal
Chinook returning to Cedar River big-time – About 300 fish came back this fall, compared with 79 four years ago (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334322_cedarriver05.html?source=rss
Salmon start flying on West End: Where you can view (but not fish) them – All the Sol Duc summer coho (silver salmon) needed was a little bit of rain. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20071005/NEWS/710050302
Canada – Taking Aim at Otters. Are they a 'renewable resource'? Cute but voracious, their legal protection may be eroding. (The Tyee)
http://thetyee.ca/News/2007/10/05/Otters2/
Wildlife refuge cuts kids programs – The Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge no longer will provide environmental education for many children, according to a report released Thursday. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/235574.html
Influence helped Tacoma get Sound cleanup agency – For a while, it looked as if Olympia would house the main offices of the Puget Sound Partnership, the new state agency charged with cleaning up Puget Sound. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/171947.html
Water projects wait on funding, feasibility study – Funding and the authority to do a feasibility study are necessary ingredients in order for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to move along with area water projects. (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/10/04/news/news04.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Iowa – Fire Damages Wind Turbine Near Garner: Fire Erupted From Gear Box 200 Feet From Ground (KCCI-TV, Des Moines)
http://www.kcci.com/news/14268913/detail.html
Feds blow hot and cold in support for wind power – Anyone who flies a kite or hits a golf ball knows breezes can be fickle. So consider how difficult it can be to make a living from the wind. (Scripps Howard News Service)
http://www.star-telegram.com/464/story/256796.html
Oregon – Central Lincoln utility offers renewable energy program – The Central Lincoln People’s Utility District began offering a renewable power program to customers this month. (Bandon Western World)
http://www.theworldlink.com/articles/2007/10/04/news/doc47053d5a0778b200480997.txt
Lighten up on energy use with ideas from solar tour – Sun power will be the focus of a Saturday tour of 12 Clark County buildings and homes that showcase the benefits of renewable energy. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2007/10/10052007_Lighten-up-on-energy-use-with-ideas-from-solar-tour.cfm
Coffin Butte Resource Project, Landfill-Gas-to-Energy Plant, More Than Doubles Generation Capacity (News Release - PNGC Power)
http://www.pngcpower.com/newsroom/news_releases.aspx?ID=37
Oregon – State sees roadside solar panels ahead – ODOT plans to follow Europe's lead and test panels along highways and bridges (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191551122230690.xml&coll=7
CONSERVATION
G.E. to Close Some Lighting Plants – “…in part because of a changing lighting market, in which demand for the incandescent bulb has declined over the last five years…” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/business/05ge.html?ex=1349323200&en=8c7d122f6c8a7ab0&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Virginia – No tax on energy efficient products. State officials hope this weekend's inaugural sales-tax holiday on certain energy-efficient products will help the environment while saving Virginians money -- just not too much money. (Hemscott Group)
http://www.hemscott.com/news/latest-news/item.do?newsId=51178830385408
Couple builds green house for gentle living – Craig Rainwater and his wife, Pamela Pasquale, are building their dream home on the side of a hill off Sleepy Hollow Road, east of Monitor. They have a big dream of a small house. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071004/NEWS04/710040075/1001
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Australian Fires Add to Fears on Climate Change – As the first bush fires of the year rage through Australia’s national forests, concern over climate change and its effects is intensifying among Australians. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/world/asia/04australia.html?ex=1349236800&en=4a04193ad6ee82a4&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Officials hope voters might favor gas tax boost to fight warming – Regional officials are taking a close look at trying to increase the Bay Area's gasoline tax by as much as 10 cents a gallon and believe voters might agree to it as a way to help combat global warming (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/05/MNJ2SKB78.DTL&type=politics
Inside Fix? The clock is ticking on California's request for a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency for its stringent law on tailpipe emissions. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100402227.html?nav=rss_opinions
Money, Mouths and Global Warming (NY Times)
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/money-mouths-and-global-warming/index.html?ex=1349150400&en=8c3095688b9b8424&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Portland Considers Building Municipal Broadband Internet System (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/portland-considers-building-municipal-broadband-internet-system/
Where's My Free Wi-Fi? Why municipal wireless networks have been such a flop. (Slate Magazine)
http://www.slate.com/id/2174858/fr/flyout
How 2 Guys' Iowa Connection – Took Big Telecoms for a Ride (Wall Street Journal)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119146044026348502.html?mod=telecommunications_primary_hs
Cable company offers telephone service in Southern Oregon (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/10/01/daily29.html?ana=from_rss
GENERAL NEWS
(More Details from yesterday’s story) No lie, state Supreme Court rules candidates can make A sharply divided state Supreme Court has ruled that a law that bars political candidates from deliberately making false statements about their opponents violates the First Amendment right of free speech. (Associated Press via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003924720_webfirstamendment04m.html?syndication=rss
Excerpts from ruling on WA campaign speech and reaction (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/234892.html
Opinions split over proposed Brinnon mega-resort –The proposed Pleasant Harbor Marina and golf resort, which would allow up to 890 hotel and rental units to be built at Black Point, is too much too fast, some say. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20071005/NEWS/710050303
Weyerhaeuser to shut sawmills – Company official: Temporary closure won't hurt workers (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/business/story/235602.html
Dairy farmers seek greener pastures – Urban development prompts farmers to look east (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/southeastkingcountynews/2003926775_farmfamily05m.html?syndication=rss
DIVERSIONS
Customs find beetles stuffed with cocaine
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSNA428240520071005?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Uproar over Italian tax breaks for "big babies"
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0561970420071005?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Man accused of stealing OSU softball bleachers
http://www.examiner.com/a-972633~Man_accused_of_stealing_OSU_softball_bleachers.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Bar gossip leads to nasty surprise for couple – A Czech couple who decided to take a DNA test to squash persistent pub gossip and prove that their 10-month-old baby was their own got a nasty surprise.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071004/od_nm/czech_baby_dc;_ylt=Ane.E6MmjpZFt77rjKnYBdjtiBIF
WORD OF THE DAY
Umbra • \UM-bruh\ • noun – 1: a shaded area * a: a conical shadow excluding all light from a given source; specifically: the conical part of the shadow of a celestial body excluding all light from the primary source b: the central dark part of a sunspot
Joel was becoming concerned. Having left his sunscreen at home, the diminishing umbra of the shade tree that was protecting his bald pate was leading him to plan for a liberal dosing of aloe vera gel that would be necessary that evening to soothe the impending sunburn.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Summer of 2007: Driest ever recorded on east slopes of Cascades (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/10250616.html
Warm U.S. winter expected to worsen drought conditions (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2007-10-05-warm-winter_N.htm?csp=34
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
State fines Energy Northwest $120K for improper waste handling – The Washington state Department of Ecology on Thursday fined Energy Northwest $120,000 for improperly handling chemical and hazardous waste at the state's only nuclear power plant. (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP10052007news209403.cfm
Oregon – PacifiCorp agrees to refund $2.2 million to customers. The utility -- the latest one to repay users -- will reimburse over collected Multnomah County taxes (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/119146836044580.xml&coll=7
Southern California Edison to appeal $200 million in fines, refunds – The company says it plans to appeal a judge's decision that would require the utility to pay $200 million in fines and ratepayer refunds for rigging customer satisfaction surveys. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CgddfjjoYSge%23%3A%40%24bfem%5E%21
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Will Spend $12 Million on Vegetation Management in 2007 (Business Wire)
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20071004005291&newsLang=en
Green City: Pacific Gas & Electric’'s two faces – Seeking to water down environmental standards (San Francisco Bay Guardian)
http://www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=4650&catid=&volume_id=317&issue_id=318&volume_num=42&issue_num=01
PPL could bill customers 42 percent more – PPL Electric Utilities Corp.'s residential, small commercial and small industrial customers who do not choose competitive electricity suppliers could be shocked by bill increases in 2010. (Central Pennsylvania Business Journal)
http://www.centralpennbusiness.com/article.asp?aID=62860
European Union Bears Its Teeth on Energy Unbundling – With the European Commission adopting plans that would force European energy markets to be open to more competition and utilities to unbundle their operations, battle lines have been drawn. (PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5CgddgpwwYSge%23%3A%40%24bfem%5E%21
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oregon study: Hatchery steelhead less successful spawning in wild (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-21/1191528770124770.xml&storylist=orlocal
Chinook returning to Cedar River big-time – About 300 fish came back this fall, compared with 79 four years ago (Seattle P-I)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/334322_cedarriver05.html?source=rss
Salmon start flying on West End: Where you can view (but not fish) them – All the Sol Duc summer coho (silver salmon) needed was a little bit of rain. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20071005/NEWS/710050302
Canada – Taking Aim at Otters. Are they a 'renewable resource'? Cute but voracious, their legal protection may be eroding. (The Tyee)
http://thetyee.ca/News/2007/10/05/Otters2/
Wildlife refuge cuts kids programs – The Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge no longer will provide environmental education for many children, according to a report released Thursday. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/235574.html
Influence helped Tacoma get Sound cleanup agency – For a while, it looked as if Olympia would house the main offices of the Puget Sound Partnership, the new state agency charged with cleaning up Puget Sound. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/171947.html
Water projects wait on funding, feasibility study – Funding and the authority to do a feasibility study are necessary ingredients in order for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to move along with area water projects. (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/10/04/news/news04.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Iowa – Fire Damages Wind Turbine Near Garner: Fire Erupted From Gear Box 200 Feet From Ground (KCCI-TV, Des Moines)
http://www.kcci.com/news/14268913/detail.html
Feds blow hot and cold in support for wind power – Anyone who flies a kite or hits a golf ball knows breezes can be fickle. So consider how difficult it can be to make a living from the wind. (Scripps Howard News Service)
http://www.star-telegram.com/464/story/256796.html
Oregon – Central Lincoln utility offers renewable energy program – The Central Lincoln People’s Utility District began offering a renewable power program to customers this month. (Bandon Western World)
http://www.theworldlink.com/articles/2007/10/04/news/doc47053d5a0778b200480997.txt
Lighten up on energy use with ideas from solar tour – Sun power will be the focus of a Saturday tour of 12 Clark County buildings and homes that showcase the benefits of renewable energy. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2007/10/10052007_Lighten-up-on-energy-use-with-ideas-from-solar-tour.cfm
Coffin Butte Resource Project, Landfill-Gas-to-Energy Plant, More Than Doubles Generation Capacity (News Release - PNGC Power)
http://www.pngcpower.com/newsroom/news_releases.aspx?ID=37
Oregon – State sees roadside solar panels ahead – ODOT plans to follow Europe's lead and test panels along highways and bridges (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1191551122230690.xml&coll=7
CONSERVATION
G.E. to Close Some Lighting Plants – “…in part because of a changing lighting market, in which demand for the incandescent bulb has declined over the last five years…” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/business/05ge.html?ex=1349323200&en=8c7d122f6c8a7ab0&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Virginia – No tax on energy efficient products. State officials hope this weekend's inaugural sales-tax holiday on certain energy-efficient products will help the environment while saving Virginians money -- just not too much money. (Hemscott Group)
http://www.hemscott.com/news/latest-news/item.do?newsId=51178830385408
Couple builds green house for gentle living – Craig Rainwater and his wife, Pamela Pasquale, are building their dream home on the side of a hill off Sleepy Hollow Road, east of Monitor. They have a big dream of a small house. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071004/NEWS04/710040075/1001
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Australian Fires Add to Fears on Climate Change – As the first bush fires of the year rage through Australia’s national forests, concern over climate change and its effects is intensifying among Australians. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/world/asia/04australia.html?ex=1349236800&en=4a04193ad6ee82a4&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Officials hope voters might favor gas tax boost to fight warming – Regional officials are taking a close look at trying to increase the Bay Area's gasoline tax by as much as 10 cents a gallon and believe voters might agree to it as a way to help combat global warming (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/05/MNJ2SKB78.DTL&type=politics
Inside Fix? The clock is ticking on California's request for a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency for its stringent law on tailpipe emissions. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100402227.html?nav=rss_opinions
Money, Mouths and Global Warming (NY Times)
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/money-mouths-and-global-warming/index.html?ex=1349150400&en=8c3095688b9b8424&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Portland Considers Building Municipal Broadband Internet System (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/portland-considers-building-municipal-broadband-internet-system/
Where's My Free Wi-Fi? Why municipal wireless networks have been such a flop. (Slate Magazine)
http://www.slate.com/id/2174858/fr/flyout
How 2 Guys' Iowa Connection – Took Big Telecoms for a Ride (Wall Street Journal)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119146044026348502.html?mod=telecommunications_primary_hs
Cable company offers telephone service in Southern Oregon (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/10/01/daily29.html?ana=from_rss
GENERAL NEWS
(More Details from yesterday’s story) No lie, state Supreme Court rules candidates can make A sharply divided state Supreme Court has ruled that a law that bars political candidates from deliberately making false statements about their opponents violates the First Amendment right of free speech. (Associated Press via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003924720_webfirstamendment04m.html?syndication=rss
Excerpts from ruling on WA campaign speech and reaction (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/234892.html
Opinions split over proposed Brinnon mega-resort –The proposed Pleasant Harbor Marina and golf resort, which would allow up to 890 hotel and rental units to be built at Black Point, is too much too fast, some say. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20071005/NEWS/710050303
Weyerhaeuser to shut sawmills – Company official: Temporary closure won't hurt workers (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/business/story/235602.html
Dairy farmers seek greener pastures – Urban development prompts farmers to look east (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/southeastkingcountynews/2003926775_farmfamily05m.html?syndication=rss
DIVERSIONS
Customs find beetles stuffed with cocaine
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSNA428240520071005?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Uproar over Italian tax breaks for "big babies"
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0561970420071005?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Man accused of stealing OSU softball bleachers
http://www.examiner.com/a-972633~Man_accused_of_stealing_OSU_softball_bleachers.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Bar gossip leads to nasty surprise for couple – A Czech couple who decided to take a DNA test to squash persistent pub gossip and prove that their 10-month-old baby was their own got a nasty surprise.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071004/od_nm/czech_baby_dc;_ylt=Ane.E6MmjpZFt77rjKnYBdjtiBIF
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