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.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options
- MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin
- NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case
- Oregon utilities try to offset rising costs
- Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say
- Grant PUD rate hikes on hold
- Idaho Power customers set record for energy use
- Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November
- TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts
- NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar
- ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna
- Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal
- UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt
- Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study
- OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees
- Taylor Shellfish accused of illegally farmed public tidelands
- Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey
- Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen
- NOAA’ Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead
- Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee
- Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea
- What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem?
- A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer
- State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
- Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste
- MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill
- Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone
- SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry
- NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table
- Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives
- Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar
- Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option
- Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke
- Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (?)
- Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors
- How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint
- Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense?
- Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley
- Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon
- CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California
- Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband
- FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning
- Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party
- Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer
- Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load
- Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling
- Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth
- Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near
- Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites
- Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Oracular • \uh-RACK-yuh-lerr\ • adjective –1: of the nature of, resembling, or suggesting an oracle: an oracular response 2: giving forth utterances or decisions as if by special inspiration or authority 3: uttered or delivered as if divinely inspired or infallible; sententious 4: ambiguous; obscure 5: portentous; ominous.
As the shadow of the company’s “Camping Carl” loomed in his office doorway Albert shuddered in anticipation of the two-hour recounting of his friend’s weekend activities. The oracular utterings rang hollow each Monday, as Carl droned on about his hang-gliding, mountain-climbing, high altitude adventures. It didn’t help his cause when Albert realized one day that they lived in the flattest state in the union.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080714/NEWS/807140307
MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin – 10.2 cents per kilowatt hour (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/13/news/local/news03.txt
NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/northwestern_bankruptcy.html?.v=2
Utilities try to offset rising costs – Portland General Electric now figures it needs to raise electricity rates by 14 to 15 percent next year to cover rising energy and operating costs (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310782300.xml&coll=7
Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say – Ratepayer advocates say the utility's proposed 15% increase is based on poor analysis “…PGE offers full-time employees, retired employees and spouses of deceased, retired or regular employees a 25 percent discount…” (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310882300.xml&coll=7
Grant PUD rate hikes on hold – A proposed 6 percent increase for Grant County PUD electrical customers won't happen in 2009 (Columbia Basin Herald, Moss Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/11/news/news02.txt
Idaho Power customers set record for energy use (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1479520~Idaho_Power_customers_set_record_for_energy_use.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines
Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November – Power to the people - private or public? Local voters will get to decide who should supply their electric power (The Whidbey Examiner, Coupeville, WA)
http://www.whidbeyexaminer.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=1550&TM=62995
TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts – Texans often receive high bills from replacement providers “…price per kilowatt-hour went from 11.8 cents with the now-defunct retailer National Power to 31.7 cents…” (The Houston Chronicle, TX)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/biz/5884406.html
NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar – NY's reliance on oil and gas to produce electricity hits power customers hard this summer (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/ny_electricity_rates.html?.v=1
ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna – The $1.75 billion proposal once had a dam but now has a drain (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463307.html
Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal – The Crow tribe in Montana says it has enough coal on its reservation to meet U.S. energy needs for nearly a decade (Finding Dulcinea)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/Americas/July-08/Montana-s-Crow-Nation-Seeks-to-Develop-its-Coal.html
UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt – Customers could be running up arrears because direct debits are set up only to cover predicted bills rather than the final amount (The London Times, UK)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/consumer_affairs/article4321562.ece
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study – An earlier similar request by Oregon's governor went unheeded (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583311382300.xml&coll=7
OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees (The Associated Press)
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i10L4E0TYuAyptf_4G9fFlLm7pygD91T4PF00
FISH & WILDLIFE
Taylor Shellfish illegally farmed public tidelands – Size of penalties awaits survey of encroached area (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370510_geoducks12.html
Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/505441.html
Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen (The Associated Press, via the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07112008news339571.cfm
News Release – NOAA’s Fisheries Service Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080711_willamette.html
Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee, but not at Baker Lake, Lake Washington (Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2008048589_outn13.html
Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea “…The Coast Salish includes… the Squaxin Island Indian Tribe…”(The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/front/topstories/story/411131.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem? (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/12/whats-the-answer-to-hood-canals-oyxgen-problem/
A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-oysters13-2008jul13,0,7294041.story
State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/238625.html
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/370473_runoffed.html?source=rss
Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste – People who hope to get rid of old computers and other electronic waste at a free recycling event this week in Tacoma have no guarantee that the equipment will be disposed of properly (The Olympian, via the News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/411794.html
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill (The Billings Gazette, MT)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/13/news/state/21-landfill.txt
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone (BusinessWire, via MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/pse-wind-facilities-each-reach/story.aspx?guid=%7B5B272D25-0BED-4AD9-BDD7-473393E94509%7D&dist=hppr
SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry – Deal on incentives stalled in Congress (The Times Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, SD)
http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080713/NEWS/807130337/1003/BUSINESS
NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table – Consumer agency says fee structure is unfair (The News-Observer, Raleigh, NC)
http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1140727.html
Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008049436_apheatingalternatives.html?syndication=rss
Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar – At least for its streetlights (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-solar14-2008jul14,0,1532793.story
CONSERVATION
Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option (the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/lifehome/lifeHomeNews/2008/07/07132008_Energy-adviser-Room-air-conditioners-can-be-a-cool-option.cfm?newsletter=1
Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/12/AR2008071200174.html?nav=rss_business
Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (Pittsburgh Business Times – Unless you consider the instantaneous demand issue: can your home’s wiring and transformer handle it?)
http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/07/14/focus12.html?ana=from_rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Zanesville Times-Recorder Op/Ed – Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors (Zanesville, OH)
http://zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/OPINION02/807140322/1014/OPINION
How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint – A new Canadian-based research study shows how we can all reduce our so-called carbon footprint - and save money - by following a few simple tips for PC usage at home, or in the office (PC World, Canada)
http://www.pcworld.ca/news/column/0e330b860a01040801318e595d89e679/pg1.htm
Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense? (Orlando Sentinel, FL)
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-lidcarbon1308jul13,0,3503052.story
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley (Port Townsend Leader, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=21356&TM=44425.35
Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon – Eight-fold increase in bandwidth expected next year (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463329.html
CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California – Perhaps at the expense of small community service districts (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/New-Bill-Could-Bridge-Digital-Divide-in-California-96072
Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband – not everyone has equal access (Boston MA)
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2008/07/13/strike_up_the_broadband/
FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning – The cable company violated rules that guarantee customers open access to the Internet, says the head of the commission in his disciplinary proposal (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008047592_netregs12.html
Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party – Many buyers were unable to activate new model (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/370431_iphone12.html
Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/technology/13yahoo.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load “…The very technologies that were supposed to replace paper - things like e-mail, electronic data storage and the Web - have led to more paper usage than ever before…” (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9875348?source=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling – But the move, by itself, will do nothing unless Congress acts as well (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008048076_apbush.html?syndication=rss
Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/14/business/worldbusiness/14beer.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near – Olympic Cellars principal owner Kathy Charlton says she's close to resolving a dispute with the U.S. Olympic Committee over her winery's use of the word Olympic (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080713/NEWS/807130304
Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/238062.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Man sues church over spiritual fall – A man says he was so consumed by the spirit of God that he fell and hit his head while worshipping
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120ap_odd_felled_by_spirit.html?source=mypi
Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07132008news339861.cfm
Roller Girls Give Chase In US Version Of Bull Run – Hundreds of people gathered outside a French Quarter bar Saturday morning to be chased down Bourbon Street by members of New Orleans' roller derby league (The editor smirks…)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16864042/detail.html
Party goers lose sight at laser show – Dozens of people have lost partial vision after a laser light show burned their retinas
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1452972520080714?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Dog Meat Taken Off China Menus For Olympics – Designated Restaurants Won't Serve Dog Meat During Games
http://www.kirotv.com/sports/16852588/detail.html
Monday, July 14, 2008
Friday, July 11, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 11, 2008
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.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Lewis County task force makes three metal-theft arrests
- Lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric at fault for 2007 California fires
- PUD Commissioners from Three Counties to Meet In Shelton
- Accountant appointed to board of Tacoma Public Utilities
- Commentary: The urgent need to upgrade the grid
- OREGON – Liquefied natural gas decision near?
- NEW YORK – Group wants to create hydropower at 4 reservoirs
- Summer sockeye on the move – Near-record numbers
- NOAA Fisheries issues10-year Endangered Species Act fishing permit for the upper Columbia basin
- Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Oregon's salmon and timber resources deserve attention
- Steelhead fishing has been decent in Western Washington
- Fish Affect California Water Supply
- County's dilemma: Cut trees on levees or lose federal funds
- Making more marsh at Nisqually Delta
- OHIO – Residents OF Minority Community Win Water Case
- Study: Southeast US’ cheap access to water at risk
- OREGON – Algae bloom clogs water treatment plants
- Local Utilities Want to "Empower Your Shower"
- Green Power – America's Best Places for Alternative Energy
- NASA Maps Reveal Wind Energy Sources
- CALIFORNIA – Bay Area Rapid Transit paying more in bet on solar power
- Thanks to Mandates – Northwest Biofuels Getting Help In a Pinch
- Energy official frowns on cutting back ethanol
- Evaporative coolers can cut energy costs
- TEXAS – Users sought to test high-tech electricity meters
- E.P.A. Refuses to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
- Green giant – Business is booming at Ecos Consulting
- Fed chief recommends punishment for Comcast
- Comcast Caught, Denies Blocking Traffic
- An Imminent Victory for ‘Net Neutrality’ Advocates
- GM chairman says Americans didn't want fuel-efficient vehicles
- Speeding, wheelie-popping motorcyclist caught in Everett
- Two Feet Washed Ashore In Canada Identified
- Composting plant blamed for city's sickening stench
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Ignominious • \ig-nuh-MIN-ee-us\ • adjective – 1: marked with or characterized by disgrace or shame: dishonorable 2: deserving of shame or infamy: despicable *3: humiliating, degrading
“Oh, the pain…the pain,” moaned Doctor Smith to his fellow lost shipmates on Jupiter 2. “We’ll all meet our ignominious end on this voyage, I just know it.” Billy Mumy was transfixed by the ACTING of Jonathan Harris…
Jonathan Harris
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Harris
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Lewis County task force makes three metal-theft arrests – Concludes lengthy investigation into PUD wire theft (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/11//area_news/doc48768aaa55cc6138197186.txt
Lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric at fault for 2007 California fires (The Associated Press, via the Los Angeles Daily News)
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_9842237?source=rss
PUD Commissioners from Three Counties to Meet In Shelton (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/491/reftab/1632/Default.aspx
Accountant appointed to board of Tacoma Public Utilities (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/government/story/409028.html
Commentary: The urgent need to upgrade the grid (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/its-alive-need-upgrade-us/story.aspx?guid=%7B10F3E997-694B-447E-AF2C-58BB3211B525%7D&dist=msr_2
OREGON – Liquefied natural gas decision near? Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to meet next week (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/11//area_news/doc4876f06289c21494768659.txt
NEW YORK – Group wants to create hydropower at 4 reservoirs (Times Herald Record, Middletown, NY)
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/NEWS/807080316
FISH & WILDLIFE
Summer sockeye on the move – Near-record numbers of the small salmon are swimming toward Lake Wenatchee (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080710/SPORTS/194218739/0/BIZ
NOAA Fisheries issues10-year Endangered Species Act fishing permit for the upper Columbia basin (The Omak Chronicle, WA)
http://www.omakchronicle.com/nws/n080710d.shtml
Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Oregon's salmon and timber resources deserve attention (Salem, OR)
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080710/OPINION/807100347/1049
Steelhead fishing has been decent in Western Washington (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/fishingreport/story/502717.html
Fish Affect California Water Supply – The federal Fish and Wildlife Service this week underscored the imminent threat of extinction facing the delta smelt, a two-inch-long fish native to the Sacramento River delta, when it announced it was considering whether to declare the fish endangered (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/science/earth/11smelt.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
County's dilemma: Cut trees on levees or lose federal funds – Chop down riverside trees that provide shade for young salmon or lose millions in federal support to fix aging levees -- that's what the Army Corps of Engineers is telling King County (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370358_levees11.html
Making more marsh at Nisqually Delta – $12 million project starts next week on a Nisqually River Delta restoration project. It promises to help endangered salmon and other wildlife (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/409913.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
OHIO – Residents Win Water Case – Residents of a mostly black neighborhood that went almost 50 years without public water were awarded nearly $11 million by a federal jury (The Associated Press, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/us/11brfs-RESIDENTSWIN_BRF.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Study: Southeast US’ cheap access to water at risk (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1483572~Study__Southeast_s_cheap_access_to_water_at_risk.html
OREGON – Algae bloom clogs water treatment plants – Agencies serving Lake Oswego and other Clackamas County towns are affected (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215658516190120.xml&coll=7
Local Utilities Want to "Empower Your Shower" – Free Showerheads to Help Customers Save Water, Energy (BusinessWire, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080709/20080709006321.html?.v=1
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Green Power – America's Best Places for Alternative Energy (Forbes Magazine – Sorry, hydropower is not listed in this story)
http://www.forbes.com/2008/07/09/energy-solar-green-biz-energy-cx_bp_0709atlas.html
NASA Maps Reveal Wind Energy Sources (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53034&src=rss
CALIFORNIA – Bay Area Rapid Transit paying more in bet on solar power – cost is almost double that of electricity purchased today off the grid (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/10/BATP11N5IL.DTL
Thanks to Mandates – Northwest Biofuels Getting Help In a Pinch (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=4088
Energy official frowns on cutting back ethanol (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008044323_apethanolwaiver.html?syndication=rss
CONSERVATION
Evaporative coolers can cut energy costs (USA Today)
http://blogs.usatoday.com/weather/2008/07/evaporative-coo.html?csp=34
TEXAS – Users sought to test high-tech electricity meters (The Dallas Morning News, TX)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/071108dnbuselecbrf.408de4e.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
E.P.A. Refuses to Regulate Greenhouse Gases (The NY Times)
http://nytimes.com/2008/07/11/washington/11cnd-epa.html
Green giant Business is booming at Ecos Consulting as companies adopt sustainable initiatives (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/14/story4.html
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Fed chief recommends punishment for Comcast (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/daily54.html?ana=from_rss
Comcast Caught, Denies Blocking Traffic (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/11/comcast-caught-denies-blocking-traffic/
An Imminent Victory for ‘Net Neutrality’ Advocates (The NY Times)
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/an-imminent-victory-for-net-neutrality-advocates/index.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
GM chairman says Americans didn't want fuel-efficient vehicles (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/daily55.html?ana=from_rss
Speeding, wheelie-popping motorcyclist caught in Everett (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_071008WAB_speeding_motorcycle_rider_caught_TP.420773d4.html
Two Feet Washed Ashore In Canada Identified (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16845041/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Composting plant blamed for city's sickening stench (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/24404019.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Book Borrower Sentenced To $53k Fine, Prison Time
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16832896/detail.html
Berlin belatedly answers "Where's the Wall?" query
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0942966120080709?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Woman kills husband with folding couch
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0919437820080709?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Lewis County task force makes three metal-theft arrests
- Lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric at fault for 2007 California fires
- PUD Commissioners from Three Counties to Meet In Shelton
- Accountant appointed to board of Tacoma Public Utilities
- Commentary: The urgent need to upgrade the grid
- OREGON – Liquefied natural gas decision near?
- NEW YORK – Group wants to create hydropower at 4 reservoirs
- Summer sockeye on the move – Near-record numbers
- NOAA Fisheries issues10-year Endangered Species Act fishing permit for the upper Columbia basin
- Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Oregon's salmon and timber resources deserve attention
- Steelhead fishing has been decent in Western Washington
- Fish Affect California Water Supply
- County's dilemma: Cut trees on levees or lose federal funds
- Making more marsh at Nisqually Delta
- OHIO – Residents OF Minority Community Win Water Case
- Study: Southeast US’ cheap access to water at risk
- OREGON – Algae bloom clogs water treatment plants
- Local Utilities Want to "Empower Your Shower"
- Green Power – America's Best Places for Alternative Energy
- NASA Maps Reveal Wind Energy Sources
- CALIFORNIA – Bay Area Rapid Transit paying more in bet on solar power
- Thanks to Mandates – Northwest Biofuels Getting Help In a Pinch
- Energy official frowns on cutting back ethanol
- Evaporative coolers can cut energy costs
- TEXAS – Users sought to test high-tech electricity meters
- E.P.A. Refuses to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
- Green giant – Business is booming at Ecos Consulting
- Fed chief recommends punishment for Comcast
- Comcast Caught, Denies Blocking Traffic
- An Imminent Victory for ‘Net Neutrality’ Advocates
- GM chairman says Americans didn't want fuel-efficient vehicles
- Speeding, wheelie-popping motorcyclist caught in Everett
- Two Feet Washed Ashore In Canada Identified
- Composting plant blamed for city's sickening stench
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Ignominious • \ig-nuh-MIN-ee-us\ • adjective – 1: marked with or characterized by disgrace or shame: dishonorable 2: deserving of shame or infamy: despicable *3: humiliating, degrading
“Oh, the pain…the pain,” moaned Doctor Smith to his fellow lost shipmates on Jupiter 2. “We’ll all meet our ignominious end on this voyage, I just know it.” Billy Mumy was transfixed by the ACTING of Jonathan Harris…
Jonathan Harris
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Harris
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Lewis County task force makes three metal-theft arrests – Concludes lengthy investigation into PUD wire theft (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/11//area_news/doc48768aaa55cc6138197186.txt
Lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric at fault for 2007 California fires (The Associated Press, via the Los Angeles Daily News)
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_9842237?source=rss
PUD Commissioners from Three Counties to Meet In Shelton (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/491/reftab/1632/Default.aspx
Accountant appointed to board of Tacoma Public Utilities (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/government/story/409028.html
Commentary: The urgent need to upgrade the grid (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/its-alive-need-upgrade-us/story.aspx?guid=%7B10F3E997-694B-447E-AF2C-58BB3211B525%7D&dist=msr_2
OREGON – Liquefied natural gas decision near? Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to meet next week (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/11//area_news/doc4876f06289c21494768659.txt
NEW YORK – Group wants to create hydropower at 4 reservoirs (Times Herald Record, Middletown, NY)
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/NEWS/807080316
FISH & WILDLIFE
Summer sockeye on the move – Near-record numbers of the small salmon are swimming toward Lake Wenatchee (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080710/SPORTS/194218739/0/BIZ
NOAA Fisheries issues10-year Endangered Species Act fishing permit for the upper Columbia basin (The Omak Chronicle, WA)
http://www.omakchronicle.com/nws/n080710d.shtml
Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Oregon's salmon and timber resources deserve attention (Salem, OR)
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080710/OPINION/807100347/1049
Steelhead fishing has been decent in Western Washington (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/fishingreport/story/502717.html
Fish Affect California Water Supply – The federal Fish and Wildlife Service this week underscored the imminent threat of extinction facing the delta smelt, a two-inch-long fish native to the Sacramento River delta, when it announced it was considering whether to declare the fish endangered (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/science/earth/11smelt.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
County's dilemma: Cut trees on levees or lose federal funds – Chop down riverside trees that provide shade for young salmon or lose millions in federal support to fix aging levees -- that's what the Army Corps of Engineers is telling King County (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370358_levees11.html
Making more marsh at Nisqually Delta – $12 million project starts next week on a Nisqually River Delta restoration project. It promises to help endangered salmon and other wildlife (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/409913.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
OHIO – Residents Win Water Case – Residents of a mostly black neighborhood that went almost 50 years without public water were awarded nearly $11 million by a federal jury (The Associated Press, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/us/11brfs-RESIDENTSWIN_BRF.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Study: Southeast US’ cheap access to water at risk (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1483572~Study__Southeast_s_cheap_access_to_water_at_risk.html
OREGON – Algae bloom clogs water treatment plants – Agencies serving Lake Oswego and other Clackamas County towns are affected (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215658516190120.xml&coll=7
Local Utilities Want to "Empower Your Shower" – Free Showerheads to Help Customers Save Water, Energy (BusinessWire, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080709/20080709006321.html?.v=1
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Green Power – America's Best Places for Alternative Energy (Forbes Magazine – Sorry, hydropower is not listed in this story)
http://www.forbes.com/2008/07/09/energy-solar-green-biz-energy-cx_bp_0709atlas.html
NASA Maps Reveal Wind Energy Sources (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53034&src=rss
CALIFORNIA – Bay Area Rapid Transit paying more in bet on solar power – cost is almost double that of electricity purchased today off the grid (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/10/BATP11N5IL.DTL
Thanks to Mandates – Northwest Biofuels Getting Help In a Pinch (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=4088
Energy official frowns on cutting back ethanol (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008044323_apethanolwaiver.html?syndication=rss
CONSERVATION
Evaporative coolers can cut energy costs (USA Today)
http://blogs.usatoday.com/weather/2008/07/evaporative-coo.html?csp=34
TEXAS – Users sought to test high-tech electricity meters (The Dallas Morning News, TX)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/071108dnbuselecbrf.408de4e.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
E.P.A. Refuses to Regulate Greenhouse Gases (The NY Times)
http://nytimes.com/2008/07/11/washington/11cnd-epa.html
Green giant Business is booming at Ecos Consulting as companies adopt sustainable initiatives (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/14/story4.html
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Fed chief recommends punishment for Comcast (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/daily54.html?ana=from_rss
Comcast Caught, Denies Blocking Traffic (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/11/comcast-caught-denies-blocking-traffic/
An Imminent Victory for ‘Net Neutrality’ Advocates (The NY Times)
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/an-imminent-victory-for-net-neutrality-advocates/index.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
GM chairman says Americans didn't want fuel-efficient vehicles (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/daily55.html?ana=from_rss
Speeding, wheelie-popping motorcyclist caught in Everett (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_071008WAB_speeding_motorcycle_rider_caught_TP.420773d4.html
Two Feet Washed Ashore In Canada Identified (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16845041/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Composting plant blamed for city's sickening stench (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/24404019.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Book Borrower Sentenced To $53k Fine, Prison Time
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16832896/detail.html
Berlin belatedly answers "Where's the Wall?" query
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0942966120080709?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Woman kills husband with folding couch
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL0919437820080709?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 9, 2008
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.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- VIEWPOINT: Watch out for ‘experts’ in Whidbey PUD debate
- Ex-Grays Harbor County PUD employee ordered to pay restitution for theft
- MONTANA – High power prices lead to layoffs at Columbia Falls Aluminum
- Alcoa’s Profit Falls on Higher Costs
- Alcoa Profit Tops Estimates After Price Rise
- CALIFORNIA – Heat could push state's power use to record
- OREGON – Foes of liquefied natural gas call for the courage to say no
- OREGON – Park service warns f liquefied natural gas may hurt river
- HAWAII – Office tenants feeling effects of energy crisis
- Report: Energy industry's ageing workforce threatens competitiveness
- Wenatchee World Opinion – The sockeye and good news
- Congressman Hastings adds funds for Columbia Basin water
- Conservation groups sue WSU over water rights
- Clallam County Commissioners Sign Sewer Agreement with Clallam PUD
- State park's system possible septic solution for Brinnon
- Port of Bremerton Closer to Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Commitment
- Port of Benton biomass pellet project may get federal funding
- British Columbia's Blind Eye to Sun, Wind Power
- Solar Firms Eye Bright Future in U.S.
- Gatorade Co. to operate largest customer-owned solar unit in Salt River Project territory
- GEORGIA – Wind turbines considered for Georgia coast
- Two megawatts of batteries connected to power grid
- It’s Easy Being Green: A Bright Idea
- NEW HAMPSHIRE – The Citizen of Laconia Opinion – Conserving energy means hard decisions
- State-of-the-art sustainable neighborhood
- Glaciers on California's Mt Shasta keep growing
- MONTANA – Missoula considers hiring energy-conscious official
- San Jose Mercury News Op/Ed – Carbon offsets issue hits a nerve
- Energy Pulse Commentary – The Emerging Carbon Market
- Grant PUD increases fiber rates – Increases begin in October
- British Regulators Prescribe More Fiber for ISPs
- Pentagon to reopen $35 billion tanker bid
- Parties dig in heels on primary
- Teen Climber Saved In Remote Olympic Mountains Rescue in Jefferson County
- Wire thieves hit State Patrol facility near Spanaway
- Seattle grocery bag fee proposal gets warm reception
- SuperSonics' name already wiped from Web
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Kvetch • \kuh-VETCH\ • verb – To complain habitually
Angus, the company’s designated Eyore could be counted on to complain about almost everything. The only time that his muttered kvetching could not be heard was when he was asleep at this desk: his face firmly planted on his keyboard. Then, upon his awakening, he would start complaining about the drool that had gotten between the keys during his short nap.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
VIEWPOINT: Watch out for ‘experts’ in Whidbey PUD debate (PNW Local News, WA)
http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/opinion/24088199.html
Ex-Grays Harbor County PUD employee ordered to pay restitution for theft (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/09/local_news/08news.txt
MONTANA – High power prices lead to layoffs at Columbia Falls Aluminum (The Daily Inter Lake, Kalispell, MT)
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news02.txt
Alcoa’s Profit Falls on Higher Costs (Reuters, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-alcoa.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Alcoa Profit Tops Estimates After Price Rise – Alcoa, the aluminum producer, reported second-quarter profit that topped analyst estimates as the company raised prices. The shares gained in after-hours trading. (Bloomberg News, via the NY Times – spin baby, spin!)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/business/09alcoa.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
CALIFORNIA – Heat could push state's power use to record (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/09/BUT311LPDJ.DTL
OREGON – Foes of liquefied natural gas call for the courage to say no (The Corvallis Gazette-Times, OR)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1479200~Ore__foes_of_LNG_call_for_the_courage_to_say_no.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
OREGON – Park service warns f liquefied natural gas may hurt river – National Park Service criticizes FERC for faulty environmental review, seeks new report (The Daily Astorian, OR)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=398&ArticleID=52676
HAWAII – Office tenants feeling effects of energy crisis (The Honolulu Advertiser, HI)
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080709/BUSINESS04/807090383
Report: Energy industry's ageing workforce threatens competitiveness (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=22&ARTICLE_ID=333804&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss
FISH & WILDLIFE
Wenatchee World Opinion – The sockeye and good news (Wenatchee, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/OP03/750102818/-1/OP
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Congressman Hastings adds funds for Columbia Basin water – Money to help solutions 'move forward' (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news06.txt
Conservation groups sue WSU over water rights (The Associated Press, via The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/NEWS03/242699712/1025/rss1025
Clallam County Commissioners Sign Sewer Agreement with Clallam PUD – Project could bring Carlsborg into compliance in a year (The Sequim Gazette, WA)
http://www.sequimgazette.com/Article/articleDetail.exm/Index/article/2008-07-09_COUNTY_COMMISSIONERS_SIGN_SEWER_AGREEMENT/
State park's system possible septic solution for Brinnon – A new on-site septic system scheduled for completion in 2010 at Dosewallips State Park ultimately could hook up to Brinnon's commercial core (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080709/NEWS/807090307
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Port of Bremerton Closer to Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Commitment With Pursuit of $2.5 Million Grant (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/08/port-steps-toward-seed-commitment-with-pursuit/
Port of Benton biomass pellet project may get federal funding (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/234442.html
British Columbia's Blind Eye to Sun, Wind Power – Why is Germany's solar future more sunny? Province lags as other places pay top dollar to promote range of renewable power (The Tyee, Canada)
http://thetyee.ca/News/2008/07/08/SunWind/
Solar Firms Eye Bright Future in U.S. (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92342742&ft=1&f=2
Gatorade Co. to operate largest customer-owned solar unit in Salt River Project territory (Phoenix Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2008/07/07/daily26.html?ana=from_rss
GEORGIA – Wind turbines considered for Georgia coast (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA)
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/business/stories/2008/07/09/wind_turbine_georgia_coast.html
Two megawatts of batteries connected to power grid (CNET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-9985393-54.html?hhTest
CONSERVATION
It’s Easy Being Green: A Bright Idea (Center for American Progress)
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/07/bright_idea.html
NEW HAMPSHIRE – The Citizen of Laconia Opinion – Conserving energy means hard decisions (Laconia, NH)
http://www.citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080709/GJOPINION02/723893213/-1/CITNEWS
State-of-the-art sustainable neighborhood (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07092008_Stateoftheart-sustainable-neighborhood.cfm
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Glaciers on California's Mt Shasta keep growing (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1478010~Glaciers_on_California_s_Mt_Shasta_keep_growing.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
MONTANA – Missoula considers hiring energy-conscious official – City being urged to hire a sustainability coordinator to help take on global warming (The Missoulian, Missoula, MT)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/09/news/local/news05.txt
San Jose Mercury News Op/Ed – Carbon offsets issue hits a nerve: Readers Weigh In On Program That Pays To Not Harvest Trees
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9825595?source=rss
Energy Pulse Commentary – The Emerging Carbon Market
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1779
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Grant PUD increases fiber rates – Increases begin in October (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news01.txt
British Regulators Prescribe More Fiber for ISPs (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/08/british-regulators-prescribe-more-fiber-for-isps/
GENERAL NEWS
Pentagon to reopen $35 billion tanker bid (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/370114_tanker10.html
Parties dig in heels on primary – The Democratic and Republican parties say the fight over the state primary isn't over yet and that if the election goes ahead as planned next month the results could be thrown out (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008040496_primary09m0.html?syndication=rss
Teen Climber Saved In Remote Olympic Mountains Rescue in Jefferson County (KIRO-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16825702/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_7am&tmi=sea_7am_1_09000707092008&ts=H
Wire thieves hit State Patrol facility near Spanaway (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008041139_webwirethreft09m.html?syndication=rss
Seattle grocery bag fee proposal gets warm reception – A proposal to ban foam containers and charge for disposable grocery bags got a warmly uproarious -- and, at times, absurd -- reception during its first public hearing (The Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370107_bags09.html
SuperSonics' name already wiped from Web (KOMO-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/24195654.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Washington couple wins lawsuit over neighbor's signs
http://www.examiner.com/a-1477719~Wash__couple_wins_lawsuit_over_neighbor_s_signs.html?cid=rss-Montana_Headlines
Cable system fails to deliver promised prize to local winner – or, the “Case of the Incredible Shrinking Big-Screen TV”
http://www.enewscourier.com/local/local_story_183220754.html
Which Breed Of Dog Is Most Aggressive? Study Finds Dachshund To Be Most Aggressive Breed
http://www.kirotv.com/family/16819735/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=irresistible
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- VIEWPOINT: Watch out for ‘experts’ in Whidbey PUD debate
- Ex-Grays Harbor County PUD employee ordered to pay restitution for theft
- MONTANA – High power prices lead to layoffs at Columbia Falls Aluminum
- Alcoa’s Profit Falls on Higher Costs
- Alcoa Profit Tops Estimates After Price Rise
- CALIFORNIA – Heat could push state's power use to record
- OREGON – Foes of liquefied natural gas call for the courage to say no
- OREGON – Park service warns f liquefied natural gas may hurt river
- HAWAII – Office tenants feeling effects of energy crisis
- Report: Energy industry's ageing workforce threatens competitiveness
- Wenatchee World Opinion – The sockeye and good news
- Congressman Hastings adds funds for Columbia Basin water
- Conservation groups sue WSU over water rights
- Clallam County Commissioners Sign Sewer Agreement with Clallam PUD
- State park's system possible septic solution for Brinnon
- Port of Bremerton Closer to Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Commitment
- Port of Benton biomass pellet project may get federal funding
- British Columbia's Blind Eye to Sun, Wind Power
- Solar Firms Eye Bright Future in U.S.
- Gatorade Co. to operate largest customer-owned solar unit in Salt River Project territory
- GEORGIA – Wind turbines considered for Georgia coast
- Two megawatts of batteries connected to power grid
- It’s Easy Being Green: A Bright Idea
- NEW HAMPSHIRE – The Citizen of Laconia Opinion – Conserving energy means hard decisions
- State-of-the-art sustainable neighborhood
- Glaciers on California's Mt Shasta keep growing
- MONTANA – Missoula considers hiring energy-conscious official
- San Jose Mercury News Op/Ed – Carbon offsets issue hits a nerve
- Energy Pulse Commentary – The Emerging Carbon Market
- Grant PUD increases fiber rates – Increases begin in October
- British Regulators Prescribe More Fiber for ISPs
- Pentagon to reopen $35 billion tanker bid
- Parties dig in heels on primary
- Teen Climber Saved In Remote Olympic Mountains Rescue in Jefferson County
- Wire thieves hit State Patrol facility near Spanaway
- Seattle grocery bag fee proposal gets warm reception
- SuperSonics' name already wiped from Web
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Kvetch • \kuh-VETCH\ • verb – To complain habitually
Angus, the company’s designated Eyore could be counted on to complain about almost everything. The only time that his muttered kvetching could not be heard was when he was asleep at this desk: his face firmly planted on his keyboard. Then, upon his awakening, he would start complaining about the drool that had gotten between the keys during his short nap.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
VIEWPOINT: Watch out for ‘experts’ in Whidbey PUD debate (PNW Local News, WA)
http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/opinion/24088199.html
Ex-Grays Harbor County PUD employee ordered to pay restitution for theft (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/09/local_news/08news.txt
MONTANA – High power prices lead to layoffs at Columbia Falls Aluminum (The Daily Inter Lake, Kalispell, MT)
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news02.txt
Alcoa’s Profit Falls on Higher Costs (Reuters, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-alcoa.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Alcoa Profit Tops Estimates After Price Rise – Alcoa, the aluminum producer, reported second-quarter profit that topped analyst estimates as the company raised prices. The shares gained in after-hours trading. (Bloomberg News, via the NY Times – spin baby, spin!)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/business/09alcoa.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
CALIFORNIA – Heat could push state's power use to record (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/09/BUT311LPDJ.DTL
OREGON – Foes of liquefied natural gas call for the courage to say no (The Corvallis Gazette-Times, OR)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1479200~Ore__foes_of_LNG_call_for_the_courage_to_say_no.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
OREGON – Park service warns f liquefied natural gas may hurt river – National Park Service criticizes FERC for faulty environmental review, seeks new report (The Daily Astorian, OR)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=398&ArticleID=52676
HAWAII – Office tenants feeling effects of energy crisis (The Honolulu Advertiser, HI)
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080709/BUSINESS04/807090383
Report: Energy industry's ageing workforce threatens competitiveness (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=22&ARTICLE_ID=333804&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss
FISH & WILDLIFE
Wenatchee World Opinion – The sockeye and good news (Wenatchee, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/OP03/750102818/-1/OP
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Congressman Hastings adds funds for Columbia Basin water – Money to help solutions 'move forward' (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news06.txt
Conservation groups sue WSU over water rights (The Associated Press, via The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/NEWS03/242699712/1025/rss1025
Clallam County Commissioners Sign Sewer Agreement with Clallam PUD – Project could bring Carlsborg into compliance in a year (The Sequim Gazette, WA)
http://www.sequimgazette.com/Article/articleDetail.exm/Index/article/2008-07-09_COUNTY_COMMISSIONERS_SIGN_SEWER_AGREEMENT/
State park's system possible septic solution for Brinnon – A new on-site septic system scheduled for completion in 2010 at Dosewallips State Park ultimately could hook up to Brinnon's commercial core (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080709/NEWS/807090307
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Port of Bremerton Closer to Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Commitment With Pursuit of $2.5 Million Grant (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/08/port-steps-toward-seed-commitment-with-pursuit/
Port of Benton biomass pellet project may get federal funding (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/234442.html
British Columbia's Blind Eye to Sun, Wind Power – Why is Germany's solar future more sunny? Province lags as other places pay top dollar to promote range of renewable power (The Tyee, Canada)
http://thetyee.ca/News/2008/07/08/SunWind/
Solar Firms Eye Bright Future in U.S. (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92342742&ft=1&f=2
Gatorade Co. to operate largest customer-owned solar unit in Salt River Project territory (Phoenix Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2008/07/07/daily26.html?ana=from_rss
GEORGIA – Wind turbines considered for Georgia coast (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA)
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/business/stories/2008/07/09/wind_turbine_georgia_coast.html
Two megawatts of batteries connected to power grid (CNET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-9985393-54.html?hhTest
CONSERVATION
It’s Easy Being Green: A Bright Idea (Center for American Progress)
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/07/bright_idea.html
NEW HAMPSHIRE – The Citizen of Laconia Opinion – Conserving energy means hard decisions (Laconia, NH)
http://www.citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080709/GJOPINION02/723893213/-1/CITNEWS
State-of-the-art sustainable neighborhood (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07092008_Stateoftheart-sustainable-neighborhood.cfm
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Glaciers on California's Mt Shasta keep growing (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1478010~Glaciers_on_California_s_Mt_Shasta_keep_growing.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
MONTANA – Missoula considers hiring energy-conscious official – City being urged to hire a sustainability coordinator to help take on global warming (The Missoulian, Missoula, MT)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/09/news/local/news05.txt
San Jose Mercury News Op/Ed – Carbon offsets issue hits a nerve: Readers Weigh In On Program That Pays To Not Harvest Trees
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9825595?source=rss
Energy Pulse Commentary – The Emerging Carbon Market
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1779
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Grant PUD increases fiber rates – Increases begin in October (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/08/news/news01.txt
British Regulators Prescribe More Fiber for ISPs (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/08/british-regulators-prescribe-more-fiber-for-isps/
GENERAL NEWS
Pentagon to reopen $35 billion tanker bid (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/370114_tanker10.html
Parties dig in heels on primary – The Democratic and Republican parties say the fight over the state primary isn't over yet and that if the election goes ahead as planned next month the results could be thrown out (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008040496_primary09m0.html?syndication=rss
Teen Climber Saved In Remote Olympic Mountains Rescue in Jefferson County (KIRO-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16825702/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_7am&tmi=sea_7am_1_09000707092008&ts=H
Wire thieves hit State Patrol facility near Spanaway (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008041139_webwirethreft09m.html?syndication=rss
Seattle grocery bag fee proposal gets warm reception – A proposal to ban foam containers and charge for disposable grocery bags got a warmly uproarious -- and, at times, absurd -- reception during its first public hearing (The Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370107_bags09.html
SuperSonics' name already wiped from Web (KOMO-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/24195654.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Washington couple wins lawsuit over neighbor's signs
http://www.examiner.com/a-1477719~Wash__couple_wins_lawsuit_over_neighbor_s_signs.html?cid=rss-Montana_Headlines
Cable system fails to deliver promised prize to local winner – or, the “Case of the Incredible Shrinking Big-Screen TV”
http://www.enewscourier.com/local/local_story_183220754.html
Which Breed Of Dog Is Most Aggressive? Study Finds Dachshund To Be Most Aggressive Breed
http://www.kirotv.com/family/16819735/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=irresistible
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 8, 2008
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.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Columbian Guest Columnist – Skagit would regret seizing live power lines
- Chelan County PUD-Alcoa Contract
- Tacoma tideflats power outage causes oil to spew out of refinery stack
- UTAH – Coal-fired power plant will be on Sevier County ballot
- Women at Work Find Reinforced Glass Ceilings – BPA targeted in article
- MINNESOTA – Is Otter Tail a utility or a conglomerate?
- Summer salmon run has anglers giddy
- The Daily Astorian Opinion – Salmon elites pull out of negotiations
- Wind Power Threatens . . . Salmon?!
- East Clallam County – Customers make waves over Diamond Point water system
- Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens wants to supplant oil with wind
- Wind Power: Energy vision or Boone doggle?
- Large Solar Energy Array Set for General Motors plant in Spain
- Europeans Reconsider Biofuel Goal
- Canada's Clean Energy Classrooms
- A Cloth to Cut the Mercury Risk from Light Bulbs
- U.S. Green Building Council set to modify LEED standards
- Special Report: Energy Efficiency – Same Wires, More Power
- G-8 Leaders Pledge to Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Half by 2050
- Experts Push 'Green' Solutions to Infrastructure Problems
- Grant County PUD Wholesale Fiber Rates
- OREGON – Providence Health clamps down on bandwidth
- So Far, Broadband 'Franchise Reform' Means Higher Prices
- CALIFORNIA – Palo Alto council enthusiastic about high speed broadband proposals
- Another twist in Microsoft, Yahoo saga
- Seattle improperly spent taxes, audit says
- Seattle to hold hearing on proposed Styrofoam ban and 20-cent fee for paper or plastic bags
- Theft of car anti-pollution devices increasing
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Turpitude • \TER-puh-tood\ • noun – Inherent baseness: depravity; also: a base act
Derwood was mortified by the accusations of moral turpitude that were directed at him by the executive board of the “Pick Up Stix” Association of America. The only digression he could remember came when he was twelve, and had been caught rearranging an extremely complex pile of the sticks while he thought no one was looking. His worst fears were confirmed by the cunning smirk displayed by board member Rusty the “Straw Man” Hertz.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Columbian Guest Columnist – Skagit would regret seizing live power lines: Washingtonians put the bitter private-public power wars behind us more than three quarters of a century ago (Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/07/07082008_Skagit-would-regret-seizing-live-power-lines.cfm/
CHELAN COUNTY PUD-ALCOA CONTRACT – Chelan County PUD commissioners are getting closer to ratifying a new power sales contract with Alcoa. PUD spokeswoman Kimberlee Craig says commissioners will consider the final agreement next Monday. Six months ago, commissioners approved the initial contract terms. Craig says the contract would provide Alcoa with electricity equal to 26 percent of the output of Rocky Reach and Rock Island dams, in exchange for the company paying 26 percent of the cost of producing and delivering the power, plus other costs. She says if approved, Alcoa will also pay about 23 million dollars of an 89 million dollar reservation charge within a month of signing, with the balance deferred as long as the plant continues to run three pot lines. (KPQ Radio, Wenatchee, WA)
Tacoma tideflats power outage causes oil to spew out of refinery stack (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/407334.html
UTAH – Coal-fired power plant will be on Sevier County ballot (The Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/News/ci_9813736
Women at Work Find Reinforced Glass Ceilings – With two decades of experience under her belt, Lindsay Hall was confident she was a strong candidate for a promotion within the Bonneville Power Administration, a federal agency in Oregon where she works as a wildlife biologist. (Womens’ ENews Note: why didn’t the author include mention of previous hires of Judi Johansen as administrator and Vickie Van Zandt in transmission?)
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3663/context/archive
MINNESOTA – Is Otter Tail a utility or a conglomerate? As the utility's other businesses grow, it asks for its first overall rate increase in 20 years (Minneapolis Star-Tribune, MN)
http://www.startribune.com/business/24048459.html?location_refer=Business:highlightModules:3
FISH & WILDLIFE
Summer salmon run has anglers giddy “…Projections call for a run of more than 52,000 summer Chinook to make their way up the Columbia this season. Sockeye run predictions are even more impressive…” (The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080707/NEWS04/237436731
The Daily Astorian Opinion – Salmon elites pull out of negotiations: Commercial fishers are descendants of heroic men who fed their families (Astoria, OR)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/main.asp?SectionID=23&SubSectionID=392&ArticleID=52649&TM=275.812
Wind Power Threatens . . . Salmon?! (National Review Online)
http://planetgore.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YzgxMmRmOTIwNmFlMDEzNzAyY2U5N2E1MjJiYjQxOTU=
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
East Clallam County – Customers make waves over Diamond Point water system (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080708/NEWS/807080307
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens wants to supplant oil with wind (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2008-07-08-t-boone-pickens-plan-wind-energy_N.htm
Wind Power: Energy vision or Boone doggle? Pickens plan credible by comparison with Washington (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/energy-vision-boone-doggle/story.aspx?guid=%7BCE4C84D0-A81D-4BAF-BC52-0585105E516D%7D&dist=msr_1
Large Solar Energy Array Set for General Motors plant in Spain (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/business/08solar.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Europeans Reconsider Biofuel Goal – European officials proposed scaling back drastically on their goal of increasing Europe’s use of biofuels, a major about-face on a central environmental and energy issue (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/business/worldbusiness/08fuel.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Canada's Clean Energy Classrooms (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=52997&src=rss
CONSERVATION
A Cloth to Cut the Mercury Risk from Light Bulbs (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/science/08obcfl.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
U.S. Green Building Council set to modify LEED standards (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/07/daily6.html?ana=from_rss
Special Report: Energy Efficiency – Same Wires, More Power (Forbes Magazine)
http://www.forbes.com/business/2008/07/03/energy-efficiency-electricity-biz-energy_cx_bw_wp_0707efficiency_grid.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
G-8 Leaders Pledge to Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Half by 2050 (The NY Times, clever picture)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/science/earth/09climate.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Experts Push 'Green' Solutions to Infrastructure Problems (Oregon Public Broadcasting – Note: this is a story that really says NOTHING)
http://news.opb.org/article/2528-experts-push-green-solutions-infrastructure-problems/
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
GRANT COUNTY PUD WHOLESALE FIBER RATES – Grant County PUD commissioners this week adopted new wholesale fiber rates that officials say will allow the District to move forward with its fiber build-out by moving towards making the system pay for itself. PUD spokeswoman Dorothy Harris says one the change to the wholesale rate structure is a one-time 55 dollar fee for fiber electronics installation. The new wholesale fiber rates go into effect in October. (KPQ Radio, Wenatchee, WA)
OREGON – Providence Health clamps down on bandwidth – The Portland-area hospital system halts employees' personal use of streaming audio and video online (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121514551333780.xml&coll=7
So Far, 'Franchise Reform' Means Higher Prices – Shocking: lobbyist promises of competitive price utopia not materializing (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/So-Far-Franchise-Reform-Means-Higher-Prices-95903
CALIFORNIA – Palo Alto council enthusiastic about high speed broadband proposals (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9817124?source=rss
Another twist in Microsoft, Yahoo saga – Ballmer, Icahn talking about possible deal if board ousted (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/369890_msftyahoo08.html?source=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Seattle improperly spent taxes, audit says – City to reimburse property revenue spent on fire station, trail (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/369891_audit08.html?source=rss
Seattle City Council to hold hearing on proposed Styrofoam ban and 20-cent fee for paper or plastic bags (Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008038566_grocerybag08m0.html?syndication=rss
Theft of car anti-pollution devices increasing (Associated Press, via the Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080707/NEWS02/54094592/1025/rss1025
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Man Posts Video Showing Himself, Father Shocking Each Other With Stolen Stun Gun
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16811026/detail.html
Common wildlife is alien to many British kids – It comes in a poor second to their ability to identify science fiction creatures such as Star Wars characters
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080708/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_nature;_ylt=AvIUiBi0Jc3taN_J8iQlbgrtiBIF
Man accused of faking heart attacks to avoid bills
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080705/ap_on_fe_st/odd_fake_heart_attacks;_ylt=AvA5wzb2WVlg9VC6UxSHnL3tiBIF
It pays to go in a public toilet in India – residents are earning close to a dollar a month by using public urinals, a scheme launched by authorities to promote hygiene and research in rural areas
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080707/od_nm/toilets_dc;_ylt=AoC_5kgfnLcO92vyauRrJhDtiBIF
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Columbian Guest Columnist – Skagit would regret seizing live power lines
- Chelan County PUD-Alcoa Contract
- Tacoma tideflats power outage causes oil to spew out of refinery stack
- UTAH – Coal-fired power plant will be on Sevier County ballot
- Women at Work Find Reinforced Glass Ceilings – BPA targeted in article
- MINNESOTA – Is Otter Tail a utility or a conglomerate?
- Summer salmon run has anglers giddy
- The Daily Astorian Opinion – Salmon elites pull out of negotiations
- Wind Power Threatens . . . Salmon?!
- East Clallam County – Customers make waves over Diamond Point water system
- Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens wants to supplant oil with wind
- Wind Power: Energy vision or Boone doggle?
- Large Solar Energy Array Set for General Motors plant in Spain
- Europeans Reconsider Biofuel Goal
- Canada's Clean Energy Classrooms
- A Cloth to Cut the Mercury Risk from Light Bulbs
- U.S. Green Building Council set to modify LEED standards
- Special Report: Energy Efficiency – Same Wires, More Power
- G-8 Leaders Pledge to Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Half by 2050
- Experts Push 'Green' Solutions to Infrastructure Problems
- Grant County PUD Wholesale Fiber Rates
- OREGON – Providence Health clamps down on bandwidth
- So Far, Broadband 'Franchise Reform' Means Higher Prices
- CALIFORNIA – Palo Alto council enthusiastic about high speed broadband proposals
- Another twist in Microsoft, Yahoo saga
- Seattle improperly spent taxes, audit says
- Seattle to hold hearing on proposed Styrofoam ban and 20-cent fee for paper or plastic bags
- Theft of car anti-pollution devices increasing
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Turpitude • \TER-puh-tood\ • noun – Inherent baseness: depravity; also: a base act
Derwood was mortified by the accusations of moral turpitude that were directed at him by the executive board of the “Pick Up Stix” Association of America. The only digression he could remember came when he was twelve, and had been caught rearranging an extremely complex pile of the sticks while he thought no one was looking. His worst fears were confirmed by the cunning smirk displayed by board member Rusty the “Straw Man” Hertz.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Columbian Guest Columnist – Skagit would regret seizing live power lines: Washingtonians put the bitter private-public power wars behind us more than three quarters of a century ago (Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/07/07082008_Skagit-would-regret-seizing-live-power-lines.cfm/
CHELAN COUNTY PUD-ALCOA CONTRACT – Chelan County PUD commissioners are getting closer to ratifying a new power sales contract with Alcoa. PUD spokeswoman Kimberlee Craig says commissioners will consider the final agreement next Monday. Six months ago, commissioners approved the initial contract terms. Craig says the contract would provide Alcoa with electricity equal to 26 percent of the output of Rocky Reach and Rock Island dams, in exchange for the company paying 26 percent of the cost of producing and delivering the power, plus other costs. She says if approved, Alcoa will also pay about 23 million dollars of an 89 million dollar reservation charge within a month of signing, with the balance deferred as long as the plant continues to run three pot lines. (KPQ Radio, Wenatchee, WA)
Tacoma tideflats power outage causes oil to spew out of refinery stack (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/407334.html
UTAH – Coal-fired power plant will be on Sevier County ballot (The Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/News/ci_9813736
Women at Work Find Reinforced Glass Ceilings – With two decades of experience under her belt, Lindsay Hall was confident she was a strong candidate for a promotion within the Bonneville Power Administration, a federal agency in Oregon where she works as a wildlife biologist. (Womens’ ENews Note: why didn’t the author include mention of previous hires of Judi Johansen as administrator and Vickie Van Zandt in transmission?)
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3663/context/archive
MINNESOTA – Is Otter Tail a utility or a conglomerate? As the utility's other businesses grow, it asks for its first overall rate increase in 20 years (Minneapolis Star-Tribune, MN)
http://www.startribune.com/business/24048459.html?location_refer=Business:highlightModules:3
FISH & WILDLIFE
Summer salmon run has anglers giddy “…Projections call for a run of more than 52,000 summer Chinook to make their way up the Columbia this season. Sockeye run predictions are even more impressive…” (The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080707/NEWS04/237436731
The Daily Astorian Opinion – Salmon elites pull out of negotiations: Commercial fishers are descendants of heroic men who fed their families (Astoria, OR)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/main.asp?SectionID=23&SubSectionID=392&ArticleID=52649&TM=275.812
Wind Power Threatens . . . Salmon?! (National Review Online)
http://planetgore.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YzgxMmRmOTIwNmFlMDEzNzAyY2U5N2E1MjJiYjQxOTU=
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
East Clallam County – Customers make waves over Diamond Point water system (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080708/NEWS/807080307
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens wants to supplant oil with wind (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2008-07-08-t-boone-pickens-plan-wind-energy_N.htm
Wind Power: Energy vision or Boone doggle? Pickens plan credible by comparison with Washington (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/energy-vision-boone-doggle/story.aspx?guid=%7BCE4C84D0-A81D-4BAF-BC52-0585105E516D%7D&dist=msr_1
Large Solar Energy Array Set for General Motors plant in Spain (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/business/08solar.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Europeans Reconsider Biofuel Goal – European officials proposed scaling back drastically on their goal of increasing Europe’s use of biofuels, a major about-face on a central environmental and energy issue (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/business/worldbusiness/08fuel.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Canada's Clean Energy Classrooms (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=52997&src=rss
CONSERVATION
A Cloth to Cut the Mercury Risk from Light Bulbs (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/science/08obcfl.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
U.S. Green Building Council set to modify LEED standards (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/07/daily6.html?ana=from_rss
Special Report: Energy Efficiency – Same Wires, More Power (Forbes Magazine)
http://www.forbes.com/business/2008/07/03/energy-efficiency-electricity-biz-energy_cx_bw_wp_0707efficiency_grid.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
G-8 Leaders Pledge to Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Half by 2050 (The NY Times, clever picture)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/science/earth/09climate.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Experts Push 'Green' Solutions to Infrastructure Problems (Oregon Public Broadcasting – Note: this is a story that really says NOTHING)
http://news.opb.org/article/2528-experts-push-green-solutions-infrastructure-problems/
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
GRANT COUNTY PUD WHOLESALE FIBER RATES – Grant County PUD commissioners this week adopted new wholesale fiber rates that officials say will allow the District to move forward with its fiber build-out by moving towards making the system pay for itself. PUD spokeswoman Dorothy Harris says one the change to the wholesale rate structure is a one-time 55 dollar fee for fiber electronics installation. The new wholesale fiber rates go into effect in October. (KPQ Radio, Wenatchee, WA)
OREGON – Providence Health clamps down on bandwidth – The Portland-area hospital system halts employees' personal use of streaming audio and video online (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121514551333780.xml&coll=7
So Far, 'Franchise Reform' Means Higher Prices – Shocking: lobbyist promises of competitive price utopia not materializing (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/So-Far-Franchise-Reform-Means-Higher-Prices-95903
CALIFORNIA – Palo Alto council enthusiastic about high speed broadband proposals (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9817124?source=rss
Another twist in Microsoft, Yahoo saga – Ballmer, Icahn talking about possible deal if board ousted (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/369890_msftyahoo08.html?source=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Seattle improperly spent taxes, audit says – City to reimburse property revenue spent on fire station, trail (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/369891_audit08.html?source=rss
Seattle City Council to hold hearing on proposed Styrofoam ban and 20-cent fee for paper or plastic bags (Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008038566_grocerybag08m0.html?syndication=rss
Theft of car anti-pollution devices increasing (Associated Press, via the Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080707/NEWS02/54094592/1025/rss1025
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Man Posts Video Showing Himself, Father Shocking Each Other With Stolen Stun Gun
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16811026/detail.html
Common wildlife is alien to many British kids – It comes in a poor second to their ability to identify science fiction creatures such as Star Wars characters
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080708/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_nature;_ylt=AvIUiBi0Jc3taN_J8iQlbgrtiBIF
Man accused of faking heart attacks to avoid bills
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080705/ap_on_fe_st/odd_fake_heart_attacks;_ylt=AvA5wzb2WVlg9VC6UxSHnL3tiBIF
It pays to go in a public toilet in India – residents are earning close to a dollar a month by using public urinals, a scheme launched by authorities to promote hygiene and research in rural areas
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080707/od_nm/toilets_dc;_ylt=AoC_5kgfnLcO92vyauRrJhDtiBIF
Monday, July 7, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 7, 2008 - Supersized Edition
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.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Puget Sound Energy lowers its rate increase request
- Grays Harbor PUD Commissioners OK Cosmopolis pulp mill cogeneration deal
- Wind surge poses a risk to salmon and reveals flaws in BPA's power-regulating system
- Larsen optimistic on Intalco – Smelter’s future hinges on power deal
- New grads find it difficult to rise to lineman challenge
- TEXAS – End of an affair – Panelists agree that change is coming to U.S. energy use and supply
- PENNSYLVANIA – An old dam is a source to provide new energy
- UNITED KINGDOM –Suicide Bid Over Energy Bill
- Eight dead as canoeists sucked into turbines at hydroelectric dam under construction
- AUSTRALIA – Energy providers feel the heat as copper wire thefts soar
- FLORIDA – Unpaid bills may trigger utility rate increases
- Fascinating – Appeals Court rules that judges shouldn't act as scientists
- Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals clears path for more logging
- Daily News Opinion – A little balance from 9th Circuit
- $1.13 Million – Enviros Send Feds' BiOp Bill
- Salmon on the Columbia: See you in court
- CANADA – Sockeye's success near Osoyoos is a miracle in the desert
- Salmon is keystone species for region
- Alaska's sick salmon
- OREGON – Rogue River dam in Southern Oregon to come down
- Settlement in WA spotted owl lawsuit
- Work slated on Elwha River diversion channel
- EPA fines Idaho Transportation Department over highway project that damages Lake Coeur d'Alene
- State and local governments side with builders on runoff pollution
- Bottling plant looks to Orting after snubbing by Enumclaw
- Treatment in store for Tacoma’s Wapato Lake to control algae
- OREGON – How safe is city’s water? Testing for contaminants in reservoirs inadequate
- OREGON – Clouds Form On Solar Energy's Horizon
- CALIFORNIA – Surprise opponents to renewable energy measure
- TEXAS – Debate flares over wind power
- NEW YORK – Responses to green energy programs lack energy
- NEW YORK – Wind turbine deal spins up controversy
- Solar power companies look abroad as sun sets on tax credits
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Energy: Renewable ideas
- OREGON – Portland General Electric predicts surge in hybrid vehicles
- Toyota to add solar panels to some Prius
- Biofuels behind food price hikes: leaked World Bank report
- Poplar trees hold promise for fuel
- Clark utility offers free replacement fluorescent light bulbs
- Conserve and you can save, Snohomish County PUD says
- Portland Business Journal poll: Higher energy costs of little concern
- Japan Sees a Chance to Promote Its Energy-Frugal Ways
- Tacoma City Council backs ‘green’ goals
- Is LCD manufacturing worse for environment than coal?
- Can Weeds Help Solve the Climate Crisis?
- UTAH – New iProvo owner changes mind on Veracity buyout
- UTAH – Veracity pullout won't kill iProvo sale
- Internet addressing agency loses its own addresses
- As Web Traffic Grows, Crashes Take Bigger Toll
- Five Nines on the Net is a Pipe Dream
- How Much Bandwidth Do We Really Need?
- Bandwidth Barons Want More Money for Fewer Bytes
- CALIFORNIA – Companies propose ultra-fast broadband for Palo Alto
- PENNSYLVANIA – Fiber optics may hold key to future
- Small-town USA enjoys its first course of WiMax
- Google told to release video data in YouTube trial
- Microsoft to sell $70-a-year subscriptions for Office bundle
- Energy Star for Servers May Be Ready by Year-End
- Secret deal may open prime land in Montana
- Mima Mounds: Mystery hides in vast prairie
- Weyerhaeuser is up a tree on Wall Street
- National speed limit pushed as gas saver
- Spate of Manhole Cover Thefts Poses Problem
- Couple discovers stolen dogs on sale on Craigslist
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Sentient • \SEN-shee-unt\ • adjective – *1: responsive to or conscious of sense impressions 2: aware 3: finely sensitive in perception or feeling
Bert was intrigued by his girlfriend’s obsession with cleaning out his refrigerator. “You’ve got some things that have been in here for at least ten years,” her muffled voice exclaimed from the interior of the mossy cold-storage device. “In fact, I think that this carton of cottage cheese has evolved into some sort of sentient being. It just asked me for a date!”
WORD ORIGIN FROM MERRIAM-WEBSTER: You may have guessed that "sentient" has something to do with the senses. The initial spelling "sent-" or "sens-" is often a giveaway for such a meaning. A "sentient" being is one who perceives and responds to sensations of whatever kind -- sight, hearing, touch, taste, or smell. "Sentient" ultimately comes from the Latin verb "sentire," which means "to feel" and is related to the noun "sensus," meaning "feeling" or "sense." A few related English words are "sentiment" and "sentimental," which have to do with emotions, and "sensual," which relates to more physical "sensations."
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Puget Sound Energy lowers its rate increase request (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/369562_pse04.html
Grays Harbor PUD Commissioners OK Cosmopolis pulp mill cogeneration deal (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/04/local_news/02news.txt
Wind surge poses a risk to salmon and reveals flaws in BPA's power-regulating system – With Columbia Gorge turbines pumping out extra electricity, the agency had to quickly adjust its hydro generation (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215226547277170.xml&coll=7
Larsen optimistic on Intalco – Smelter’s future hinges on power deal (The Bellingham Herald, WA – Implies that the tiered rate methodology will divert some energy to smelters? “…may provide BPA with more flexibility to shift some power to Intalco and other regional aluminum smelters…”)
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/102/story/459422.html
New grads find it difficult to rise to lineman challenge – The International Association of Electrical Workers reports that up to 60 percent of utility workers are expected to retire in the next two years (The Cleveland Plain Dealer, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008035183_apprenticeships06.html?syndication=rss
TEXAS – End of an affair – Panelists agree that change is coming to U.S. energy use and supply, driven by consumers who demand it (Houston Chronicle, TX)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/5872282.html
PENNSYLVANIA – An old source to provide new energy – The century-old dam on the Susquehanna River doesn't look like an energy source of the future “...providing another 100,000 homes with pollution-free electricity…” (The Baltimore Sun, via the Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, CA)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_9791354?source=rss
Here’s a picture of the Holtwood Dam
http://www.pbase.com/r2010/image/55407728
UNITED KINGDOM –Suicide Bid Over Energy Bill – A pensioner downed 100 pills and half a bottle of brandy in an attempt to kill himself over an exorbitant - and incorrect - electricity bill (Sky News, UK)
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Pensioner-84-Attempts-Suicide-Over-Incorrect-Unpaid-Energy-Bill-From-EON/Article/200807115025396?lpos=Business_8&lid=ARTICLE_15025396_Pensioner%252C%2B84%252C%2BAttempts%2BSuicide%2BOver%2BIncorrect%2BUnpaid%2BEnergy%2BBill%2BFrom%2BE.ON
SLOVENIA – Eight dead as canoeists sucked into turbines at hydroelectric dam under construction – The trip was ominously dubbed "The Final Descent"… (CNN Europe)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/07/04/slovenia.canoe.ap/index.html?eref=ib_topstories
AUSTRALIA – Energy providers feel the heat as copper wire thefts soar (Sydney Morning Herald)
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/energy-providers-feel-the-heat-as-copper-wire-thefts-soar/2008/07/06/1215282652811.html
FLORIDA – Unpaid bills may trigger utility rate increases (Orlando Business Journal)
http://orlando.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2008/07/07/story2.html
FISH & WILDLIFE
Fascinating – Appeals Court rules that judges shouldn't act as scientists –Ninth Circuit says that t’s improper for federal judges to act as scientists when weighing in on disputed U.S. Forest Service timber projects (The Associated Press, via KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/23095519.html
Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals clears path for more logging – Federal judges redefine standards for timber projects on public lands and deal a blow to environmental groups (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/121514735090910.xml&coll=7
Daily News Opinion – A little balance from 9th Circuit – The federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that judges shouldn't second-guess scientists (Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/07/editorial/doc487102024768d745685284.txt
$1.13 Million – Enviros Send Feds' BiOp Bill – Earthjustice attorney Todd True sent his bill to the federal government for blowing the last FCRPS BiOp (NWF v. NMFS) out of the water (Courtesy of NW Fishletter, Energy NewsData)
http://www.newsdata.com/fishletter/248/3story.html
Salmon on the Columbia: See you in court – The federal agencies are back for a fifth round in federal court (Crosscut, Seattle, WA)
http://www.crosscut.com/food/15565/Salmon+on+the+Columbia:+See+you+in+court/
CANADA – Sockeye's success near Osoyoos is a miracle in the desert – Of all the places least likely to see a revival of wild salmon, the southern Okanagan must top the list (The Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080707.BCHUMECOLUMN07/TPStory/National
Salmon is keystone species for region (Los Angeles Times, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008033130_badsalmonside04.html
Alaska's sick salmon – More Alaskan salmon caught in Tanana end up in the dog pot these days, their orange-pink flesh fouled by disease that scientists have correlated with warmer water in the Yukon River (Los Angeles Times, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008033127_badsalmon04.html
OREGON – Rogue River dam in Southern Oregon to come down (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1472855~Rogue_River_dam_in_Southern_Oregon_to_come_down.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Settlement in WA spotted owl lawsuit – Sought to block logging on 50,000 acres of private timberland to protect the threatened northern spotted owl (The Associated Press, via the Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/497379.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Work slated on Elwha River diversion channel – Part of Elwha River Restoration Project and removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080706/NEWS/807060304
IDAHO – EPA slaps Idaho Transportation Department with new fine over highway project that sent tons of sediment into Lake Coeur d'Alene (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1473929~EPA_slaps_ITD_with_new_fine__bringing_payments_to__1_7_mln.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines
State and local governments side with builders on runoff pollution – Environmentalists seek 'low impact' mandates Governments side with builders (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/369820_lowimpact07.html?source=rss
Bottling plant looks to Orting after snubbing by Enumclaw – City rejected Nestle Corporation to build a 100 million-gallon water bottle plant (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/405892.html
Treatment in store for Tacoma’s Wapato Lake to control algae (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/environment/story/403856.html
OREGON – How safe is city’s water? EPA official: Testing for contaminants in reservoirs inadequate (The Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121503548781724900
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
OREGON – Clouds Form On Solar Energy's Horizon – In a few weeks, Oregon energy regulators will decide a key legal question involving public-private solar projects across the state (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2502-clouds-form-solar-energys-horizon/
CALIFORNIA – Surprise opponents to renewable energy measure – A November ballot measure to boost the amount of renewable energy generated by California utilities has attracted a wildly diverse group of opponents (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/04/BACJ11IQ3Q.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
TEXAS – Debate flares over wind power – There is such a thing as too much wind power “…Wind developers say wind power is so cheap that the cost to accommodate it is negligible…” ($85 + per Megawatt is CHEAP? The Dallas Morning News, TX)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/industries/energy/stories/DN-wind_06bus.ART0.State.Edition1.4e033eb.html
NEW YORK – Responses to green energy programs lack energy – Even as more Americans look to shrink their carbon footprints, relatively few have switched to providers of electricity generated by wind, water and sun (The Associated Press, via Newsday, NY)
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--greenpower0705jul05,0,1024721.story
NEW YORK – Wind turbine deal spins up controversy (Business First of Buffalo)
http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/07/07/story1.html?ana=from_rss
Solar power companies look abroad as sun sets on tax credits – Businesses are having trouble signing contracts for 2009 projects (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/story6.html?ana=from_rss
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Energy: Renewable ideas (Seattle WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/369534_solared.html?source=rss
OREGON – Portland General Electric predicts surge in hybrid vehicles, plans more plug ins – The utility will build 12 charging stations in Portland and Salem (The Associated Press, via the Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215143716287160.xml&coll=7
Toyota to add solar panels to some Prius hybrids (Reuters)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080707/tc_nm/toyota_dc_4
Biofuels behind food price hikes: leaked World Bank report (AFP, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080704/ts_afp/climateenvironmentbiofuelsworldbankusbritain;_ylc=X3oDMTI1NzZyc3Q3BFJfYWlkAwRSX2RtbgN5YWhvby5jb20EUl9maWQDYmRhMGMzMzU0NTFiYmY2YjY0Y2Q0MWRlYjBiYWRlNDYEUl9sdHADMQ--
Poplar trees hold promise for fuel – Washington State University researcher Jon Johnson finds himself in a scramble to extract ethanol from fast-growing poplar trees (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07072008_Poplar-trees-hold-promise-for-fuel.cfm/
CONSERVATION
Clark utility offers free replacement fluorescent light bulbs (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/07/07042008_Clark-utility-offers-free-replacement-fluorescent-light-bulbs.cfm/
Conserve and you can save, Snohomish County PUD says – Energy-saving programs help save on their customers' bills, the utility says (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080707/NEWS01/69225176/-1/RSS02
Portland Business Journal poll: Higher energy costs of little concern (Portland, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/06/30/daily36.html?ana=from_rss
Japan Sees a Chance to Promote Its Energy-Frugal Ways (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/04/world/asia/04japan.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Tacoma City Council backs ‘green’ goals – Tacoma supports drastic carbon emissions cuts despite steep growth (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/405918.html
Is LCD manufacturing worse for environment than coal? A chemical used to make LCD televisions and semiconductors could cause more global warming than coal-fired power plants (CNET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-9983744-54.html
Can Weeds Help Solve the Climate Crisis? (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/magazine/29weeds-t.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
UTAH – New iProvo owner changes mind on Veracity buyout (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_9776005?source=rss
UTAH – Veracity pullout won't kill iProvo sale (The Daily Herald, Provo, UT)
http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/272321/18/
Internet addressing agency loses its own addresses (The Associated Press)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080703/ap_on_hi_te/domain_name_attack_2
As Web Traffic Grows, Crashes Take Bigger Toll (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/technology/06outage.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Five Nines on the Net is a Pipe Dream (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/06/five-nines-on-the-net-is-a-pipe-dream/
How Much Bandwidth Do We Really Need? Plenty, as long as storage keeps getting cheaper and content gets better (Broadband reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/How-Much-Bandwidth-Do-We-Really-Need-95761
Bandwidth Barons Want More Money for Fewer Bytes (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/03/bandwidth-barons-want-more-money-for-fewer-bytes/
CALIFORNIA – Companies propose ultra-fast broadband for Palo Alto – Plan To Bring High-Speed Broadband To City Greeted With Qualified Approval (The San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9793596?source=rss
PENNSYLVANIA – Fiber optics may hold key to future – It’s not sunny every day and money doesn’t sprout from trees in Kutztown, Pa., but for cable and Internet fiends, it may be considered paradise (Carroll County Times, PA)
http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2008/07/06/news/local_news/newsstory3.txt
Small-town USA enjoys its first course of WiMax (The Washington Post, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008036449_btwimax07.html?syndication=rss
Google told to release video data in YouTube trial – Plaintiffs will get to learn who watches what (The Associated Press, via the Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215138338153450.xml&coll=7
Microsoft to sell $70-a-year subscriptions for Office bundle – Package including OneCare would cost $200 to buy the traditional way (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/07/BUV411IRRC.DTL&feed=rss.business
Energy Star for Servers May Be Ready by Year-End (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/idg/IDG_852573C400693880882574750016E6C6.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Secret deal may open prime land in Montana (The Washington Post, via the Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, CA)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_9791601?source=rss
Mima Mounds: Mystery hides in vast prairie (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/travel/2008035378_onlywa06mima.html?syndication=rss
Weyerhaeuser is up a tree on Wall Street – Big investors are pressuring Weyerhaeuser to fundamentally restructure its business (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/jontalton/2008035958_biztaltoncol06.html?syndication=rss
National speed limit pushed as gas saver (CNN Politics)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/03/warner.speed.limit.ap/index.html?eref=ib_topstories
Spate of Manhole Cover Thefts Poses Problem (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92204515
Couple discovers stolen dogs on sale on Craigslist (KING-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_070708WAB_stolen_dogs_craisglist_LJ.30c9735f.html?npc
ELEPHANTS ON ACID - DIVERSIONS
Lawn-chair adventurer soars across state line
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008035396_chair06.html
Plans went south somehow, so City Hall sits too far north – Officials in Edgewood are looking for answers as to why their new City Hall is more than 13 feet north of where it should be
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/404744.html
Dude! Body Makes Pot-Like Substance To Help Skin – Our Bodies Like Marijuana Plant, Doctor Says
http://www.kirotv.com/health/16778668/detail.html
Pack Up The Winnebago, We're Going To Wal-Mart (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92241280&ft=1&f=17
Judge sends rambling lawsuit back for a rewrite
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008033157_funnyjudge04m.html?syndication=rss
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Puget Sound Energy lowers its rate increase request
- Grays Harbor PUD Commissioners OK Cosmopolis pulp mill cogeneration deal
- Wind surge poses a risk to salmon and reveals flaws in BPA's power-regulating system
- Larsen optimistic on Intalco – Smelter’s future hinges on power deal
- New grads find it difficult to rise to lineman challenge
- TEXAS – End of an affair – Panelists agree that change is coming to U.S. energy use and supply
- PENNSYLVANIA – An old dam is a source to provide new energy
- UNITED KINGDOM –Suicide Bid Over Energy Bill
- Eight dead as canoeists sucked into turbines at hydroelectric dam under construction
- AUSTRALIA – Energy providers feel the heat as copper wire thefts soar
- FLORIDA – Unpaid bills may trigger utility rate increases
- Fascinating – Appeals Court rules that judges shouldn't act as scientists
- Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals clears path for more logging
- Daily News Opinion – A little balance from 9th Circuit
- $1.13 Million – Enviros Send Feds' BiOp Bill
- Salmon on the Columbia: See you in court
- CANADA – Sockeye's success near Osoyoos is a miracle in the desert
- Salmon is keystone species for region
- Alaska's sick salmon
- OREGON – Rogue River dam in Southern Oregon to come down
- Settlement in WA spotted owl lawsuit
- Work slated on Elwha River diversion channel
- EPA fines Idaho Transportation Department over highway project that damages Lake Coeur d'Alene
- State and local governments side with builders on runoff pollution
- Bottling plant looks to Orting after snubbing by Enumclaw
- Treatment in store for Tacoma’s Wapato Lake to control algae
- OREGON – How safe is city’s water? Testing for contaminants in reservoirs inadequate
- OREGON – Clouds Form On Solar Energy's Horizon
- CALIFORNIA – Surprise opponents to renewable energy measure
- TEXAS – Debate flares over wind power
- NEW YORK – Responses to green energy programs lack energy
- NEW YORK – Wind turbine deal spins up controversy
- Solar power companies look abroad as sun sets on tax credits
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Energy: Renewable ideas
- OREGON – Portland General Electric predicts surge in hybrid vehicles
- Toyota to add solar panels to some Prius
- Biofuels behind food price hikes: leaked World Bank report
- Poplar trees hold promise for fuel
- Clark utility offers free replacement fluorescent light bulbs
- Conserve and you can save, Snohomish County PUD says
- Portland Business Journal poll: Higher energy costs of little concern
- Japan Sees a Chance to Promote Its Energy-Frugal Ways
- Tacoma City Council backs ‘green’ goals
- Is LCD manufacturing worse for environment than coal?
- Can Weeds Help Solve the Climate Crisis?
- UTAH – New iProvo owner changes mind on Veracity buyout
- UTAH – Veracity pullout won't kill iProvo sale
- Internet addressing agency loses its own addresses
- As Web Traffic Grows, Crashes Take Bigger Toll
- Five Nines on the Net is a Pipe Dream
- How Much Bandwidth Do We Really Need?
- Bandwidth Barons Want More Money for Fewer Bytes
- CALIFORNIA – Companies propose ultra-fast broadband for Palo Alto
- PENNSYLVANIA – Fiber optics may hold key to future
- Small-town USA enjoys its first course of WiMax
- Google told to release video data in YouTube trial
- Microsoft to sell $70-a-year subscriptions for Office bundle
- Energy Star for Servers May Be Ready by Year-End
- Secret deal may open prime land in Montana
- Mima Mounds: Mystery hides in vast prairie
- Weyerhaeuser is up a tree on Wall Street
- National speed limit pushed as gas saver
- Spate of Manhole Cover Thefts Poses Problem
- Couple discovers stolen dogs on sale on Craigslist
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Sentient • \SEN-shee-unt\ • adjective – *1: responsive to or conscious of sense impressions 2: aware 3: finely sensitive in perception or feeling
Bert was intrigued by his girlfriend’s obsession with cleaning out his refrigerator. “You’ve got some things that have been in here for at least ten years,” her muffled voice exclaimed from the interior of the mossy cold-storage device. “In fact, I think that this carton of cottage cheese has evolved into some sort of sentient being. It just asked me for a date!”
WORD ORIGIN FROM MERRIAM-WEBSTER: You may have guessed that "sentient" has something to do with the senses. The initial spelling "sent-" or "sens-" is often a giveaway for such a meaning. A "sentient" being is one who perceives and responds to sensations of whatever kind -- sight, hearing, touch, taste, or smell. "Sentient" ultimately comes from the Latin verb "sentire," which means "to feel" and is related to the noun "sensus," meaning "feeling" or "sense." A few related English words are "sentiment" and "sentimental," which have to do with emotions, and "sensual," which relates to more physical "sensations."
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Puget Sound Energy lowers its rate increase request (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/369562_pse04.html
Grays Harbor PUD Commissioners OK Cosmopolis pulp mill cogeneration deal (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/04/local_news/02news.txt
Wind surge poses a risk to salmon and reveals flaws in BPA's power-regulating system – With Columbia Gorge turbines pumping out extra electricity, the agency had to quickly adjust its hydro generation (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215226547277170.xml&coll=7
Larsen optimistic on Intalco – Smelter’s future hinges on power deal (The Bellingham Herald, WA – Implies that the tiered rate methodology will divert some energy to smelters? “…may provide BPA with more flexibility to shift some power to Intalco and other regional aluminum smelters…”)
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/102/story/459422.html
New grads find it difficult to rise to lineman challenge – The International Association of Electrical Workers reports that up to 60 percent of utility workers are expected to retire in the next two years (The Cleveland Plain Dealer, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008035183_apprenticeships06.html?syndication=rss
TEXAS – End of an affair – Panelists agree that change is coming to U.S. energy use and supply, driven by consumers who demand it (Houston Chronicle, TX)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/5872282.html
PENNSYLVANIA – An old source to provide new energy – The century-old dam on the Susquehanna River doesn't look like an energy source of the future “...providing another 100,000 homes with pollution-free electricity…” (The Baltimore Sun, via the Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, CA)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_9791354?source=rss
Here’s a picture of the Holtwood Dam
http://www.pbase.com/r2010/image/55407728
UNITED KINGDOM –Suicide Bid Over Energy Bill – A pensioner downed 100 pills and half a bottle of brandy in an attempt to kill himself over an exorbitant - and incorrect - electricity bill (Sky News, UK)
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Pensioner-84-Attempts-Suicide-Over-Incorrect-Unpaid-Energy-Bill-From-EON/Article/200807115025396?lpos=Business_8&lid=ARTICLE_15025396_Pensioner%252C%2B84%252C%2BAttempts%2BSuicide%2BOver%2BIncorrect%2BUnpaid%2BEnergy%2BBill%2BFrom%2BE.ON
SLOVENIA – Eight dead as canoeists sucked into turbines at hydroelectric dam under construction – The trip was ominously dubbed "The Final Descent"… (CNN Europe)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/07/04/slovenia.canoe.ap/index.html?eref=ib_topstories
AUSTRALIA – Energy providers feel the heat as copper wire thefts soar (Sydney Morning Herald)
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/energy-providers-feel-the-heat-as-copper-wire-thefts-soar/2008/07/06/1215282652811.html
FLORIDA – Unpaid bills may trigger utility rate increases (Orlando Business Journal)
http://orlando.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2008/07/07/story2.html
FISH & WILDLIFE
Fascinating – Appeals Court rules that judges shouldn't act as scientists –Ninth Circuit says that t’s improper for federal judges to act as scientists when weighing in on disputed U.S. Forest Service timber projects (The Associated Press, via KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/23095519.html
Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals clears path for more logging – Federal judges redefine standards for timber projects on public lands and deal a blow to environmental groups (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/121514735090910.xml&coll=7
Daily News Opinion – A little balance from 9th Circuit – The federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that judges shouldn't second-guess scientists (Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/07/editorial/doc487102024768d745685284.txt
$1.13 Million – Enviros Send Feds' BiOp Bill – Earthjustice attorney Todd True sent his bill to the federal government for blowing the last FCRPS BiOp (NWF v. NMFS) out of the water (Courtesy of NW Fishletter, Energy NewsData)
http://www.newsdata.com/fishletter/248/3story.html
Salmon on the Columbia: See you in court – The federal agencies are back for a fifth round in federal court (Crosscut, Seattle, WA)
http://www.crosscut.com/food/15565/Salmon+on+the+Columbia:+See+you+in+court/
CANADA – Sockeye's success near Osoyoos is a miracle in the desert – Of all the places least likely to see a revival of wild salmon, the southern Okanagan must top the list (The Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080707.BCHUMECOLUMN07/TPStory/National
Salmon is keystone species for region (Los Angeles Times, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008033130_badsalmonside04.html
Alaska's sick salmon – More Alaskan salmon caught in Tanana end up in the dog pot these days, their orange-pink flesh fouled by disease that scientists have correlated with warmer water in the Yukon River (Los Angeles Times, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008033127_badsalmon04.html
OREGON – Rogue River dam in Southern Oregon to come down (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1472855~Rogue_River_dam_in_Southern_Oregon_to_come_down.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Settlement in WA spotted owl lawsuit – Sought to block logging on 50,000 acres of private timberland to protect the threatened northern spotted owl (The Associated Press, via the Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/497379.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Work slated on Elwha River diversion channel – Part of Elwha River Restoration Project and removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080706/NEWS/807060304
IDAHO – EPA slaps Idaho Transportation Department with new fine over highway project that sent tons of sediment into Lake Coeur d'Alene (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1473929~EPA_slaps_ITD_with_new_fine__bringing_payments_to__1_7_mln.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines
State and local governments side with builders on runoff pollution – Environmentalists seek 'low impact' mandates Governments side with builders (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/369820_lowimpact07.html?source=rss
Bottling plant looks to Orting after snubbing by Enumclaw – City rejected Nestle Corporation to build a 100 million-gallon water bottle plant (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/405892.html
Treatment in store for Tacoma’s Wapato Lake to control algae (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/environment/story/403856.html
OREGON – How safe is city’s water? EPA official: Testing for contaminants in reservoirs inadequate (The Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121503548781724900
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
OREGON – Clouds Form On Solar Energy's Horizon – In a few weeks, Oregon energy regulators will decide a key legal question involving public-private solar projects across the state (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2502-clouds-form-solar-energys-horizon/
CALIFORNIA – Surprise opponents to renewable energy measure – A November ballot measure to boost the amount of renewable energy generated by California utilities has attracted a wildly diverse group of opponents (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/04/BACJ11IQ3Q.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
TEXAS – Debate flares over wind power – There is such a thing as too much wind power “…Wind developers say wind power is so cheap that the cost to accommodate it is negligible…” ($85 + per Megawatt is CHEAP? The Dallas Morning News, TX)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/industries/energy/stories/DN-wind_06bus.ART0.State.Edition1.4e033eb.html
NEW YORK – Responses to green energy programs lack energy – Even as more Americans look to shrink their carbon footprints, relatively few have switched to providers of electricity generated by wind, water and sun (The Associated Press, via Newsday, NY)
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--greenpower0705jul05,0,1024721.story
NEW YORK – Wind turbine deal spins up controversy (Business First of Buffalo)
http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/07/07/story1.html?ana=from_rss
Solar power companies look abroad as sun sets on tax credits – Businesses are having trouble signing contracts for 2009 projects (Sacramento Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/07/story6.html?ana=from_rss
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Energy: Renewable ideas (Seattle WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/369534_solared.html?source=rss
OREGON – Portland General Electric predicts surge in hybrid vehicles, plans more plug ins – The utility will build 12 charging stations in Portland and Salem (The Associated Press, via the Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215143716287160.xml&coll=7
Toyota to add solar panels to some Prius hybrids (Reuters)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080707/tc_nm/toyota_dc_4
Biofuels behind food price hikes: leaked World Bank report (AFP, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080704/ts_afp/climateenvironmentbiofuelsworldbankusbritain;_ylc=X3oDMTI1NzZyc3Q3BFJfYWlkAwRSX2RtbgN5YWhvby5jb20EUl9maWQDYmRhMGMzMzU0NTFiYmY2YjY0Y2Q0MWRlYjBiYWRlNDYEUl9sdHADMQ--
Poplar trees hold promise for fuel – Washington State University researcher Jon Johnson finds himself in a scramble to extract ethanol from fast-growing poplar trees (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07072008_Poplar-trees-hold-promise-for-fuel.cfm/
CONSERVATION
Clark utility offers free replacement fluorescent light bulbs (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/07/07042008_Clark-utility-offers-free-replacement-fluorescent-light-bulbs.cfm/
Conserve and you can save, Snohomish County PUD says – Energy-saving programs help save on their customers' bills, the utility says (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080707/NEWS01/69225176/-1/RSS02
Portland Business Journal poll: Higher energy costs of little concern (Portland, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/06/30/daily36.html?ana=from_rss
Japan Sees a Chance to Promote Its Energy-Frugal Ways (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/04/world/asia/04japan.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Tacoma City Council backs ‘green’ goals – Tacoma supports drastic carbon emissions cuts despite steep growth (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/405918.html
Is LCD manufacturing worse for environment than coal? A chemical used to make LCD televisions and semiconductors could cause more global warming than coal-fired power plants (CNET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-9983744-54.html
Can Weeds Help Solve the Climate Crisis? (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/magazine/29weeds-t.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
UTAH – New iProvo owner changes mind on Veracity buyout (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_9776005?source=rss
UTAH – Veracity pullout won't kill iProvo sale (The Daily Herald, Provo, UT)
http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/272321/18/
Internet addressing agency loses its own addresses (The Associated Press)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080703/ap_on_hi_te/domain_name_attack_2
As Web Traffic Grows, Crashes Take Bigger Toll (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/technology/06outage.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Five Nines on the Net is a Pipe Dream (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/06/five-nines-on-the-net-is-a-pipe-dream/
How Much Bandwidth Do We Really Need? Plenty, as long as storage keeps getting cheaper and content gets better (Broadband reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/How-Much-Bandwidth-Do-We-Really-Need-95761
Bandwidth Barons Want More Money for Fewer Bytes (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/03/bandwidth-barons-want-more-money-for-fewer-bytes/
CALIFORNIA – Companies propose ultra-fast broadband for Palo Alto – Plan To Bring High-Speed Broadband To City Greeted With Qualified Approval (The San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9793596?source=rss
PENNSYLVANIA – Fiber optics may hold key to future – It’s not sunny every day and money doesn’t sprout from trees in Kutztown, Pa., but for cable and Internet fiends, it may be considered paradise (Carroll County Times, PA)
http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2008/07/06/news/local_news/newsstory3.txt
Small-town USA enjoys its first course of WiMax (The Washington Post, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008036449_btwimax07.html?syndication=rss
Google told to release video data in YouTube trial – Plaintiffs will get to learn who watches what (The Associated Press, via the Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215138338153450.xml&coll=7
Microsoft to sell $70-a-year subscriptions for Office bundle – Package including OneCare would cost $200 to buy the traditional way (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/07/BUV411IRRC.DTL&feed=rss.business
Energy Star for Servers May Be Ready by Year-End (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/idg/IDG_852573C400693880882574750016E6C6.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Secret deal may open prime land in Montana (The Washington Post, via the Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, CA)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_9791601?source=rss
Mima Mounds: Mystery hides in vast prairie (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/travel/2008035378_onlywa06mima.html?syndication=rss
Weyerhaeuser is up a tree on Wall Street – Big investors are pressuring Weyerhaeuser to fundamentally restructure its business (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/jontalton/2008035958_biztaltoncol06.html?syndication=rss
National speed limit pushed as gas saver (CNN Politics)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/03/warner.speed.limit.ap/index.html?eref=ib_topstories
Spate of Manhole Cover Thefts Poses Problem (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92204515
Couple discovers stolen dogs on sale on Craigslist (KING-TV, Seattle, WA)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_070708WAB_stolen_dogs_craisglist_LJ.30c9735f.html?npc
ELEPHANTS ON ACID - DIVERSIONS
Lawn-chair adventurer soars across state line
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008035396_chair06.html
Plans went south somehow, so City Hall sits too far north – Officials in Edgewood are looking for answers as to why their new City Hall is more than 13 feet north of where it should be
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/404744.html
Dude! Body Makes Pot-Like Substance To Help Skin – Our Bodies Like Marijuana Plant, Doctor Says
http://www.kirotv.com/health/16778668/detail.html
Pack Up The Winnebago, We're Going To Wal-Mart (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92241280&ft=1&f=17
Judge sends rambling lawsuit back for a rewrite
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008033157_funnyjudge04m.html?syndication=rss
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