All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
Plenitude • \PLEN-uh-tood\ • noun – 1: the quality or state of being full: completeness *2: a great sufficiency: abundance
Gabriel was ecstatic over about her first crop of corpse flowers. The plenitude of her garden’s bounty of titan arum was evident to her neighbors at the first blooming. The Glade Air Freshener salesman made a “killing” that week.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
La Nina developing in Pacific Ocean (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_090607WAB_la_nina_SW.a97b15f8.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
California Heat Wave Ends With a Death Toll Near 25 – A week of excessively high temperatures has ended in Southern California after causing more than 20 deaths and sporadic power failures. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/07/us/07heat.html?ex=1346817600&en=d01e5b239887b02f&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Former Enron Chief Appeals Conviction – Former Enron chief executive Jeffrey K. Skilling today appealed criminal convictions that sent him to prison for more than 24 years, seeking a new trial and citing "profound, inherent weaknesses in the government's case." (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/07/AR2007090700959.html?nav=rss_business
Avista sees a change in the wind: Long-term power plan anticipates 'gassy, windy' future, shift from coal (Spokesman Review via Electric Light & Power)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/news/display_news_story.cfm?Section=WireNews&Category=HOME&NewsID=151604
Montana – FERC grants company another 3-year permit to study Gibson site. A Bellingham, Wash., company has received another three-year permit to study the hydroelectric potential of Gibson Dam on the Sun River west of Augusta (Choteau Acantha)
http://www.choteauacantha.com/articles/2007/09/06/news/news3.txt
FERC approves TXU sale – TXU Corp.'s pending buyout has been approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. (Dallas Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2007/09/03/daily24.html?ana=from_rss
Coal-fired power plant to offset CO2 emissions – Seven regional utilities that propose building a $1.6 billion coal-fired power plant on the South Dakota border have agreed to offset the CO2 emissions of the plant's Minnesota customers, according to a local report. (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=6&ARTICLE_ID=304924&C=ENVIR
Canada – Report buttresses argument against power lines, EMF emissions would be 149 times level recommended. A scientific report released late last week joins others in raising serious public-health concerns over long-term exposure to electromagnetic fields from high-voltage power lines. (The Province)
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=392a56cf-50c6-4c07-9745-630b9dbb7066
Remembering Nat Washington, by Joel Connelly, Seattle Post-Intelligencer – Strange Bedfellows. A tree-flanked oasis of shade, the residence around the corner from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in Ephrata housed the single most interesting source for Washington history ever encountered by this reporter.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/seattlepolitics/archives/121345.asp?from=blog_last3
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Feds reel out third salmon plan – Northwest - U.S. officials hope their latest proposal to protect fish, yet keep dams, pleases a skeptical judge (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1189135513132230.xml&coll=7
Federal Executives Comment on New Approach for Salmon Recovery – NOAA Fisheries to review the proposed action to develop a biological opinion for listed fish. (Via PRWeb)
http://www.prweb.com/releases/salmon/recovery/prweb551900.htm
MP3 Audio for local media can be found here:
http://www.salmonrecovery.gov/biological_opinions/fcrps/ba-ca/index.cfm
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1189135513132230.xml&coll=7
News Release NW River Partners – Science-Based Plan Step in Right Direction. Today the Bonneville Power Administration, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation released to the public a draft plan to aid the recovery of Pacific salmon and steelhead stocks listed under the Endangered Species Act. (Links to PDF File)
http://nwriverpartners.org/documents/NWRPresponsetoFedAgenciesBA9-6-07.pdf
News Release (SOWS) – New Salmon Plan Follows Administration's Blueprint for Failure: Administration Continues Failing Salmon, Fishermen and Northwest
Communities (Via PR Newswire)
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/09-06-2007/0004658068&EDATE=
Hatchery coho making their way to area tributaries (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/09/07/this_day/news04.txt
Estimated 780,000 pink salmon head up Puyallup River – The Puyallup River runs as gray as wet concrete, but the real color of the river these days is pink; as in hundreds of thousands of pink salmon. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/210351.html
Oops! – Biologists use wrong fish trying to save endangered trout species. Scientists say error is a potential black eye, but they are optimistic about the project's success (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_6826070?source=rss&nclick_check=1
Canada – Salmon 'spill' prompts calls for closed farming system. Calls to have British Columbia's salmon farming industry move to a closed, shore-based system were revived yesterday while crews scrambled to respond to the latest "spill" of Atlantic salmon from an open net pen in Clayoquot Sound. (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070907.BCSALMON07/TPStory/TPNational/BritishColumbia/
Dam Safety – We have a lot of old dams. Roughly 25-hundred hold back waters here in the Northwest. Even the sturdiest structures made from concrete and wood don’t hold up forever. (Oregon Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3204
The overcrowded ark – The Endangered Species Act has become unwieldy. Time for a change (The Economist Magazine)
http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9767816
Golly, another study – A $500,000 question for lake. Capitol Lake managers are at odds over an ambitious schedule that would attempt to complete a Capitol Lake versus Deschutes River estuary comparison in 22 months at a cost of $500,000. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/210287.html
Too many straws in the glass – Duke going after improper pumpers: With drought sapping lakes, utility enforcing lake limits
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CfgntwqnVSjh%27%40%3E%20bfem%5Ev
'Gray Water' Codes Pose Enforcement Challenge – Across the country people are disconnecting the pipes taking water from their homes to local water treatment plants. (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14210147&ft=1&f=17
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
First Wave Energy Buoy Deployed on West Coast (Oregon Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3205
Kansas – College inadvertently steals wind from beneath high school's wings (Dodge City Globe)
http://www.dodgeglobe.com/stories/090707/loc_20070907003.shtml
Insert cynical comment about burning biomass here…. Curb on wood stoves in works
Board to vote on banning their use about 30 days each winter for bad-air days. (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/365145.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Arctic ice cap to melt faster than feared, scientists say (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003873003_arcticice07m.html
Global warming: Too hot to handle for the British Broadcasting Corporation – Green groups protest after corporation calls off day of programming dedicated to climate change
http://environment.independent.co.uk/climate_change/article2934318.ece
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Judge strikes down part of Patriot Act – Federal Judge Throws Out Parts of Patriot Act, Says Court's OK Needed to Get Internet Records (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/06/AR2007090600999.html?nav=rss_technology
Feds OK Fee for Priority Web Traffic – The Justice Department on Thursday said Internet service providers should be allowed to charge a fee for priority Web traffic. The agency told the Federal Communications Commission, which is reviewing high-speed Internet practices, that it is opposed to "Net neutrality," the principle that all Internet sites should be equally accessible to any Web user. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/06/AR2007090601262.html?nav=rss_technology
Shutting Down Big Downloaders – Comcast Cuts Internet Service to Bandwidth Hogs. The rapid growth of online videos, music and games has created a new Internet sin: using it too much. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/06/AR2007090602545.html?nav=rss_metro
Review: After Smoke Clears, FiOS a Hit – If the installers hadn't almost burned my house down, I'd say Verizon's new cable television and high speed Internet service was fantastic. (The Associated Press)
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hDQ4VqX3NSOqLqy4jqcSiJFBOxqA
Wenatchee – Peshastin mill site eyed for tech area. A Leavenworth developer has offered to buy the Port of Chelan County's 59-acre Peshastin mill site for $3.3 million to turn it into a campus for high-tech research and development. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/NEWS04/709060436/1001
FCC may ban cable exclusivity deals – Federal regulators appear set to crack down on cable companies that sign exclusive deals with apartment and condominium buildings, denying residents the fruits of emerging pay-TV competition. (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2007-09-05-cable-fcc_N.htm?csp=34
Cable Ads Mark Switch to Digital TV – The cable television industry has launched a $200 million advertising campaign to assure customers they will still be able to watch their favorite programs after the transition to digital broadcasting. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/06/AR2007090601180.html?nav=rss_technology
GENERAL NEWS
Virus Is Seen as Suspect in Death of Honeybees – Scientists sifting genetic material from thriving and ailing bee colonies say a virus appears to be a prime suspect — but is unlikely to be the only culprit — in the mass die-offs of honeybees reported last fall and winter. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/07/science/07bees.html?ex=1346817600&en=be14bdfc2ca321fd&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
DIVERSIONS
Evergreen student wins facial-hair contest
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003870383_webbeard05m.html?syndication=rss
Kids smarter than apes -- sometimes, anyway – It's official: Your toddler is smarter than a chimp, at least at some things.
http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyid=2007-09-06T223616Z_01_N06373599_RTRUKOC_0_US-TODDLERS-APES.xml&src=nl_usmorningdigest
65-year-old gets carded in supermarket
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070906/ap_on_fe_st/65_year_old_carded;_ylt=ApIFHKdmtN.jdpTLn8PNwvztiBIF
Bush shows gift of gaffe at APEC summit
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSPAR75418520070907?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Corrupt China official felled by 11 mistresses
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSPEK36711520070907?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Friday, September 7, 2007
Thursday, September 6, 2007
News Digest for September 6, 2007
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
Grandiloquence • \gran-DIH-luh-kwunss\ • noun – a lofty, extravagantly colorful, pompous, or bombastic style, manner, or quality especially in language
The superfluous use of bombastic and luridly descriptive language was the hallmark of Edgar Rice Burrough’s writing style. As one wit commented, “when you read about a rainstorm in one of his (Burrough’s) books, you actually get wet.”
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Nat Washington, related to George Washington, dies in WA – Former state Sen. Nathaniel "Nat" Washington, a distant relative of the nation's first president who found a way to finance two major hydroelectric projects on the Columbia River, is dead at 93. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_Obit_Washington.html
Dam proposal brings torrent of opposition – An economic development officer in the Similkameen Valley says it’s “inconceivable” that a dam proposed on the American side of the Similkameen River should go ahead. “…water storage project is being considered by the Public Utilities District of Okanogan County…” (Western News)
http://www.pentictonwesternnews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=102&cat=23&id=1057981&more=0
Arizona – Facing criticism, power firm drops plan to burn coal at proposed plant. The developers of a proposed coal-fired power plant in southeastern Arizona that has drawn criticism from neighbors have decided the facility will instead burn natural gas. (Arizona Daily Star)
http://www.azstarnet.com/news/199452
Coal plant may hurl Utah into climate fight – A small coal plant in Utah's eastern high country is shaping up to be the scene of the next showdown over the Bush administration's refusal to rein in the pollution that scientists say causes global warming. (The Salt Lake Tribune)
http://www.sltrib.com/health/ci_6795748
California – Blackout warnings weren't authorized. San Diego Gas & Electric issued inappropriate warnings about possible power shortages on Labor Day, the state grid operator said yesterday, and as a result the local utility says it will review its communication practices. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20070906-9999-1b6sdge.html
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oregon coast awash with dead sharks – A number of young sharks are washing up dead on Oregon's beaches this summer but researchers are unsure why. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919502~Oregon_coast_awash_with_dead_sharks.html
Oregon – Recent Deaths Of Sea Life No Cause For Concern: A recent string of dead sea-life washing up near Seaside isn't causing much concern among aquarium officials there. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/recent-deaths-sea-life-no-cause-concern/
Oregon - Kokanee, long landlocked, may again be ocean-bound. Pink tags will help researchers monitor the experiment (The Bend Bulletin)
http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/NEWS0107/709060458/1001&nav_category=
Loads of fish are biting in both fresh and salt water (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/209367.html
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO SMALL TREE FARMS – Scores of small Lewis County tree farms could be exempted from salmon and timber regulations if they voluntarily keep their properties from development. The property owners say they are burdened by strict endangered species regulations that are better written for large scale operations. The idea now being reviewed by federal agencies is drawing criticism from the Quinault Indian Tribe and some environmentalists. (KELA Radio, Centralia/Chehalis)
Indians, environmentalists oppose White Pass ski expansion – Yakama Indians and the Sierra Club are challenging plans to expand the White Pass ski area. (The Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/209526.html
Port Townsend city leaders wary of Jefferson County's proposed water district fee – A proposal for a countywide clean water district that includes Port Townsend is proving to be a hard sell for county health and elected officials. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/NEWS/709060304
California – Mandatory water restrictions for San Lorenzo Valley residents. A dry winter and failure by residents to conserve water have led officials to impose mandatory restrictions that include a ban on daytime outdoor watering. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919487~Mandatory_water_restrictions_for_San_Lorenzo_Valley_residents.html
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
NW Natural plans to use cow manure for carbon offset program – NW Natural said it is launching a carbon offset program for Oregon customers that will harness the power of manure. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919334~NW_Natural_plans_to_use_cow_manure_for_carbon_offset_program.html
Nevada – Biomass plant opens amid questions over long term fuel supply. An $8-million wood-fueled plant that will provide power to Northern Nevada Correctional Center and the neighboring Stewart Conservation Camp will start running today, but state officials say the project lacks a "long-term solution" for the wood it will need to power the plant. (Nevada Appeal)
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20070905/NEWS/109050073/0/FRONTPAGE
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
GAO Chides Government on Warming – The federal government needs to do a better job addressing how climate change is transforming the hundreds of millions of acres under its watch, according to a Government Accountability Office report to be released today (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/05/AR2007090502115.html?nav=rss_nation
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Online High School Enrollment Surges in the Pacific Northwest (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3198
Accessing success – Clear Access Corp. makes phones and routers used in homes and offices. But the company's real customers are Internet broadband providers (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/09052007news192136.cfm
Walla Walla County to switch phone numbers – Beginning Jan. 1, the County will use an Internet phone system. (Walla Walla Union Bulletin)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2007/09/05/local_news/local01.txt
Oregon – Verizon will begin its cable offerings in 2008: Prices may not drop, but quality and variety should improve. Wilsonville residents will have a choice between cable television services by early next year. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/metro/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/metro_southwest_news/1188678314325960.xml&coll=7
GENERAL NEWS
Jennifer Dunn, who inspired face of today's Washington State GOP, dies at 66
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003871143_dunnobit06m.html
With Sen. Craig disgraced, lobbyists turn to Smith – In the wake of Sen. Larry Craig's swift downfall, Sen. Gordon Smith says he is ready to be the new go-to guy in the U.S. Senate for timber and other Northwest natural-resource industries. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1188962722233570.xml&coll=7
Bringing NM District Together a Tall Order Peterson's Ready to Meet – North Mason's new school superintendent is no stranger to stressful employment situations. (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/05/bringing-nm-district-together-a-tall-order-ready/
DIVERSIONS
Corrupt official plagiarizes trial apology
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSPEK15436320070905?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Math prodigy, 9, says university too easy
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHKG32898520070905?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
A tip: Don't announce a sale of pot
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070906/NEWS02/109060054/-1/rss01
WORD OF THE DAY
Grandiloquence • \gran-DIH-luh-kwunss\ • noun – a lofty, extravagantly colorful, pompous, or bombastic style, manner, or quality especially in language
The superfluous use of bombastic and luridly descriptive language was the hallmark of Edgar Rice Burrough’s writing style. As one wit commented, “when you read about a rainstorm in one of his (Burrough’s) books, you actually get wet.”
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Nat Washington, related to George Washington, dies in WA – Former state Sen. Nathaniel "Nat" Washington, a distant relative of the nation's first president who found a way to finance two major hydroelectric projects on the Columbia River, is dead at 93. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_Obit_Washington.html
Dam proposal brings torrent of opposition – An economic development officer in the Similkameen Valley says it’s “inconceivable” that a dam proposed on the American side of the Similkameen River should go ahead. “…water storage project is being considered by the Public Utilities District of Okanogan County…” (Western News)
http://www.pentictonwesternnews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=102&cat=23&id=1057981&more=0
Arizona – Facing criticism, power firm drops plan to burn coal at proposed plant. The developers of a proposed coal-fired power plant in southeastern Arizona that has drawn criticism from neighbors have decided the facility will instead burn natural gas. (Arizona Daily Star)
http://www.azstarnet.com/news/199452
Coal plant may hurl Utah into climate fight – A small coal plant in Utah's eastern high country is shaping up to be the scene of the next showdown over the Bush administration's refusal to rein in the pollution that scientists say causes global warming. (The Salt Lake Tribune)
http://www.sltrib.com/health/ci_6795748
California – Blackout warnings weren't authorized. San Diego Gas & Electric issued inappropriate warnings about possible power shortages on Labor Day, the state grid operator said yesterday, and as a result the local utility says it will review its communication practices. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20070906-9999-1b6sdge.html
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oregon coast awash with dead sharks – A number of young sharks are washing up dead on Oregon's beaches this summer but researchers are unsure why. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919502~Oregon_coast_awash_with_dead_sharks.html
Oregon – Recent Deaths Of Sea Life No Cause For Concern: A recent string of dead sea-life washing up near Seaside isn't causing much concern among aquarium officials there. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/recent-deaths-sea-life-no-cause-concern/
Oregon - Kokanee, long landlocked, may again be ocean-bound. Pink tags will help researchers monitor the experiment (The Bend Bulletin)
http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/NEWS0107/709060458/1001&nav_category=
Loads of fish are biting in both fresh and salt water (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/209367.html
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO SMALL TREE FARMS – Scores of small Lewis County tree farms could be exempted from salmon and timber regulations if they voluntarily keep their properties from development. The property owners say they are burdened by strict endangered species regulations that are better written for large scale operations. The idea now being reviewed by federal agencies is drawing criticism from the Quinault Indian Tribe and some environmentalists. (KELA Radio, Centralia/Chehalis)
Indians, environmentalists oppose White Pass ski expansion – Yakama Indians and the Sierra Club are challenging plans to expand the White Pass ski area. (The Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/209526.html
Port Townsend city leaders wary of Jefferson County's proposed water district fee – A proposal for a countywide clean water district that includes Port Townsend is proving to be a hard sell for county health and elected officials. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/NEWS/709060304
California – Mandatory water restrictions for San Lorenzo Valley residents. A dry winter and failure by residents to conserve water have led officials to impose mandatory restrictions that include a ban on daytime outdoor watering. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919487~Mandatory_water_restrictions_for_San_Lorenzo_Valley_residents.html
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
NW Natural plans to use cow manure for carbon offset program – NW Natural said it is launching a carbon offset program for Oregon customers that will harness the power of manure. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-919334~NW_Natural_plans_to_use_cow_manure_for_carbon_offset_program.html
Nevada – Biomass plant opens amid questions over long term fuel supply. An $8-million wood-fueled plant that will provide power to Northern Nevada Correctional Center and the neighboring Stewart Conservation Camp will start running today, but state officials say the project lacks a "long-term solution" for the wood it will need to power the plant. (Nevada Appeal)
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20070905/NEWS/109050073/0/FRONTPAGE
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
GAO Chides Government on Warming – The federal government needs to do a better job addressing how climate change is transforming the hundreds of millions of acres under its watch, according to a Government Accountability Office report to be released today (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/05/AR2007090502115.html?nav=rss_nation
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Online High School Enrollment Surges in the Pacific Northwest (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3198
Accessing success – Clear Access Corp. makes phones and routers used in homes and offices. But the company's real customers are Internet broadband providers (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/09052007news192136.cfm
Walla Walla County to switch phone numbers – Beginning Jan. 1, the County will use an Internet phone system. (Walla Walla Union Bulletin)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2007/09/05/local_news/local01.txt
Oregon – Verizon will begin its cable offerings in 2008: Prices may not drop, but quality and variety should improve. Wilsonville residents will have a choice between cable television services by early next year. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/metro/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/metro_southwest_news/1188678314325960.xml&coll=7
GENERAL NEWS
Jennifer Dunn, who inspired face of today's Washington State GOP, dies at 66
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003871143_dunnobit06m.html
With Sen. Craig disgraced, lobbyists turn to Smith – In the wake of Sen. Larry Craig's swift downfall, Sen. Gordon Smith says he is ready to be the new go-to guy in the U.S. Senate for timber and other Northwest natural-resource industries. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1188962722233570.xml&coll=7
Bringing NM District Together a Tall Order Peterson's Ready to Meet – North Mason's new school superintendent is no stranger to stressful employment situations. (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/05/bringing-nm-district-together-a-tall-order-ready/
DIVERSIONS
Corrupt official plagiarizes trial apology
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSPEK15436320070905?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Math prodigy, 9, says university too easy
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHKG32898520070905?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
A tip: Don't announce a sale of pot
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070906/NEWS02/109060054/-1/rss01
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
News Digest for September 5, 2007
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
Ruly • \ROO-lee\ • adjective: obedient, orderly
Sorry, nor example sentence today. However, tomorrow I will be ruly, and provide the news digest readers a hum-dinger of a sentence.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Both legislative water committees now chairless – David Postman is reporting that Sen. Erik Poulsen, D-West Seattle, is planning to resign in order to take a job with the Washington PUD Association. (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/blogs/mulick/v-rss/story/9276837p-9191652c.html
Here’s the Seattle Times Story: Sen. Poulsen quits for utility lobby job – State Sen. Erik Poulsen, D-Seattle, is resigning after 11 years in the state Legislature to take a job with the Washington Public Utility Districts Association.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003869118_poulsen05m.html?syndication=rss
Electric rates to rise nearly six percent in Port Angeles (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3076
City Light management doesn't shine in employee survey – Three years after Jorge Carrasco was appointed superintendent of Seattle City Light, most employees say they still lack confidence in management at the public utility. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003869120_citylight05m.html?syndication=rss
Lawmakers Get Ready To Revisit Energy Bills – House, Senate Must Reconcile Widely Varying Legislation (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090402191.html?nav=rss_business
Texas – Groups oppose TXU buyout (Dallas Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2007/09/03/daily5.html?ana=from_rss
Maryland – Money Matters in Reactor Project Debate. It's not the greenies who worry those aiming to build a new nuclear reactor in Southern Maryland. It's the green. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090402002.html?nav=rss_metro
Study: resilience would enable L.A. businesses to mute effects of terrorist-caused blackout (Utility Automation and Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/304078/22/ARTCL/none/none/Study:-resilience-would-enable-LA-businesses-to-mute-effects-of-terrorist-caused-blackout/
Developing a Solid Infrastructure for Flexible Customer Communications (Energy Pulse Commentary)
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1551
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Enviromentalists Cheer, Conservatives Bemoan Departure Of Sen. Craig – The fall out from Idaho Senator Larry Craig's resignation announcement this weekend continues to reverberate in the northwest. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/enviromentalists-cheer-conservatives-bemoan-departure-sen-craig/
Seattle Times Guest columnist – Our lawmakers can help hatch a vibrant future for salmon
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003863050_barbieri04.html
Salmon numbers remain low – Four sockeye swim to Redfish from the Pacific (Idaho Mountain Express)
http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005116911
Energy and Water Development: FY2008 Appropriations (Congressional Research Services)
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL34009
Biggest waste producers in state get best fee deal – Hazardous materials program called unfair. The more hazardous waste you produce in Washington, the better the deal you can get from the state. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/330284_waste05.html?source=rss
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
Lumber company will apply to build Skamania wind farm – SDS Lumber Co. plans to apply for a permit before year's end to build a wind farm in Skamania County that would produce up to 70 megawatts of power. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/09052007news192087.cfm
Green power booming in British Columbia – A modern-day gold rush continues to grow on B.C. creeks and hilltops, as independent power producers move to take advantage of the province’s push for clean, home-grown electricity. (Kamloops this Week)
http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=15&cat=23&id=1058507&more=0
South Dakota is last in Midwest region for developing wind power (Black Hills Pioneer)
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1300&dept_id=156925&newsid=18781603&PAG=461&rfi=9
Farming coastal breezes – Faced with rising fuel costs and the public's increasing demand for environmentally friendly power, Southern Co. is considering harnessing the wind -- a move that could blow the energy giant into a national race to find cheaper energy sources. (Atlanta Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2007/09/03/story2.html?ana=from_rss
Wells goes green – Wells Fargo today announced a trio of initiatives aimed at reducing energy use and environmental protection (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/business/2007/09/04/wells_goes_green
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
How to Gain A Climate Consensus – We in the United States -- and we as global citizens -- live in what is, in many respects, a golden moment. Economic growth is globally strong, and, if security threats can be contained, this expansion, with some ups and downs, can be sustained. (Washington Post Op/Ed)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090401759.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
FCC Leaves Public in the Dark – It's odd for an agency that has the word "communications" as its middle name, but the Federal Communications Commission routinely leaves the public in the dark about how it makes critical policy decisions. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/09/04/national/w112720D29.DTL&feed=rss.business
Standards vote goes against Microsoft – In a preliminary vote made public Tuesday, Microsoft Corp.'s Office Open XML document format fell short of the total it would need to receive approval from a key international standards organization. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/330296_msftoffice05.html
GENERAL NEWS
Audit says some WA ferry runs underused, could be cut to save money –A state audit says Washington State Ferries could save nearly $97 million over the next 10 years if it eliminates some of the runs that are underused. (The Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/207860.html
DIVERSIONS
Man charged with ransoming mother's cat
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070904/ap_on_fe_st/odd_cat_extortion;_ylt=AvZl5qOb4XnreyLft8II2aHtiBIF
Yard art is in eye of beholder and court
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070903/ap_on_fe_st/odd_yard_art_lawsuits;_ylt=AuoIQm4INDY2NP28YcOhpsntiBIF
Airline sacrifices goats to appease sky god
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/nepal_airline_odd_dc;_ylt=AjEOAMY1S1FwCPaB_b01o4HtiBIF
WORD OF THE DAY
Ruly • \ROO-lee\ • adjective: obedient, orderly
Sorry, nor example sentence today. However, tomorrow I will be ruly, and provide the news digest readers a hum-dinger of a sentence.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Both legislative water committees now chairless – David Postman is reporting that Sen. Erik Poulsen, D-West Seattle, is planning to resign in order to take a job with the Washington PUD Association. (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/blogs/mulick/v-rss/story/9276837p-9191652c.html
Here’s the Seattle Times Story: Sen. Poulsen quits for utility lobby job – State Sen. Erik Poulsen, D-Seattle, is resigning after 11 years in the state Legislature to take a job with the Washington Public Utility Districts Association.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003869118_poulsen05m.html?syndication=rss
Electric rates to rise nearly six percent in Port Angeles (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3076
City Light management doesn't shine in employee survey – Three years after Jorge Carrasco was appointed superintendent of Seattle City Light, most employees say they still lack confidence in management at the public utility. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003869120_citylight05m.html?syndication=rss
Lawmakers Get Ready To Revisit Energy Bills – House, Senate Must Reconcile Widely Varying Legislation (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090402191.html?nav=rss_business
Texas – Groups oppose TXU buyout (Dallas Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2007/09/03/daily5.html?ana=from_rss
Maryland – Money Matters in Reactor Project Debate. It's not the greenies who worry those aiming to build a new nuclear reactor in Southern Maryland. It's the green. (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090402002.html?nav=rss_metro
Study: resilience would enable L.A. businesses to mute effects of terrorist-caused blackout (Utility Automation and Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/display_article/304078/22/ARTCL/none/none/Study:-resilience-would-enable-LA-businesses-to-mute-effects-of-terrorist-caused-blackout/
Developing a Solid Infrastructure for Flexible Customer Communications (Energy Pulse Commentary)
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1551
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Enviromentalists Cheer, Conservatives Bemoan Departure Of Sen. Craig – The fall out from Idaho Senator Larry Craig's resignation announcement this weekend continues to reverberate in the northwest. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/enviromentalists-cheer-conservatives-bemoan-departure-sen-craig/
Seattle Times Guest columnist – Our lawmakers can help hatch a vibrant future for salmon
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003863050_barbieri04.html
Salmon numbers remain low – Four sockeye swim to Redfish from the Pacific (Idaho Mountain Express)
http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005116911
Energy and Water Development: FY2008 Appropriations (Congressional Research Services)
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL34009
Biggest waste producers in state get best fee deal – Hazardous materials program called unfair. The more hazardous waste you produce in Washington, the better the deal you can get from the state. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/330284_waste05.html?source=rss
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
Lumber company will apply to build Skamania wind farm – SDS Lumber Co. plans to apply for a permit before year's end to build a wind farm in Skamania County that would produce up to 70 megawatts of power. (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/09052007news192087.cfm
Green power booming in British Columbia – A modern-day gold rush continues to grow on B.C. creeks and hilltops, as independent power producers move to take advantage of the province’s push for clean, home-grown electricity. (Kamloops this Week)
http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=15&cat=23&id=1058507&more=0
South Dakota is last in Midwest region for developing wind power (Black Hills Pioneer)
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1300&dept_id=156925&newsid=18781603&PAG=461&rfi=9
Farming coastal breezes – Faced with rising fuel costs and the public's increasing demand for environmentally friendly power, Southern Co. is considering harnessing the wind -- a move that could blow the energy giant into a national race to find cheaper energy sources. (Atlanta Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2007/09/03/story2.html?ana=from_rss
Wells goes green – Wells Fargo today announced a trio of initiatives aimed at reducing energy use and environmental protection (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/business/2007/09/04/wells_goes_green
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
How to Gain A Climate Consensus – We in the United States -- and we as global citizens -- live in what is, in many respects, a golden moment. Economic growth is globally strong, and, if security threats can be contained, this expansion, with some ups and downs, can be sustained. (Washington Post Op/Ed)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090401759.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
FCC Leaves Public in the Dark – It's odd for an agency that has the word "communications" as its middle name, but the Federal Communications Commission routinely leaves the public in the dark about how it makes critical policy decisions. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/09/04/national/w112720D29.DTL&feed=rss.business
Standards vote goes against Microsoft – In a preliminary vote made public Tuesday, Microsoft Corp.'s Office Open XML document format fell short of the total it would need to receive approval from a key international standards organization. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/330296_msftoffice05.html
GENERAL NEWS
Audit says some WA ferry runs underused, could be cut to save money –A state audit says Washington State Ferries could save nearly $97 million over the next 10 years if it eliminates some of the runs that are underused. (The Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/207860.html
DIVERSIONS
Man charged with ransoming mother's cat
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070904/ap_on_fe_st/odd_cat_extortion;_ylt=AvZl5qOb4XnreyLft8II2aHtiBIF
Yard art is in eye of beholder and court
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070903/ap_on_fe_st/odd_yard_art_lawsuits;_ylt=AuoIQm4INDY2NP28YcOhpsntiBIF
Airline sacrifices goats to appease sky god
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/nepal_airline_odd_dc;_ylt=AjEOAMY1S1FwCPaB_b01o4HtiBIF
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
News Digest for September 4, 2007
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
Pillory • \PILL-uh-ree\ • noun – 1: a device formerly used for publicly punishing offenders consisting of a wooden frame with holes in which the head and hands can be locked *2: a means for exposing one to public scorn or ridicule.
Abernathy slowly trod towards the public square, framed on both sides by the beefy security guards who had watched over him during the two days he spent languishing in the small town’s dungeon-like jail. It wasn’t until he entered the bright light of the square he was astonished to see that his punishment for selling bootleg videos of H.R. Pufnstuf was to be pilloried and pelted with aged Betamax tapes of Richard Pryor.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Gray skies define this summer – It's not in your head. It really has been a cooler, rainier summer than usual — throwing off crop schedules, attracting fewer swimmers to area pools and reducing the amount of water local lawns and gardens have needed to thrive. (The Olympian )
http://www.theolympian.com/570/story/207220.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
California Heat Wave Kills 2, Leaves Thousands without Power (Fox News)
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295667,00.html
Labor leaders find few takers for good jobs – As head of a public power utility, Steve Klein has faced some sticky issues over the years, mostly centered on keeping electricity prices low in an era of ever-spiraling rates from the Bonneville Power Administration. (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070903/NEWS01/109030032
A New Push to Regulate Power Costs – More than a decade after the drive began to convert electricity from a regulated industry into a competitive one, many states are rolling back their initiatives or returning money to individuals and businesses. “…One prominent critic of competitive pricing — Marilyn Showalter, a former Washington state utility regulator who has become an advocate of publicly owned power systems — has calculated that, in the year ending May 31, customers in competitive states paid an extra $48 billion for their power, compared with what they would have paid under rates in regulated states…” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/business/04energy.html?ei=5088&en=1aa833f883bf2119&ex=1346558400&adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1188878875-+8VhoFm5l8dR+z4fkbcYZw
Moses Lake allows overhead power lines – Grant County PUD upgrading substation (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/08/31/news/news02.txt
Dam important asset to the area – There's no doubt there's a lot to see on a tour of Wanapum Dam. (Mattawa Area News)
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=351Ilxw%20BlA=
For the Chelan County PUD Mannequins take plunge to save lives – Bobby and Bernie survived the ultimate, extreme, 100-percent-adrenaline Rocky Reach Dam tour Friday. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070901/NEWS04/709020424/1001
Part One – Hydro power in Southeast intrigues leaders (Alaska Journal of Commerce)
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/082607/hom_20070826012.shtml
Part Two – Hydro's bad image gets boost in Southeast – Big dams built by big government. Fish movements blocked. Habitats flooded. Wildlife and people displaced. (Alaska Journal of Commerce)
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/090207/hom_20070902010.shtml
Idaho Transmission Dispute Settled – The Idaho Public Utilities Commission approved a negotiated settlement last week between wind developers and Idaho Power Co. over who should pay for transmission upgrades required to accommodate about 200 megawatts (MW) of new wind generation planned in Idaho's Magic Valley region. (RenewableEnergyAccess.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49811&src=rss
Hydropower sees peril, promise in climate change – It's been likened to a giant bellows or a massive fire hose, sending huge amounts of water roiling and churning between Puget Sound's southern and northern basins with every change of the tides. (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/205649.html
Coal Rush Reverses, Power Firms Follow – Plans for New Plants Stalled by Growing Opposition. The mayor of Missoula, Mont., is the latest person to discover just how unpopular coal plants have become. (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/03/AR2007090301119.html?nav=rss_technology
Utah utility lacks coal – The shutdown of the Utah coal mine where a huge collapse trapped six men has a major customer scrambling for fuel to keep a power station operating. (The Daily Herald)
http://www.heraldextra.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=236350&Itemid=99999999
Pacific Gas and Electric Co: Power costs to increase in '08 – Big hit for business, 0.4 to 1.8 percent hike for homes. customers will pay more for power in 2008, with businesses taking the biggest hit. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/01/BUSTRTF6A.DTL&feed=rss.business
Power crazy – Across Canada, provincial governments are aggressively following the call of green power and energy conservation. No watt of electricity is exempt, from mandated fluorescent light bulbs to subsidies for windmill farms to the campaign to rehabilitate the granddaddy of power boondoggles, nuclear energy, out of long-term care. (The Financial Post)
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=fe3612ec-0f9b-46e3-83d7-ccd595851c83
News Release – Risky Electricity Plan Will Cost Consumers Billions: The Ontario Power Authority's (OPA) new electricity plan will damage this province's economy, cost unsuspecting consumers billions unnecessarily and increase the likelihood of more blackouts, says the Power Workers' Union. (From the Power Workers' Union)
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2007/31/c4417.html
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Idaho Statesman – Rocky Barker's blog: Craig's departure would fundamentally change salmon debate in Congress
http://www.idahostatesman.com/localnews/story/146778.html
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Salmon Recovery: A priority now. It's well known that replacing culverts is important for salmon recovery. It should not have taken a successful lawsuit by 20 tribes to get the state to act on this concern.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/329906_culverted.html?source=rss
The Columbian Editorial – In our view: Lethal Force. Sea lions drive officials toward tough choices
http://www.columbian.com/opinion/news/08302007news190976.cfm
Severe drought conditions spread – Severe drought conditions are expanding across the Inland Northwest, with forests and fields crackling under weeks of heat and rivers trickling with record-low flows, according to a briefing issued Thursday by the National Drought Mitigation Center. (The Spokesman Review, Spokane)
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=11332
Abuse of water laws jeopardizes supply for people, fish – Counties are asked to pay closer attention to housing projects claiming not to need a permit. (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070904/NEWS01/109040028&news01ad=1
Restoring nature – Near the banks of Toppenish Creek, 75 years of corn and hay have been replaced with native wapato roots, dogwood and tule reeds taller than a man. Funding comes from a variety of places, including the Bonneville Power Administration, mandated by the Northwest Power Act of 1980 to pay for efforts to mitigate the loss of habitat caused by hydroelectric dams. (Yakima Herald-Republic)
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/289710125972267
Wanapum leader finds ancestors' stories in the rocks – Wanapum leader Rex Buck Jr. studies the basalt cliffs above the Columbia River where his ancestors tucked their stories in shadows and caves. “…The Grant County PUD and the Wanapum formed (patrols) with a unique pact to make sure the ancient and sacred safely co-exist with the river's modern users…” )Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_River_Patrol.html
Celilo Village Ore., Tribal members bid goodby to their old village – To those who zipped past it on Interstate-84, Celilo Village near The Dalles seemed a horrid slum, but it has been home to many Columbia River tribal members for a half-century. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-913219~Ore__Tribal_members_bid_goodby_to_their_old_village.html
The crush to catch Chinook at peak of salmon season (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/08/31/this_day/news09.txt
San Francisco Bay – Ruling to protect delta smelt may force water rationing in Bay Area. Cities around the Bay Area face the possibility of mandatory water rationing next year as a result of a federal court decision Friday to protect a rare fish found only in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, state officials and water experts said. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/01/MNPCRT83Q.DTL&feed=rss.news
Brown Water in Bremerton Not Dangerous, City Says – Some people who live between Gorst and the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard got a surprise Monday morning when they turned on the tap: brown water. (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/03/brown-water-in-bremerton-not-dangerous-city-says/
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
News Release – Shelton accounting firm takes the 100 percent renewable energy pledge with Mason EverGreen Power (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=359
Judge denies wind farm petition – The petition for review of a Columbia County conditional use permit for construction and operation of a 90-megawatt wind farm project was denied today. (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2007/08/31/local_news/local01.txt
Canada wind industry grows amid opposition storm – Canada's fledgling wind power industry, late off the global starting blocks, has stumbled on growing local resistance to the idea of massive turbines dotting the country's relatively unmarked landscape. (ScientificAmerican.com)
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=canada-wind-industry-grow&chanID=sa003&modsrc=reuters
Scotland – Row blows up on wind farm locations. It was a claim that sent shockwaves through the wind-farm industry: the UK's turbines are being built in the wrong place, far from the strong winds that would make them efficient sources of electricity. (The Scotsman.com)
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1383372007
Seattle Times Editorial – Political attacks knock wind out of Kennedy's sails – The source of unhappiness is Kennedy's efforts to kill an offshore wind farm on Nantucket Sound. Cape Wind was to be the first such project in the United States and a source of pride to environmentally-minded New Englanders. Polls show 84 percent of Massachusetts residents in favor.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003863049_harrop041.html?syndication=rss
Beyond Wind and Solar, a New Generation of Clean Energy – Entrepreneurs see green in ocean power, methane, old tires and more (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/31/AR2007083102054.html?nav=rss_email/components
Researchers deploy test buoys in quest for renewable electricity – Advocates of wave energy plan to float two buoys off the Oregon coast near Newport in coming days as part of a wider effort to find renewable sources of electricity. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/330035_buoys02.html
Green Power: The New Generation – In the name of fighting climate change, solar, geothermal, wave and tidal energy are getting a new look (Special reports from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/specials/greenpower/
Nebraska – Mercer farm to sell bio-gas power: Fort Recovery poultry farm reaches deal with Midwest Electric. The electric cooperative, based in St. Marys, has entered into an agreement with a Mercer County poultry farm to purchase bio-gas power. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CfghktvqTSge%27%40%3E%20bfem%5Ev
Q & A: Lights Off! Does it really use more energy to turn a fluorescent bulb off and on than to keep it burning? (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/science/04qna.html?ex=1346558400&en=fb205a8ed1a4633c&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Wenatchee World Opinion – Using forests is good for us. Fight global warming. Harvest timber.
http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070831/OP02/708310380/1025/rss1025
What might global warming mean for Washington (Associated Press via the Seattle Post Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_Warming_Washington.html
State's water woes could intensify – Climate experts say global warming stands to dramatically change the way Washington residents use water on their yards and in their homes. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/206085.html
Atlantis Effect? Rising sea level worries shoreline areas – Washington's low-lying capital city is a bit nervous in planning a new $38 million City Hall near the shoreline of Puget Sound, fearing that global warming and rising waters could submerge much of the downtown in this century. (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/205656.html
U.N. Climate Talks End in Cloud of Discord – Industrialized, Developing Nations Still at Odds Over How and When to Cut Emissions (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/31/AR2007083102052.html?nav=rss_world
An Analysis of the Carbon Emissions Impact of the Senate Energy Bill (Energy Pulse Commentary)
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1557
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
San Francisco Chronicle Editorial – Don't hit Wi-Fi delete key. It’s time for Wi-Fi 2.0 if San Francisco is serious about overcoming the financial and leadership problems that killed the first version.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/02/EDM5RT7N7.DTL&feed=rss.opinion
Google grows into a target (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003866045_google03.html?syndication=rss
Dial-up holdouts ask: Why go to broadband? Holdouts don't see the need for broadband (Dallas Morning News)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/ptech/stories/DN-holdouts_04bus.ART.State.Edition1.35a81ac.html
Inslee Fears Copyright Fees Will Mute Internet Radio (Kitsap Sun, May require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/03/inslee-fears-copyright-fees-will-mute-internet/
Telemarketers May Reach Cell Phones (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/money/14023347/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Wi-Fi gets this bunny hopping (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003863405_ptwifibunny01.html?syndication=rss
GENERAL NEWS
PLANE CRASH AT MASON LAKE – No one was injured when a float plane crashed on Mason Lake Monday. According to the State Patrol, a 1949 Aeronca S15AC aircraft attempted to take off from Mason Lake about 2:30pm. The plane became airborne momentarily but returned to the water. The plane's pontoon struts collapsed and the right wing tip entered the water. The aircraft came to rest right side up and did NOT make contact with any structures, vessels or the shoreline. The float plane was towed ashore by a passing boat. There were two people on board the plane with it crashed. The pilot was William A. Morris, 68 of Shelton. The passenger was Luke T. Aikins, 33 of Graham. The cause of this crash is being investigated by the F-A-A and the National Transportation Safety Board. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
North Mason Schools Pursuing Land Swap with County – North Mason School District took a big step toward acquiring nearly 40 acres of land near North Mason High School this week. (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/31/north-mason-schools-pursuing-land-swap-with/
Plastic bags get boot, but paper isn't perfect – Stores try alternatives, ask shoppers to pitch in. Plastic, paper, canvas or polypropylene? Or maybe just a cardboard box? (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/330132_plasticbags04.html?source=rss
DIVERSIONS
Malaysia's 'King Tooth' Pulls Train With Teeth In World Record Bid
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14021622/detail.html
Death Notice Sent To Man Who's Alive, Well – Health Benefits In Jeopardy
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14018885/detail.html
Police Say Impaired Mom Let Son, 5, Drive – Boy Tells Police He Can't Reach Pedals
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14011967/detail.html
Squirrel to Blame for Fire in Burbank – A fire destroys an abandoned trailer and four abandoned vehicles this morning.
http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=7018204
Dumb pickup lines are revealing, study says
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003866249_pickup03.html?syndication=rss
Radio Legend Paul Harvey Turns 89 (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14149801&ft=1&f=3
WORD OF THE DAY
Pillory • \PILL-uh-ree\ • noun – 1: a device formerly used for publicly punishing offenders consisting of a wooden frame with holes in which the head and hands can be locked *2: a means for exposing one to public scorn or ridicule.
Abernathy slowly trod towards the public square, framed on both sides by the beefy security guards who had watched over him during the two days he spent languishing in the small town’s dungeon-like jail. It wasn’t until he entered the bright light of the square he was astonished to see that his punishment for selling bootleg videos of H.R. Pufnstuf was to be pilloried and pelted with aged Betamax tapes of Richard Pryor.
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Gray skies define this summer – It's not in your head. It really has been a cooler, rainier summer than usual — throwing off crop schedules, attracting fewer swimmers to area pools and reducing the amount of water local lawns and gardens have needed to thrive. (The Olympian )
http://www.theolympian.com/570/story/207220.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
California Heat Wave Kills 2, Leaves Thousands without Power (Fox News)
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295667,00.html
Labor leaders find few takers for good jobs – As head of a public power utility, Steve Klein has faced some sticky issues over the years, mostly centered on keeping electricity prices low in an era of ever-spiraling rates from the Bonneville Power Administration. (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070903/NEWS01/109030032
A New Push to Regulate Power Costs – More than a decade after the drive began to convert electricity from a regulated industry into a competitive one, many states are rolling back their initiatives or returning money to individuals and businesses. “…One prominent critic of competitive pricing — Marilyn Showalter, a former Washington state utility regulator who has become an advocate of publicly owned power systems — has calculated that, in the year ending May 31, customers in competitive states paid an extra $48 billion for their power, compared with what they would have paid under rates in regulated states…” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/business/04energy.html?ei=5088&en=1aa833f883bf2119&ex=1346558400&adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1188878875-+8VhoFm5l8dR+z4fkbcYZw
Moses Lake allows overhead power lines – Grant County PUD upgrading substation (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2007/08/31/news/news02.txt
Dam important asset to the area – There's no doubt there's a lot to see on a tour of Wanapum Dam. (Mattawa Area News)
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=351Ilxw%20BlA=
For the Chelan County PUD Mannequins take plunge to save lives – Bobby and Bernie survived the ultimate, extreme, 100-percent-adrenaline Rocky Reach Dam tour Friday. (Wenatchee World)
http://www.wenworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070901/NEWS04/709020424/1001
Part One – Hydro power in Southeast intrigues leaders (Alaska Journal of Commerce)
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/082607/hom_20070826012.shtml
Part Two – Hydro's bad image gets boost in Southeast – Big dams built by big government. Fish movements blocked. Habitats flooded. Wildlife and people displaced. (Alaska Journal of Commerce)
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/090207/hom_20070902010.shtml
Idaho Transmission Dispute Settled – The Idaho Public Utilities Commission approved a negotiated settlement last week between wind developers and Idaho Power Co. over who should pay for transmission upgrades required to accommodate about 200 megawatts (MW) of new wind generation planned in Idaho's Magic Valley region. (RenewableEnergyAccess.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49811&src=rss
Hydropower sees peril, promise in climate change – It's been likened to a giant bellows or a massive fire hose, sending huge amounts of water roiling and churning between Puget Sound's southern and northern basins with every change of the tides. (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/205649.html
Coal Rush Reverses, Power Firms Follow – Plans for New Plants Stalled by Growing Opposition. The mayor of Missoula, Mont., is the latest person to discover just how unpopular coal plants have become. (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/03/AR2007090301119.html?nav=rss_technology
Utah utility lacks coal – The shutdown of the Utah coal mine where a huge collapse trapped six men has a major customer scrambling for fuel to keep a power station operating. (The Daily Herald)
http://www.heraldextra.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=236350&Itemid=99999999
Pacific Gas and Electric Co: Power costs to increase in '08 – Big hit for business, 0.4 to 1.8 percent hike for homes. customers will pay more for power in 2008, with businesses taking the biggest hit. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/01/BUSTRTF6A.DTL&feed=rss.business
Power crazy – Across Canada, provincial governments are aggressively following the call of green power and energy conservation. No watt of electricity is exempt, from mandated fluorescent light bulbs to subsidies for windmill farms to the campaign to rehabilitate the granddaddy of power boondoggles, nuclear energy, out of long-term care. (The Financial Post)
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=fe3612ec-0f9b-46e3-83d7-ccd595851c83
News Release – Risky Electricity Plan Will Cost Consumers Billions: The Ontario Power Authority's (OPA) new electricity plan will damage this province's economy, cost unsuspecting consumers billions unnecessarily and increase the likelihood of more blackouts, says the Power Workers' Union. (From the Power Workers' Union)
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2007/31/c4417.html
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Idaho Statesman – Rocky Barker's blog: Craig's departure would fundamentally change salmon debate in Congress
http://www.idahostatesman.com/localnews/story/146778.html
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Salmon Recovery: A priority now. It's well known that replacing culverts is important for salmon recovery. It should not have taken a successful lawsuit by 20 tribes to get the state to act on this concern.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/329906_culverted.html?source=rss
The Columbian Editorial – In our view: Lethal Force. Sea lions drive officials toward tough choices
http://www.columbian.com/opinion/news/08302007news190976.cfm
Severe drought conditions spread – Severe drought conditions are expanding across the Inland Northwest, with forests and fields crackling under weeks of heat and rivers trickling with record-low flows, according to a briefing issued Thursday by the National Drought Mitigation Center. (The Spokesman Review, Spokane)
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=11332
Abuse of water laws jeopardizes supply for people, fish – Counties are asked to pay closer attention to housing projects claiming not to need a permit. (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070904/NEWS01/109040028&news01ad=1
Restoring nature – Near the banks of Toppenish Creek, 75 years of corn and hay have been replaced with native wapato roots, dogwood and tule reeds taller than a man. Funding comes from a variety of places, including the Bonneville Power Administration, mandated by the Northwest Power Act of 1980 to pay for efforts to mitigate the loss of habitat caused by hydroelectric dams. (Yakima Herald-Republic)
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/289710125972267
Wanapum leader finds ancestors' stories in the rocks – Wanapum leader Rex Buck Jr. studies the basalt cliffs above the Columbia River where his ancestors tucked their stories in shadows and caves. “…The Grant County PUD and the Wanapum formed (patrols) with a unique pact to make sure the ancient and sacred safely co-exist with the river's modern users…” )Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_River_Patrol.html
Celilo Village Ore., Tribal members bid goodby to their old village – To those who zipped past it on Interstate-84, Celilo Village near The Dalles seemed a horrid slum, but it has been home to many Columbia River tribal members for a half-century. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-913219~Ore__Tribal_members_bid_goodby_to_their_old_village.html
The crush to catch Chinook at peak of salmon season (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/08/31/this_day/news09.txt
San Francisco Bay – Ruling to protect delta smelt may force water rationing in Bay Area. Cities around the Bay Area face the possibility of mandatory water rationing next year as a result of a federal court decision Friday to protect a rare fish found only in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, state officials and water experts said. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/01/MNPCRT83Q.DTL&feed=rss.news
Brown Water in Bremerton Not Dangerous, City Says – Some people who live between Gorst and the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard got a surprise Monday morning when they turned on the tap: brown water. (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/03/brown-water-in-bremerton-not-dangerous-city-says/
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
News Release – Shelton accounting firm takes the 100 percent renewable energy pledge with Mason EverGreen Power (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=359
Judge denies wind farm petition – The petition for review of a Columbia County conditional use permit for construction and operation of a 90-megawatt wind farm project was denied today. (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2007/08/31/local_news/local01.txt
Canada wind industry grows amid opposition storm – Canada's fledgling wind power industry, late off the global starting blocks, has stumbled on growing local resistance to the idea of massive turbines dotting the country's relatively unmarked landscape. (ScientificAmerican.com)
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=canada-wind-industry-grow&chanID=sa003&modsrc=reuters
Scotland – Row blows up on wind farm locations. It was a claim that sent shockwaves through the wind-farm industry: the UK's turbines are being built in the wrong place, far from the strong winds that would make them efficient sources of electricity. (The Scotsman.com)
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1383372007
Seattle Times Editorial – Political attacks knock wind out of Kennedy's sails – The source of unhappiness is Kennedy's efforts to kill an offshore wind farm on Nantucket Sound. Cape Wind was to be the first such project in the United States and a source of pride to environmentally-minded New Englanders. Polls show 84 percent of Massachusetts residents in favor.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003863049_harrop041.html?syndication=rss
Beyond Wind and Solar, a New Generation of Clean Energy – Entrepreneurs see green in ocean power, methane, old tires and more (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/31/AR2007083102054.html?nav=rss_email/components
Researchers deploy test buoys in quest for renewable electricity – Advocates of wave energy plan to float two buoys off the Oregon coast near Newport in coming days as part of a wider effort to find renewable sources of electricity. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/330035_buoys02.html
Green Power: The New Generation – In the name of fighting climate change, solar, geothermal, wave and tidal energy are getting a new look (Special reports from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/specials/greenpower/
Nebraska – Mercer farm to sell bio-gas power: Fort Recovery poultry farm reaches deal with Midwest Electric. The electric cooperative, based in St. Marys, has entered into an agreement with a Mercer County poultry farm to purchase bio-gas power. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CfghktvqTSge%27%40%3E%20bfem%5Ev
Q & A: Lights Off! Does it really use more energy to turn a fluorescent bulb off and on than to keep it burning? (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/science/04qna.html?ex=1346558400&en=fb205a8ed1a4633c&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Wenatchee World Opinion – Using forests is good for us. Fight global warming. Harvest timber.
http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070831/OP02/708310380/1025/rss1025
What might global warming mean for Washington (Associated Press via the Seattle Post Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_Warming_Washington.html
State's water woes could intensify – Climate experts say global warming stands to dramatically change the way Washington residents use water on their yards and in their homes. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/206085.html
Atlantis Effect? Rising sea level worries shoreline areas – Washington's low-lying capital city is a bit nervous in planning a new $38 million City Hall near the shoreline of Puget Sound, fearing that global warming and rising waters could submerge much of the downtown in this century. (Associated Press via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/205656.html
U.N. Climate Talks End in Cloud of Discord – Industrialized, Developing Nations Still at Odds Over How and When to Cut Emissions (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/31/AR2007083102052.html?nav=rss_world
An Analysis of the Carbon Emissions Impact of the Senate Energy Bill (Energy Pulse Commentary)
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1557
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
San Francisco Chronicle Editorial – Don't hit Wi-Fi delete key. It’s time for Wi-Fi 2.0 if San Francisco is serious about overcoming the financial and leadership problems that killed the first version.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/02/EDM5RT7N7.DTL&feed=rss.opinion
Google grows into a target (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003866045_google03.html?syndication=rss
Dial-up holdouts ask: Why go to broadband? Holdouts don't see the need for broadband (Dallas Morning News)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/ptech/stories/DN-holdouts_04bus.ART.State.Edition1.35a81ac.html
Inslee Fears Copyright Fees Will Mute Internet Radio (Kitsap Sun, May require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/sep/03/inslee-fears-copyright-fees-will-mute-internet/
Telemarketers May Reach Cell Phones (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/money/14023347/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Wi-Fi gets this bunny hopping (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003863405_ptwifibunny01.html?syndication=rss
GENERAL NEWS
PLANE CRASH AT MASON LAKE – No one was injured when a float plane crashed on Mason Lake Monday. According to the State Patrol, a 1949 Aeronca S15AC aircraft attempted to take off from Mason Lake about 2:30pm. The plane became airborne momentarily but returned to the water. The plane's pontoon struts collapsed and the right wing tip entered the water. The aircraft came to rest right side up and did NOT make contact with any structures, vessels or the shoreline. The float plane was towed ashore by a passing boat. There were two people on board the plane with it crashed. The pilot was William A. Morris, 68 of Shelton. The passenger was Luke T. Aikins, 33 of Graham. The cause of this crash is being investigated by the F-A-A and the National Transportation Safety Board. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
North Mason Schools Pursuing Land Swap with County – North Mason School District took a big step toward acquiring nearly 40 acres of land near North Mason High School this week. (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/31/north-mason-schools-pursuing-land-swap-with/
Plastic bags get boot, but paper isn't perfect – Stores try alternatives, ask shoppers to pitch in. Plastic, paper, canvas or polypropylene? Or maybe just a cardboard box? (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/330132_plasticbags04.html?source=rss
DIVERSIONS
Malaysia's 'King Tooth' Pulls Train With Teeth In World Record Bid
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/14021622/detail.html
Death Notice Sent To Man Who's Alive, Well – Health Benefits In Jeopardy
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14018885/detail.html
Police Say Impaired Mom Let Son, 5, Drive – Boy Tells Police He Can't Reach Pedals
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14011967/detail.html
Squirrel to Blame for Fire in Burbank – A fire destroys an abandoned trailer and four abandoned vehicles this morning.
http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=7018204
Dumb pickup lines are revealing, study says
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003866249_pickup03.html?syndication=rss
Radio Legend Paul Harvey Turns 89 (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14149801&ft=1&f=3
Friday, August 31, 2007
September 3 is a day off for the the News Digest
The News Digest will be taking Monday, September 3rd off to enjoy the Labor Day holiday. It will return on Tuesday, September 4.
News Digest for August 31, 2007
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
virescent • \vuh-RESS-unt\ • adjective – *1: beginning to be green: greenish 2: developing or displaying the condition of becoming green due to the development of chloroplasts in plant organs (as petals) normally white or colored
Bartholomew was weathering his first sea voyage quite well. That is, until the ocean liner exited the protected bay and met the long rollers of the Atlantic Ocean. The color of his face faded to white and then took a virescent tinge that was quickly followed by a phone call to Ralph on the “big white phone.”
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Ore. climatologist forecasts wet, cold winter – Oregon State University climatologist George Taylor has issued his annual fall and winter forecast, and it says snow might be in Western Oregon's future. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-909452~Ore__climatologist_forecasts_wet__cold_winter.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
State of California dodges power problems, thanks to conservation (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/31/BA2NRSFL9.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
BROKEN GAS LINE FORCES SHORT EVACUATION IN DOWNTOWN SHELTON – A broken natural gas line forced a short evacuation in downtown Shelton Thursday morning. According to Jay Ebbeson, Public Works Director for Shelton, a worker from Merlino Construction Company, working on the City's Basin Two project, hit and broke an unmarked service line to St. David's Parish Hall just before 9am. As a precaution, a four block by four block area was evacuated as Cascade Natural Gas was called in to shut off the gas and repair the break. The effected area was between Front and Fourth streets, and between Railroad Avenue and Alder Street. The gas line was shut off shortly after ten. People were allowed back in the homes and businesses by about 10:30am. No injuries were reported. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Pend Oreille PUD, Kalispels reach terms over flooded land – District to pay tribe yearly with at least $200,000 in power (Spokane Journal of Business)
http://www.spokanejournal.com/spokane_id=article&sub=3293
Snohomish County PUD reinforces Stanwood with new power line (The Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070831/NEWS01/108310038
Recycling Business Owner Arrested In Metal Theft Sting (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14014636/detail.html
Recycler arrested in purchase of stolen metal (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/9479622.html
Ohio – Firelands Electrical Cooperative offers $500 reward for information on missing copper (The Morning Journal)
http://www.morningjournal.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18769554&BRD=1699&PAG=461&dept_id=46371&rfi=6
Puget Energy wants gas rate cut, its first in five years (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2007/08/27/daily27.html?ana=from_rss
Minnesota – Unpaid bills for natural gas are up sharply – About 160,000 CenterPoint Energy customers across Minnesota are in arrears on their natural gas bills, up from a 70,000 to 100,000 at the end of summer in years past, the company said Tuesday. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffjkmsuWVgbt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Canada – The 'N' word that makes politicians quake – Environmentalists demanding an end to global warming are calling on the world's governments to adopt clean, zero-emission energy. But mention "nuclear power" -- one of the safest energy sources available with no greenhouse gases -- and their reaction can be summed up in a word: radioactive. (The Province)
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/story.html?id=cde30296-27a7-48a9-94ce-154a91c7828e
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
The Columbian Newspaper on U.S. Sen. Larry Craig – Local angle: Salmon debate may be affected. U.S. Sen. Larry Craig represents constituents located well beyond Southwest Washington, but the senator has had a direct interest and effect on natural resource policies in the Columbia River basin.
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/08302007news190990.cfm
Here it comes! Sen. Craig no friend to 'greens' in NW (Seattle Post Intelligencer, Joel Connely)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/329774_joel31.html?source=mypi
Want to save Puget Sound? Do the science first (Crosscut Seattle)
http://crosscut.com/science-environment/6834/Want+to+save+Puget+Sound%3F+Do+the+science+first/
David Dicks Spells Out Tasks Ahead to Save Puget Sound (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/30/dicks-spells-out-tasks-ahead-to-save-puget-sound/
Fox News Commentary – The Endangered Species Act Out of Control. Is a salmon born in a hatchery a different species from the same salmon born in the wild?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295359,00.html
Ilwaco Salmon Fishery Reopens September 2 – The recreational fishery in Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco) will reopen to retention of chinook, coho and pink salmon at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 2, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced today. (KBKW Radio, Aberdeen)
http://kbkw.com/wireready/news/00128_Ilwaco-Salmon_062842.php
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
Turbines shortage boosts wind-power costs – A prolonged shortage of wind turbines is pushing up prices for wind energy projects and forcing developers to scramble for deals long before construction begins. (Seattle Times, Golly…is anyone surprised by this?)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003861483_windmillshortage31.html
California IOUS want new renewable energy goals to apply to munis – California's investor-owned utilities Tuesday said they would support a 33% renewables target by 2020 in proposed legislation only if municipal utilities are required to meet the same target. (Platts Energy News)
http://www.platts.com/Electric%20Power/News/6449531.xml?sub=Electric%20Power&p=Electric%20Power/News&
United Kingdom – Assessing the UK's 'wind rush' . Wind lobby rebuts claims: Wind power is the fastest growing renewable energy sector in Britain. (British Broadcasting Corporation)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6970209.stm
Reach for the sky: Could flying wind farms help beat global warming? (CNN Technology)
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/08/31/sky.turbines/
News Release – Consumer Reports Reveals Ten Things Consumers Can Do Now to Save Hundreds on Energy Costs. October issue also explains personal carbon footprints; The dark side of compact fluorescent light bulbs (Electric Energy Online)
http://www.electricenergyonline.com/IndustryNews.asp?m=1&id=73139
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Global warming – who pays and when? The economics of climate change is driving what kind of pact nations may be willing to make. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0831/p08s01-comv.html
United Kingdom –Petrol-driven cars could be banned across Britain by 2040, under radical Liberal Democrat plans to tackle climate change. (The Guardian)
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/green/story/0,,2157621,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=environment
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Are e-mails public records? A case against a DSHS employee raises the issue of whether the public has the right to see the e-mails and Web-viewing habits of state workers. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003861655_openrecords31m.html
Google a victim of EarthLink woes with cancellation of S.F. Wi-Fi – The collapse of Mayor Gavin Newsom's ambitious plan to bring free wireless Internet access to San Francisco dealt a blow to Google Inc., which had hoped to use the system to test an array of new products. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/31/BUT6RSDTU.DTL&feed=rss.business
GENERAL NEWS
Ore. troopers catching more triple-digit speeders – For some drivers, breaking the speed limit is just not enough. They have to smash it. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OR_SUPER_SPEEDERS_OROL-?SITE=KOPB&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Craig fallout: Idaho will lose millions, influence –Idaho stands to lose influence and millions of federal dollars now that the state's senior U.S. senator has lost committee leadership positions and faces increasing pressure from Republican leaders to resign. (the Associated Press via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP08312007news191299.cfm
DIVERSIONS
Meteor 'outburst' expected Saturday morning – Find a place to lie down and look up Saturday morning, because a meteor "outburst" is forecast over the Pacific Northwest.
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070831/NEWS/708310305
Got Arachnophobia? Here’s Your Worst Nightmare
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/31/us/31spider.html?ex=1346212800&en=2e6183a24921db2d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Japanese men girdle up for battle of the bulge
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER15340920070831?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Russian man arrested for stealing bridge
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER15321120070831?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Naked man does hula, steals beer at store
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070830/ap_on_fe_st/naked_man_theft;_ylt=AlEy_HwKRqh1LomXRqGookHtiBIF
WORD OF THE DAY
virescent • \vuh-RESS-unt\ • adjective – *1: beginning to be green: greenish 2: developing or displaying the condition of becoming green due to the development of chloroplasts in plant organs (as petals) normally white or colored
Bartholomew was weathering his first sea voyage quite well. That is, until the ocean liner exited the protected bay and met the long rollers of the Atlantic Ocean. The color of his face faded to white and then took a virescent tinge that was quickly followed by a phone call to Ralph on the “big white phone.”
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
Ore. climatologist forecasts wet, cold winter – Oregon State University climatologist George Taylor has issued his annual fall and winter forecast, and it says snow might be in Western Oregon's future. (The Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-909452~Ore__climatologist_forecasts_wet__cold_winter.html
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
State of California dodges power problems, thanks to conservation (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/31/BA2NRSFL9.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
BROKEN GAS LINE FORCES SHORT EVACUATION IN DOWNTOWN SHELTON – A broken natural gas line forced a short evacuation in downtown Shelton Thursday morning. According to Jay Ebbeson, Public Works Director for Shelton, a worker from Merlino Construction Company, working on the City's Basin Two project, hit and broke an unmarked service line to St. David's Parish Hall just before 9am. As a precaution, a four block by four block area was evacuated as Cascade Natural Gas was called in to shut off the gas and repair the break. The effected area was between Front and Fourth streets, and between Railroad Avenue and Alder Street. The gas line was shut off shortly after ten. People were allowed back in the homes and businesses by about 10:30am. No injuries were reported. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Pend Oreille PUD, Kalispels reach terms over flooded land – District to pay tribe yearly with at least $200,000 in power (Spokane Journal of Business)
http://www.spokanejournal.com/spokane_id=article&sub=3293
Snohomish County PUD reinforces Stanwood with new power line (The Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070831/NEWS01/108310038
Recycling Business Owner Arrested In Metal Theft Sting (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14014636/detail.html
Recycler arrested in purchase of stolen metal (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/9479622.html
Ohio – Firelands Electrical Cooperative offers $500 reward for information on missing copper (The Morning Journal)
http://www.morningjournal.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18769554&BRD=1699&PAG=461&dept_id=46371&rfi=6
Puget Energy wants gas rate cut, its first in five years (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2007/08/27/daily27.html?ana=from_rss
Minnesota – Unpaid bills for natural gas are up sharply – About 160,000 CenterPoint Energy customers across Minnesota are in arrears on their natural gas bills, up from a 70,000 to 100,000 at the end of summer in years past, the company said Tuesday. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffjkmsuWVgbt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Canada – The 'N' word that makes politicians quake – Environmentalists demanding an end to global warming are calling on the world's governments to adopt clean, zero-emission energy. But mention "nuclear power" -- one of the safest energy sources available with no greenhouse gases -- and their reaction can be summed up in a word: radioactive. (The Province)
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/story.html?id=cde30296-27a7-48a9-94ce-154a91c7828e
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
The Columbian Newspaper on U.S. Sen. Larry Craig – Local angle: Salmon debate may be affected. U.S. Sen. Larry Craig represents constituents located well beyond Southwest Washington, but the senator has had a direct interest and effect on natural resource policies in the Columbia River basin.
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/08302007news190990.cfm
Here it comes! Sen. Craig no friend to 'greens' in NW (Seattle Post Intelligencer, Joel Connely)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/329774_joel31.html?source=mypi
Want to save Puget Sound? Do the science first (Crosscut Seattle)
http://crosscut.com/science-environment/6834/Want+to+save+Puget+Sound%3F+Do+the+science+first/
David Dicks Spells Out Tasks Ahead to Save Puget Sound (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/30/dicks-spells-out-tasks-ahead-to-save-puget-sound/
Fox News Commentary – The Endangered Species Act Out of Control. Is a salmon born in a hatchery a different species from the same salmon born in the wild?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295359,00.html
Ilwaco Salmon Fishery Reopens September 2 – The recreational fishery in Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco) will reopen to retention of chinook, coho and pink salmon at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 2, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced today. (KBKW Radio, Aberdeen)
http://kbkw.com/wireready/news/00128_Ilwaco-Salmon_062842.php
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
Turbines shortage boosts wind-power costs – A prolonged shortage of wind turbines is pushing up prices for wind energy projects and forcing developers to scramble for deals long before construction begins. (Seattle Times, Golly…is anyone surprised by this?)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003861483_windmillshortage31.html
California IOUS want new renewable energy goals to apply to munis – California's investor-owned utilities Tuesday said they would support a 33% renewables target by 2020 in proposed legislation only if municipal utilities are required to meet the same target. (Platts Energy News)
http://www.platts.com/Electric%20Power/News/6449531.xml?sub=Electric%20Power&p=Electric%20Power/News&
United Kingdom – Assessing the UK's 'wind rush' . Wind lobby rebuts claims: Wind power is the fastest growing renewable energy sector in Britain. (British Broadcasting Corporation)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6970209.stm
Reach for the sky: Could flying wind farms help beat global warming? (CNN Technology)
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/08/31/sky.turbines/
News Release – Consumer Reports Reveals Ten Things Consumers Can Do Now to Save Hundreds on Energy Costs. October issue also explains personal carbon footprints; The dark side of compact fluorescent light bulbs (Electric Energy Online)
http://www.electricenergyonline.com/IndustryNews.asp?m=1&id=73139
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Global warming – who pays and when? The economics of climate change is driving what kind of pact nations may be willing to make. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0831/p08s01-comv.html
United Kingdom –Petrol-driven cars could be banned across Britain by 2040, under radical Liberal Democrat plans to tackle climate change. (The Guardian)
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/green/story/0,,2157621,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=environment
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Are e-mails public records? A case against a DSHS employee raises the issue of whether the public has the right to see the e-mails and Web-viewing habits of state workers. (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003861655_openrecords31m.html
Google a victim of EarthLink woes with cancellation of S.F. Wi-Fi – The collapse of Mayor Gavin Newsom's ambitious plan to bring free wireless Internet access to San Francisco dealt a blow to Google Inc., which had hoped to use the system to test an array of new products. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/31/BUT6RSDTU.DTL&feed=rss.business
GENERAL NEWS
Ore. troopers catching more triple-digit speeders – For some drivers, breaking the speed limit is just not enough. They have to smash it. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OR_SUPER_SPEEDERS_OROL-?SITE=KOPB&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Craig fallout: Idaho will lose millions, influence –Idaho stands to lose influence and millions of federal dollars now that the state's senior U.S. senator has lost committee leadership positions and faces increasing pressure from Republican leaders to resign. (the Associated Press via the Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP08312007news191299.cfm
DIVERSIONS
Meteor 'outburst' expected Saturday morning – Find a place to lie down and look up Saturday morning, because a meteor "outburst" is forecast over the Pacific Northwest.
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070831/NEWS/708310305
Got Arachnophobia? Here’s Your Worst Nightmare
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/31/us/31spider.html?ex=1346212800&en=2e6183a24921db2d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Japanese men girdle up for battle of the bulge
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER15340920070831?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Russian man arrested for stealing bridge
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER15321120070831?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Naked man does hula, steals beer at store
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070830/ap_on_fe_st/naked_man_theft;_ylt=AlEy_HwKRqh1LomXRqGookHtiBIF
Thursday, August 30, 2007
News Digest for August 30, 2007
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
WORD OF THE DAY
Protean • \PROH-tee-un\ • adjective – 1: of or resembling Proteus in having a varied nature or ability to assume different forms *2: displaying great diversity or variety: versatile
Woody Allen’s film “Zelig” celebrated the ultimate protean character. Titled the “Human Chameleon”, Leonard Zelig took on the attributes of those around him as a way to fit in. (I especially love the hidden camera interview where Zelig, under hypnosis, goes on and on about his psychiatrist’s lousy pancakes.)
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Oregon – Manufacturer says design probably not cause of turbine collapse – Turbine blades turning at excessive speeds might have caused last weekend's fatal tower collapse at an Eastern Oregon wind farm, according to a spokeswoman for the manufacturer. (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-907278~Manufacturer_says_design_probably_not_cause_of_turbine_collapse.html
Energy case kicked back to regulators – A ruling says new info needs to be studied in 2000-01 energy crisis. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered federal regulators to re-examine evidence that electricity wholesalers in the Northwest, including Portland General Electric, may have overcharged buyers for power on the spot market in 2000 and 2001. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/118844072291800.xml&coll=7
Senator takes aerial tour of hydro dams operated by BPA – As U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., flies over the sprawling system of hydroelectric dams in the Columbia River Basin, he can't help but think this power network could play a role in boosting renewable energy in Montana. (Billings Gazette)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/08/30/news/state/35-tester.txt
Lawsuit delays Montana power plant – Construction of a coal-fired power plant near Great Falls will be delayed pending resolution of a lawsuit that challenged the project's $650 million federal loan request, the project's general manager said Wednesday. (The Associated Press, via the Jackson Hole Star-Tribune)
http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/08/30/news/regional/310e600fe97620d88725734600810067.txt
Clatsop officials endorse LNG plan – Proponents of a proposed LNG terminal on the lower Columbia River got a boost Wednesday when the Clatsop County Planning Commission endorsed the project. (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/08/30/area_news/news06.txt
News Release – Pickering Community Celebrates New Bell Tower at Historic Grant School (Mason County PUD No. 3 web site)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=358
Suit tests Arizona Corporation Commission 'no' to Calif. power line – A new lawsuit will test how much state utility regulators can restrict companies shipping power generated here to other states. (Arizona Daily Star)
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/business/198167.php
New York – Low water in river means loss of hydropower to Alcoa plants – Power supplied by the New York Power Authority to Alcoa's two smelters here is curtailed because of low water in the St. Lawrence River. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffkkosoTUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Ex San Miguel Power Association SMPA employees tell of drinking, “inappropriate graphical images” – Management at the SMPA seeded an office culture where lewd e-mails circulated and employees drank at work and drove home in company vehicles, two former employees said in interviews. (Telluride Daily Planet…”Great Caesar’s Ghost!”)
http://www.telluridegateway.com/articles/2007/08/30/news/news01.txt
Ohio Governor calls for mix of market-based, regulated electric rates (Columbus Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/08/27/daily21.html?ana=from_rss
Ohio governor proposes re-regulation of electricity (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUKN2935526620070829?rpc=44
Deregulation/Restructuring Prove To Be a Long Term Force For Change And Utility Decision Making (PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5Cffkntyz%5BUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Utility's federal lobbying heavy: Spending to sway legislation may near company's peak – Duke Energy Corp. has spent more than $1 million this year trying to influence legislation in Washington, including proposed global-warming regulations (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffipunoXUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Ontario to spend $25B on nuclear plants (CBC News)
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2007/08/29/ontario-nuclear.html
Canadian activists board, chain themselves to coal ship –Several Greenpeace activists who boarded a coal-carrying bulk ore carrier on Lake Erie en route to a power plant in Nanticoke, Ont., have now chained themselves to the ship. (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070830.wgreenpeace0830/BNStory/National/home
Oops! Power outage hits nuclear weapons lab – An electric transformer failed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory this morning, causing a six-hour power outage that affected 107 of the lab's 700 laboratories. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/30/MNDIRRN39.DTL&feed=rss.news
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Little pink salmon in really big trouble – A huge run of pink salmon is backed up behind a White River dam. The problem highlights a dispute over fish and river management. Biologists will try to help.(News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/143968.html
Salmon Will Get an Upstream Route on Bainbridge Island Creek (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/29/salmon-will-get-an-upstream-route-on-bi-creek/
State, tribes agree to try negotiating over culverts (The Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070830/NEWS01/108300042
Canada – If Sockeye's back, why not Coho in Alouette River?
http://www.mapleridgenews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=46&cat=23&id=1053677&more=0
Olympia man among finalists for Wild Salmon Hall of Fame – An Olympia man is one of five finalists, one of whom will be selected for induction into the Wild Salmon Hall of Fame. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/adventure/story/144088.html
Archaeological tests find no more Beckett Point remains –Work on a nearly $3 million Jefferson County Public Utility District community septic system at Beckett Point, which stalled in late May after prehistoric Native American remains and artifacts were uncovered, has been cleared to resume (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070823/NEWS/708230301
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
North American Renewables Market to Reach $24.6 Billion in 2010 (Renewable Energy Access.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49796&src=rss
Ohio Considers Renewable Portfolio Standard – Governor will include "clean coal" and nuclear projects in the proposed energy portfolio. (Renewable Energy Access.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49804&src=rss
Toronto turns to lake water for air conditioning – Cold water drawn from Lake Ontario cools buildings and provides big energy savings. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0830/p13s01-stgn.html
South Carolina utility will pay you for electricity – Starting in October, Santee Cooper will buy excess power from customers who make electricity with solar panels and other generators in a bid to bolster its green energy offerings and silence criticism from environmentalists. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffjmnmnUUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Tri-City Herald Opinion – A regional goal -- reducing emissions. It's more a leveling than it is a breakthrough, but the Western Climate Initiative is good news just the same.
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/opinions/v-rss/story/9263014p-9177895c.html
United Kingdom – Rating needed for eco claims (The Times Online)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/columnists/article2344110.ece
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
PUD NETWORK TO UPGRADE EQUIPMENT OVERNIGHT – Mason County Public Utility District No. 3 will upgrade equipment on its fiber-optic network from 11:30 p.m. Sunday to 2 a.m. Monday, curtailing Internet traffic over the PUD network. The upgrade will improve reliability, according to a PUD news release. (The Olympian)
Join the club…San Francisco citywide Wi-Fi plan fizzles as provider backs off – Mayor Gavin Newsom's high-profile effort to blanket San Francisco with a free wireless Internet network died Wednesday when provider EarthLink backed out of a proposed contract with the city. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/30/MNEJRRO70.DTL&feed=rss.news
Missouri – Light poles create delay in rollout of city's Wi-Fi network: Still waiting for citywide Wi-Fi in St. Louis? It might be awhile. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/stories.nsf/story/34E21F9F755952D286257347000CFEE2?OpenDocument
Arkansans Call for Better Web Access – Rural advocacy groups and educators told two members of the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday that a lack of high-speed Internet is hurting Arkansas' Delta and other poor regions (Associated Press, via the Houston Chronicle)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/5092818.html
Yahoo’s New President Oversees a Shake-Up – Susan L. Decker, Yahoo’s new president, is reorganizing the company’s management ranks with a new division responsible for generating the bulk of the company’s revenue. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/30/technology/30yahoo.html?ex=1346126400&en=f50e8ce9eefb197e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Craig's Problems Have Mixed Implications For Oregon “…The delegation sticks together and works together in terms of timber payments, also on issues dealing with the Bonneville Power Administration, what to do with Hanford…” (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/craigs-problems-have-mixed-implications-oregon/
Women must repay Indian advocates – Two women have one year to pay $62,400 in restitution to an advocacy group for American Indian education, or else face conviction on felony theft charges for stealing from the group when they were board members. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/203399.html
That buttery aroma might be toxic, too – Common chemical in popcorn at center of concern (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/329640_popcorn30.html
DIVERSIONS
This is awesome! Comcast's Official Make a New Pot of Coffee Policy (The Consumerist, Note that there may be PG-13 language in the comments section)
http://consumerist.com/consumer/leaks/comcasts-official-make-a-new-pot-of-coffee-policy-294597.php
Helmsley leaves dog $12M, two grandkids zero (“My inheritance is for the ‘little people’”)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003858534_webhelmsley29.html?syndication=rss
Toddlers Can Still Marry In Ark. – Gov.: Special Session Not Worth Expense
http://www.kirotv.com/family/13992389/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_nots&tmi=sea_nots_1_01150308292007&ts=H
Police Arrest Boys Suspected Of Milkshake Attacks
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14006462/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Thief steals case, but misses $13,000 inside
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER05193420070830?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Teenage driver held over 140 mph YouTube video
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER05113020070830?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Tree Sitter Update – University of California decision to erect fence results in protest, 2 arrests. With more than 72,000 people expected to converge on Cal's Memorial Stadium on Saturday for a sold-out football game, the university on Wednesday erected a chain-link fence to separate fans and the band of protesters living in trees near the stadium.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_6758622?source=rss&nclick_check=1
WORD OF THE DAY
Protean • \PROH-tee-un\ • adjective – 1: of or resembling Proteus in having a varied nature or ability to assume different forms *2: displaying great diversity or variety: versatile
Woody Allen’s film “Zelig” celebrated the ultimate protean character. Titled the “Human Chameleon”, Leonard Zelig took on the attributes of those around him as a way to fit in. (I especially love the hidden camera interview where Zelig, under hypnosis, goes on and on about his psychiatrist’s lousy pancakes.)
WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Oregon – Manufacturer says design probably not cause of turbine collapse – Turbine blades turning at excessive speeds might have caused last weekend's fatal tower collapse at an Eastern Oregon wind farm, according to a spokeswoman for the manufacturer. (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-907278~Manufacturer_says_design_probably_not_cause_of_turbine_collapse.html
Energy case kicked back to regulators – A ruling says new info needs to be studied in 2000-01 energy crisis. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered federal regulators to re-examine evidence that electricity wholesalers in the Northwest, including Portland General Electric, may have overcharged buyers for power on the spot market in 2000 and 2001. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/118844072291800.xml&coll=7
Senator takes aerial tour of hydro dams operated by BPA – As U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., flies over the sprawling system of hydroelectric dams in the Columbia River Basin, he can't help but think this power network could play a role in boosting renewable energy in Montana. (Billings Gazette)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/08/30/news/state/35-tester.txt
Lawsuit delays Montana power plant – Construction of a coal-fired power plant near Great Falls will be delayed pending resolution of a lawsuit that challenged the project's $650 million federal loan request, the project's general manager said Wednesday. (The Associated Press, via the Jackson Hole Star-Tribune)
http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/08/30/news/regional/310e600fe97620d88725734600810067.txt
Clatsop officials endorse LNG plan – Proponents of a proposed LNG terminal on the lower Columbia River got a boost Wednesday when the Clatsop County Planning Commission endorsed the project. (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2007/08/30/area_news/news06.txt
News Release – Pickering Community Celebrates New Bell Tower at Historic Grant School (Mason County PUD No. 3 web site)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=358
Suit tests Arizona Corporation Commission 'no' to Calif. power line – A new lawsuit will test how much state utility regulators can restrict companies shipping power generated here to other states. (Arizona Daily Star)
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/business/198167.php
New York – Low water in river means loss of hydropower to Alcoa plants – Power supplied by the New York Power Authority to Alcoa's two smelters here is curtailed because of low water in the St. Lawrence River. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffkkosoTUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Ex San Miguel Power Association SMPA employees tell of drinking, “inappropriate graphical images” – Management at the SMPA seeded an office culture where lewd e-mails circulated and employees drank at work and drove home in company vehicles, two former employees said in interviews. (Telluride Daily Planet…”Great Caesar’s Ghost!”)
http://www.telluridegateway.com/articles/2007/08/30/news/news01.txt
Ohio Governor calls for mix of market-based, regulated electric rates (Columbus Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/08/27/daily21.html?ana=from_rss
Ohio governor proposes re-regulation of electricity (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUKN2935526620070829?rpc=44
Deregulation/Restructuring Prove To Be a Long Term Force For Change And Utility Decision Making (PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5Cffkntyz%5BUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Utility's federal lobbying heavy: Spending to sway legislation may near company's peak – Duke Energy Corp. has spent more than $1 million this year trying to influence legislation in Washington, including proposed global-warming regulations (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffipunoXUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
Ontario to spend $25B on nuclear plants (CBC News)
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2007/08/29/ontario-nuclear.html
Canadian activists board, chain themselves to coal ship –Several Greenpeace activists who boarded a coal-carrying bulk ore carrier on Lake Erie en route to a power plant in Nanticoke, Ont., have now chained themselves to the ship. (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070830.wgreenpeace0830/BNStory/National/home
Oops! Power outage hits nuclear weapons lab – An electric transformer failed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory this morning, causing a six-hour power outage that affected 107 of the lab's 700 laboratories. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/30/MNDIRRN39.DTL&feed=rss.news
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Little pink salmon in really big trouble – A huge run of pink salmon is backed up behind a White River dam. The problem highlights a dispute over fish and river management. Biologists will try to help.(News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/143968.html
Salmon Will Get an Upstream Route on Bainbridge Island Creek (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2007/aug/29/salmon-will-get-an-upstream-route-on-bi-creek/
State, tribes agree to try negotiating over culverts (The Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20070830/NEWS01/108300042
Canada – If Sockeye's back, why not Coho in Alouette River?
http://www.mapleridgenews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=46&cat=23&id=1053677&more=0
Olympia man among finalists for Wild Salmon Hall of Fame – An Olympia man is one of five finalists, one of whom will be selected for induction into the Wild Salmon Hall of Fame. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/adventure/story/144088.html
Archaeological tests find no more Beckett Point remains –Work on a nearly $3 million Jefferson County Public Utility District community septic system at Beckett Point, which stalled in late May after prehistoric Native American remains and artifacts were uncovered, has been cleared to resume (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070823/NEWS/708230301
CONSERVATION & RENEWABLE ENERGY
North American Renewables Market to Reach $24.6 Billion in 2010 (Renewable Energy Access.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49796&src=rss
Ohio Considers Renewable Portfolio Standard – Governor will include "clean coal" and nuclear projects in the proposed energy portfolio. (Renewable Energy Access.com)
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=49804&src=rss
Toronto turns to lake water for air conditioning – Cold water drawn from Lake Ontario cools buildings and provides big energy savings. (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0830/p13s01-stgn.html
South Carolina utility will pay you for electricity – Starting in October, Santee Cooper will buy excess power from customers who make electricity with solar panels and other generators in a bid to bolster its green energy offerings and silence criticism from environmentalists. (Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, via PowerMarketers.com)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CffjmnmnUUokt%3EEvbfem%5Ev
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Tri-City Herald Opinion – A regional goal -- reducing emissions. It's more a leveling than it is a breakthrough, but the Western Climate Initiative is good news just the same.
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/opinions/v-rss/story/9263014p-9177895c.html
United Kingdom – Rating needed for eco claims (The Times Online)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/columnists/article2344110.ece
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
PUD NETWORK TO UPGRADE EQUIPMENT OVERNIGHT – Mason County Public Utility District No. 3 will upgrade equipment on its fiber-optic network from 11:30 p.m. Sunday to 2 a.m. Monday, curtailing Internet traffic over the PUD network. The upgrade will improve reliability, according to a PUD news release. (The Olympian)
Join the club…San Francisco citywide Wi-Fi plan fizzles as provider backs off – Mayor Gavin Newsom's high-profile effort to blanket San Francisco with a free wireless Internet network died Wednesday when provider EarthLink backed out of a proposed contract with the city. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/30/MNEJRRO70.DTL&feed=rss.news
Missouri – Light poles create delay in rollout of city's Wi-Fi network: Still waiting for citywide Wi-Fi in St. Louis? It might be awhile. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/stories.nsf/story/34E21F9F755952D286257347000CFEE2?OpenDocument
Arkansans Call for Better Web Access – Rural advocacy groups and educators told two members of the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday that a lack of high-speed Internet is hurting Arkansas' Delta and other poor regions (Associated Press, via the Houston Chronicle)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/5092818.html
Yahoo’s New President Oversees a Shake-Up – Susan L. Decker, Yahoo’s new president, is reorganizing the company’s management ranks with a new division responsible for generating the bulk of the company’s revenue. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/30/technology/30yahoo.html?ex=1346126400&en=f50e8ce9eefb197e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Craig's Problems Have Mixed Implications For Oregon “…The delegation sticks together and works together in terms of timber payments, also on issues dealing with the Bonneville Power Administration, what to do with Hanford…” (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/craigs-problems-have-mixed-implications-oregon/
Women must repay Indian advocates – Two women have one year to pay $62,400 in restitution to an advocacy group for American Indian education, or else face conviction on felony theft charges for stealing from the group when they were board members. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/203399.html
That buttery aroma might be toxic, too – Common chemical in popcorn at center of concern (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/329640_popcorn30.html
DIVERSIONS
This is awesome! Comcast's Official Make a New Pot of Coffee Policy (The Consumerist, Note that there may be PG-13 language in the comments section)
http://consumerist.com/consumer/leaks/comcasts-official-make-a-new-pot-of-coffee-policy-294597.php
Helmsley leaves dog $12M, two grandkids zero (“My inheritance is for the ‘little people’”)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003858534_webhelmsley29.html?syndication=rss
Toddlers Can Still Marry In Ark. – Gov.: Special Session Not Worth Expense
http://www.kirotv.com/family/13992389/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_nots&tmi=sea_nots_1_01150308292007&ts=H
Police Arrest Boys Suspected Of Milkshake Attacks
http://www.kirotv.com/news/14006462/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Thief steals case, but misses $13,000 inside
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER05193420070830?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Teenage driver held over 140 mph YouTube video
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSHER05113020070830?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Tree Sitter Update – University of California decision to erect fence results in protest, 2 arrests. With more than 72,000 people expected to converge on Cal's Memorial Stadium on Saturday for a sold-out football game, the university on Wednesday erected a chain-link fence to separate fans and the band of protesters living in trees near the stadium.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_6758622?source=rss&nclick_check=1
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