Energy News Digest for March 21, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Puget Sound Energy threatens lawsuit if Jefferson voters, PUD opt to take over electrical service
- BPA Agreement – Oregon May Get Lower Electric Rates
- $5 billion power line proposed – Project might tie California, B.C.
- Inland Power & Light’s net margins rise sharply
- Higher electric bills are on the way – A once-rosy outlook for Texas electricity customers has turned thorny
- Massachusetts – Cape Cod Electric Rates Among Highest In U.S.
- Department of Labor proposes new heat rules for Washington workers
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s 2007 State of the Markets Report
- News Release – FERC orders hearing to address Ninth Circuit Remand in California’s 2000-2001 energy market
- News Release – FERC accepts settlement in PJM Market monitor case
- Energy Pulse Commentary – The Case for Expanding Pumped Hydroelectric Storage
- Washington governor signs bill providing more water for Columbia Basin
- Ore. governor seeks to speed up salmon disaster aid
- Limits likely for fall chinook fishing on Oregon's rivers
- Two rivers to open for spring Chinook
- Oregon – Ask Fish and Game: Pikeminnow season
- Idaho – Lawmakers have their eye on new dams, higher dams
- Lake Tapps residents reassured over levels for recreation
- Burrowing rodents blamed for Nevada irrigation canal flood
- Ocean Shores Water testing good news for residents
- Hanford waste: 53 million gallons in danger of leaking
- Michigan – Alternative energy ideas fuel discussion
- Newsweek Magazine’s Project Green – Energy Goes Up In Smoke
- Home Depot, Habitat for Humanity strike first formal U.S. partnership
- Despite another cold winter in Oregon, global warming hasn't gone away, experts say
- Montana – Business groups campaign against climate change bill
- Perennial Arctic Ice Cover Diminishing, Officials Say
- Privately owned broadband for City of Seattle is moving ahead
- Wyoming – Powell gets funds for city fiber-optic network
- Police pick up final suspect in phone line metal thefts
- Airwaves Auction Winners Named – AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless
- Google's wireless-auction loss called possible win
- FCC Asked to Probe Auction
- Proposed Maryland bill would make intentional theft of wireless Internet access a crime
- BitTorrent to Comcast: Let's be friends
- Suspect confesses in theft of 20,000 gallons of gas along 1-5 in Washington, Oregon
- Mason County jury rules school district wasn't negligent in pitcher's lawsuit
- Property values rise by nearly $1 billion in Chelan County
- Demand for Heating and Cooling Installation is on the Rise
- Inspector Arrested in NYC Crane Collapse
- Judge orders Starbucks to pay more than $100 million in back tips

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Estoppel • \ess-TOP-pull\ • noun – A legal bar to alleging or denying a fact because of one's own previous actions or words to the contrary

The oily mannered politician’s estoppel was at once admirable and maddening to the citizens who attended his town hall meeting. “While I’d love to change my position on that topic,” he oozed, “I must hold true to my previous statements for now.”

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Puget Sound Energy threatens lawsuit if Jefferson voters, PUD opt to take over electrical service (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080321/NEWS/803210302

Oregon May Get Lower Electric Rates – Portland General Electric to Sign Deal With BPA to Reduce Electric Rates for Residents (CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/apwire/4a0da6589bef83508b3b2779854b4bd7.htm

$5 billion power line proposed – Project might tie California, B.C., provide Avista a link (Spokane Journal of Business)
http://www.spokanejournal.com/spokane_id=article&sub=3518

Inland Power & Light’s net margins rise sharply – Co-op expects to begin work on big West Plains project late next month (Spokane Journal of Business)
http://www.spokanejournal.com/spokane_id=article&sub=3526

Higher electric bills are on the way – A once-rosy outlook for Texas electricity customers has turned thorny as electric rates follow a surge in the price of natural gas, the fuel used by nearly half the state's generators. (Houston Chronicle – Woo hoo! Deregulation…um…works?)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5637569.html

Massachusetts – Cape Cod Electric Rates Among Highest In U.S. – Natural Gas Dependence, Location Drive Up Energy Costs (WCVB-TV, Boston)
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/money/15664395/detail.html

Department of Labor proposes new heat rules for Washington workers (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/03/17/daily25.html?ana=from_rss

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s 2007 State of the Markets Report (Links to PDF file)
http://www.ferc.gov/market-oversight/st-mkt-ovr/som-rpt-2007.pdf

News Release – FERC orders hearing to address Ninth Circuit Remand into whether any individual public utility sellers’ violations of market-based rate reporting requirements led to unjust and unreasonable rates for buyers in California’s 2000-2001 energy market. (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/03-20-08-E-5.asp

News Release – FERC accepts settlement in PJM Market monitor case (Federal Energy Regulatory Commision)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/03-21-08.asp

Energy Pulse Commentary – The Case for Expanding Pumped Hydroelectric Storage
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1693

WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT

Washington governor signs bill providing more water for Columbia Basin (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004295782_apwacolumbiawater1stldwritethru.html

Ore. governor seeks to speed up salmon disaster aid (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/16864056.html

Limits likely for fall chinook fishing on Oregon's rivers – Declining salmon returns force officials to warn of restricted seasons, catches (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1205987108115330.xml&coll=7

Two rivers to open for spring Chinook (Salem Statesman Journal)
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080321/OUTDOORS/803210332/1034

Oregon – Ask Fish and Game: Pikeminnow season (Argus Observer, Ontario, OR)
http://www.argusobserver.com/articles/2008/03/20/sports/doc47e2a9b671eee165098343.txt

Idaho – Lawmakers have their eye on new dams, higher dams – 1976 Teton Dam disaster is just one hurdle facing any project to store more water and make more electricity (The Idaho Statesman)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/localnews/story/328597.html

Lake Tapps residents reassured – State says that maintaining sufficient water in the lake for recreation during the summer is a state priority. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/314635.html

Burrowing rodents blamed for Nevada irrigation canal flood (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8650984?source=rss

Ocean Shores Water testing good news for residents (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/20/local_news/07news.txt

Hanford waste: 53 million gallons in danger of leaking – Transfer of waste to safer containers is lagging (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355909_tanks21.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Michigan – Alternative energy ideas fuel discussion (Michigan Live)
http://blog.mlive.com/cns/2008/03/alternative_energy_ideas_fuel.html

CONSERVATION

Newsweek Magazine’s Project Green – Energy Goes Up In Smoke – Our old house leaks heat (and money) like a sieve.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/120053

Home Depot, Habitat for Humanity strike first formal U.S. partnership (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2008/03/17/daily46.html?ana=from_rss

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Despite another cold winter in Oregon, global warming hasn't gone away, experts say – Temperatures over the long term suggest the planet is continuing to get hotter, not cooler (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1205987105115330.xml&coll=7

Montana – Business groups campaign against climate change bill (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/20/bnews/br68.txt

Perennial Arctic Ice Cover Diminishing, Officials Say (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/18/AR2008031802903.html?nav=rss_nation

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Privately owned broadband for City of Seattle is moving ahead (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004293823_brier20.html

Wyoming – Powell gets funds for city fiber-optic network (Billings Gazette)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/03/20/news/wyoming/28-fiberoptic.txt

Police pick up final suspect in phone line metal thefts (Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/21//area_news/10167873.txt

Airwaves Auction Winners Named – AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless combined to account for $16 billion of the $19.6 billion bid (Associated Press, via Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2004295086_apairwavesauctionwinners.html?syndication=rss

Google's wireless-auction loss called possible win (Reuters, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080321/wr_nm/wireless_auction_google_dc_2

FCC Asked to Probe Auction – Failure of Public Safety Band to Draw Bids Raises Suspicion (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/19/AR2008031903668.html?nav=rss_nation

Proposed Maryland bill would make intentional theft of wireless Internet access a crime (The Herald Mail)
http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=188912&format=html

BitTorrent to Comcast: Let's be friends – BitTorrent's CEO says Comcast would have more success managing its network if the two companies worked together. (CNET News)
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9899677-7.html?tag=nl.e433

GENERAL NEWS

Suspect confesses in theft of 20,000 gallons of gas along 1-5 in Washington, Oregon (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080321/NEWS03/981890147/-1/RSS01

Mason County jury rules school district wasn't negligent in pitcher's lawsuit (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP03202008news294373.cfm?newsletter=10

Property values rise by nearly $1 billion in Chelan County (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080320/NEWS04/353337220

Demand for Heating and Cooling Installation is on the Rise (KNDO-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=8050218

Inspector Arrested in NYC Crane Collapse – A city inspector has been charged with lying about checking on a construction crane that collapsed 11 days later, killing seven people (Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/20/national/a122823D70.DTL&feed=rss.news

Judge orders Starbucks to pay more than $100 million in back tips (Associated Press, via the Columbian)
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP03212008news294747.cfm

DIVERSIONS

Police: Woman, 66, Captures Armed Robber – 22-Year-Old Suspect Arrested
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15653011/detail.html

ATM gives shoppers double-money windfall
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN2041413420080320?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

Fleeing shoplifter forgets son
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL2022411420080320?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

Plans for anti-terror unit found in garbage
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN2039890220080320?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

32 aliases. Doctored fingerprints. Who is this guy?
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004296459_johndoe21m.html

Creating Roget's Thesaurus: The story of a man obsessed
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/books/2004293634_roget23.html

Energy News Digest for March 20, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Bonneville Power Administration settlement to help pay down Ashland Fiber Network debt
- City of Port Townsend backs study of electric utility
- Southern Montana Electric meeting to discuss new funding possibilities
- States’ Battles Over Energy Grow Fiercer With U.S. in a Policy Gridlock
- Coal Can't Fill World's Burning Appetite
- Pacific Northwest gets new proposal on natural gas
- New Hampshire – Nuclear watchdog group raises alarm over Seabrook plant
- U.S. Department of Energy insistent Yucca on track
- Evaluating Texas Competition: One Year of Full Competition
- News Release – FERC joins investigation into Florida blackout
- Soldier Electrocutions Probed in Iraq
- The Columbian Editorial – In our view: Repair service fails
- Online Convenience Fee Is 63% Of Utility Bill
- Spring Chinook salmon fishery on Columbia offers good catch
- Collapse of Coho run will mean low catch limits for ocean salmon
- Seattle Times Editorial – No free lunch for sea lions
- Coming soon to Sea World: local sea lions
- Tests find unsafe chemical levels in bass near Bonneville Dam
- Kalama developer accused of stealing water
- Goats prevent fires, anger neighbors
- Ethanol: How the promise dwindled
- Canada – People downwind worry about Metro's 'waste-to-energy' plan
- After saving energy, recycle intact CFLs
- S.F. moves to greenest building codes in U.S.
- Spring's sprung earlier, warmer
- FCC Finally Realizes 200kbps is Not Broadband
- Comcast Tells FCC It Doesn’t Have Authority to Interfere With "Traffic Shaping"
- F.C.C. Bans Exclusive Phone Deals for Apartments
- US-Swedish carrier spat 'breaks' the Internet
- Suspect In Series Of Gas Thefts Arrested
- A tipping point at the gas pump for consumers?
- Sky-high fuel costs hit some extra hard
- Pierce County road crew workers yank signs, real estate agents steamed
- Trees take the fall for a better view

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Compunctious • \kum-PUNK-shus\ • adjective –*1: arising from remorse or regret 2: feeling remorse or regret

Immediately after leaving the comfort station, Gertrude started to suffer guilty, compunctious feelings. She felt the hard stares of her co-workers; the shrugged shoulders. “Perhaps I should have replaced the toilet paper after using the last sheets,” she pondered.

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Bonneville Power Administration settlement to help pay down Ashland Fiber Network debt – Solar panels will not get financing from deal (Ashland Daily Tidings)
http://www.dailytidings.com/2008/0319/stories/0319_council.php

City of Port Townsend backs study of electric utility (Port Townsend Leader)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=55&ArticleID=20376&TM=77094.26

Southern Montana Electric meeting to discuss new funding possibilities – A coal-fired power plant proposed east of Great Falls will be the main topic of the annual meeting Friday of the board of directors (Great Falls Tribune)
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080320/NEWS01/803200309/1002

States’ Battles Over Energy Grow Fiercer With U.S. in a Policy Gridlock (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/us/20energy.html?_r=1&ex=1363752000&en=f83363a2bcc68d76&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

Coal Can't Fill World's Burning Appetite – With Supplies Short, Price Rise Surpasses Oil and U.S. Exporters Profit (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/19/AR2008031903859.html?wpisrc=newsletter

Pacific Northwest gets new proposal on natural gas – Yet another proposal has surfaced to bring massive quantities of natural gas into -- and through -- the Pacific Northwest. (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/120589711716650.xml&coll=7

New Hampshire – Nuclear watchdog group raises alarm over Seabrook plant (McClatchy Tribune Business News, via Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CjijlompZTnk%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv

U.S. Department of Energy insistent Yucca on track (Pauhrump Valley Times)
http://www.pahrumpvalleytimes.com/2008/Mar-19-Wed-2008/news/20402562.html

Evaluating Texas Competition: One Year of Full Competition (Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5CjijlqqjRTnk%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv

News Release – FERC joins investigation into Florida blackout (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/03-19-08.asp

Soldier Electrocutions Probed in Iraq – A U.S. House committee chairman has begun an investigation into the electrocutions of at least 12 service members in Iraq, including that of a Pittsburgh soldier killed in January by a jolt of electricity while showering. (Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/20/national/a072728D40.DTL&feed=rss.business

The Columbian Editorial – In our view: Repair service fails
http://www.columbian.com/opinion/news/2008/03/03202008_In-our-view-Repair-service-fails.cfm/

Online Convenience Fee Is 63% Of Utility Bill (Consumerist – Comment section may contain PG-13 language)
http://consumerist.com/369526/online-convenience-fee-is-63-of-utility-bill

WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT

Spring Chinook salmon fishery on Columbia offers good catch (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/394026.html

Collapse of Coho run will mean low catch limits for ocean salmon – The outlook for ocean salmon fisheries reflects poor Coho forecasts, the worst since the 1990s. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/soundlife/story/313686.html

Seattle Times Editorial – No free lunch for sea lions – U.S. taxpayers and Northwest utility users provide billions of dollars to restore salmon and steelhead populations. Hungry sea lions are dining on the progress, and non-lethal deterrence has failed.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2004293056_fished20.html

Coming soon to Sea World: local sea lions – Officials will begin trapping in the river near Bonneville Dam in early April (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/120589710816650.xml&coll=7

Tests find unsafe chemical levels in bass near Bonneville Dam (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1205805318199950.xml&coll=7

Kalama developer accused of stealing water (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/20//area_news/10165801.txt

Goats prevent fires, anger neighbors – Residents living near open fields take issue with the grazers scaring away other animals (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8635933?source=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Ethanol: How the promise dwindled (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/103/story/799508.html

Canada – People downwind worry about Metro's 'waste-to-energy' plan (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=f8132e91-68a1-4940-908f-5940e75d1cf6

CONSERVATION

After saving energy, recycle intact CFLs (Honolulu Advertiser)
http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2008/Mar/20/bz/hawaii803200318.html

S.F. moves to greenest building codes in U.S. (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/20/MN7QVMJ5T.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Spring's sprung earlier, warmer – Climate change puts the greening season ahead of schedule for many species in the Northwest (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355707_warmspring20.html

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

FCC Finally Realizes 200kbps is Not Broadband – Votes to reform long-flawed broadband data collection, albeit after-the-fact (Broadband Reports – Comment section may include PG-13 language)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/FCC-Finally-Realizes-200kbps-is-Not-Broadband-92792

Comcast Tells FCC It Doesn’t Have Authority to Interfere With "Traffic Shaping" (Consumerist – Comment section may contain PG-13 language)
http://consumerist.com/369852/comcast-tells-fcc-it-doesnt-have-authority-to-interfere-with-traffic-shaping

F.C.C. Bans Exclusive Phone Deals for Apartments (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/technology/20fcc.html?ex=1363752000&en=12999867de860d9e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

US-Swedish carrier spat 'breaks' the Internet (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080319/ap_on_hi_te/broken_internet_2

GENERAL NEWS

Suspect In Series Of Gas Thefts Arrested (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15645051/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news

A tipping point at the gas pump for consumers? (Associated Press, via the San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8635270?source=rss

Sky-high fuel costs hit some extra hard (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004294030_gasprices20m.html?syndication=rss

Pierce County road crew workers yank signs, real estate agents steamed – Real estate agents, already feeling the brunt of a slowing market, are now facing the brunt of a Pierce County sign law. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/313676.html

Trees take the fall for a better view – Man suspected of toppling maples on West Seattle slope (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355720_trees20.html?source=rss

DIVERSIONS

Father sues Montessori teacher for damaging son's self-esteem “…teacher damaged the boy's self-esteem by failing to have him write a poem with the rest of the class, and failed to encourage his strong spelling skills...”
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=e8ad6bca-c4d7-41cd-bfd5-6ea543704658&k=21331

Man gets 30 days' jail for taco theft
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/odd_taco_crime;_ylt=AoU4smDZGdw0m9DzCwpB8jftiBIF

Teen love caught hanging in the balance – Graffiti artist and sweetheart caught red-handed
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080319/ap_on_fe_st/odd_hanging_around;_ylt=Ar2KJkGI6Y4L_tUEkqr6RNLtiBIF

Older Brits behaving badly abroad
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080320/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_oaps;_ylt=Av1tVijC5AS5lE9uhn3MljLtiBIF

Canada robbers nabbed by cops driving getaway taxi
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080320/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_crime;_ylt=Av8v884WySXVlguC56dHBRXtiBIF

Energy News Digest for March 19, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Effective May 1: Mason County PUD No. 3 Commission Adopts Average 5% Rate Increase
- Port Townsend City Council to explore means of electricity other than Puget Sound Energy
- Clark Public Utilities to pull plug on appliance repairs
- Chelan PUD meter reading may go high-tech
- Insulators damaged by firearms in Prineville area
- Maryland – State, Constellation Energy in talks to settle lawsuits
- FERC, NRC Commissioners to discuss grid reliability April 8
- Wisconsin – One cold fact: Heating bills rise
- Does Michigan need more electricity?
- Kitsap County PUD plans for future growth
- Oregon – Study finds pesticides common in lower Clackamas River, tributaries
- Toxic Mud Is Being Removed from behind Milltown Dam on Montana’s Clark Fork River
- Salmon fins snipped at a good clip by automated machines
- Windfall -- Existing Transmission Lines Help Make Power Feasible
- PPM Energy wins award for Klamath Cogeneration Plant
- Rhode Island – Renewable energy bills could green the state
- Energy Pulse Commentary – Saving Private Renewables
- Iowa lawmakers encouraged to take more steps to save energy
- Montana Governor: State fuel efficiency standards won't work
- Arctic sea ice builds, but remains vulnerable
- The Mystery of Global Warming's Missing Heat
- California had big hike in carbon-dioxide emissions
- Students take one small step to make a big difference against climate change
- Why the Mortgage Crisis Is a Carbon Crisis, Too
- United Kingdom – How Green Is Your Green Tariff?
- Business Of Green – Poor are sidelined on climate change solutions
- Why carbon capture is an illusion
- Google sees surge in Web use on mobile phones
- Wireless Spectrum Auction Raises $19 Billion
- FCC Denies, Then Announces Second Neutrality Hearing
- Competition Fuels Broadband Use in Europe
- Grant to help expand rural telemedicine
- Other Shelton City Employees Join No Confidence Vote
- De-icer damaging thousands of trees on mountain passes

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Titanic • \tye-TAN-ik\ • adjective – Having great magnitude, force, or power: colossal

Amber was horrified by her blind date’s performance on the cross-sound ferry. After blathering on about the comparative writings of JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis, he jumped up and down on the bow of the ferry, flapping his arms and shouting “I’m King of the World!” It took a titanic effort by Amber not to slap him silly.

From Merriam-Webster – Before becoming the name of one of the most famous ships in history, "titanic" referred to the Titans, a family of giants in Greek mythology who were believed to have once ruled the earth. They were subsequently overpowered and replaced by the younger Olympian gods under the leadership of Zeus. The size and power of the Titans is memorialized in the adjective "titanic" and in the noun "titanium," a metallic element of exceptional strength that is used in the production of steel.

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

News Release – Effective May 1: Mason County PUD No. 3 Commission Adopts Average 5% Rate Increase (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=418

Port Townsend City Council to explore means of electricity other than Puget Sound Energy (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080318/NEWS/803180305

Clark Public Utilities to pull plug on appliance repairs (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03192008_Utility-to-pull-plug-on-appliance-repairs.cfm/

Chelan PUD meter reading may go high-tech – Automated system could cost $15 million (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080318/NEWS04/44517948

News Release – Insulators damaged by firearms in Prineville area (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/195570/

Maryland – State, Constellation Energy in talks to settle lawsuits (Baltimore Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/03/17/daily25.html?ana=from_rss

News Release – FERC, NRC Commissioners to discuss grid reliability April 8, 2008 in Washington, DC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/02-29-08.asp

Wisconsin – One cold fact: Heating bills rise – Tough winter boosts costs, but it could have been worse (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=728763

Does Michigan need more electricity? Predicting usage is tricky (The Associated Press, via the Battle Creek Enquirer)
http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080318/NEWS01/303180034

WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT

Kitsap County PUD plans for future growth (North Kitsap Herald)
http://www.northkitsapherald.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=95&cat=23&id=1176454&more=0

Oregon – Study finds pesticides common in lower Clackamas River, tributaries (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/120581070620230.xml&coll=7

Toxic Mud Is Being Removed from behind Milltown Dam on Montana’s Clark Fork River (Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1286019~Toxic_Mud_Is_Being_Removed_in_Montana.html?cid=rss-Montana_Headlines

Salmon fins snipped at a good clip by automated machines (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03182008_Salmon-fins-snipped-at-a-good-clip-by-automated-machines.cfm?newsletter=2

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Windfall -- Existing Transmission Lines Help Make Power Feasible (Yakima Herald-Republic, via RedOrbit)
http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1302178/windfall__existing_transmission_lines_help_make_power_feasible/

PPM Energy wins award for Klamath Cogeneration Plant (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/03/17/daily15.html?ana=from_rss

Rhode Island – Renewable energy bills could green the state (Block Island Times)
http://www.blockislandtimes.com/articles/2008/03/17/news/news8.txt

Energy Pulse Commentary – Saving Private Renewables
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1698

CONSERVATION

Iowa lawmakers encouraged to take more steps to save energy (Radio Iowa)
http://www.radioiowa.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=C7CE557C-C4C4-6E97-5AB0C6F5B4DBBEC9

Students compete to conserve energy and water in 'IU Energy Challenge' (Indiana University)
http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/7754.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Montana Governor: State fuel efficiency standards won't work (Helena Independent Record)
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2008/03/19/top/65st_080319_warming.txt

Arctic sea ice builds, but remains vulnerable (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/globalwarming/2008-03-18-arctic-ice-builds_N.htm?csp=34

The Mystery of Global Warming's Missing Heat (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88520025&ft=1&f=3

California had big hike in carbon-dioxide emissions – State ranks in top 10 for one-year increases in 2007 (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8622629?source=rss

For the news release on which the above report is based, use the link below to the Environmental Integrity Project
http://www.environmentalintegrity.org/pub494.cfm

Students take one small step to make a big difference against climate change (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/16798696.html

Why The Mortgage Crisis Is a Carbon Crisis, Too (The Daily Green)
http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/blogs/shapley/mortgage-crisis-carbon-47031903

United Kingdom – How Green Is Your Green Tariff? (Motley Fool)
http://www.fool.co.uk/news/money-saving-tips/household-bills/2008/03/19/how-green-is-your-green-tariff.aspx

Business Of Green – Poor are sidelined on climate change solutions (International Herald Tribune)
http://iht.com/articles/2008/03/18/business/greencol19.php

Why carbon capture is an illusion (Canada Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080318.wcomment0319/BNStory/Front/home

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Google sees surge in Web use on mobile phones (Reuters, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080319/tc_nm/google_mobile_dc_3

Wireless Spectrum Auction Raises $19 Billion (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/technology/19fcc.html?_r=1&ex=1363665600&en=73387c3fc831db6a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

FCC Denies, Then Announces Second Neutrality Hearing (Broadband Reports – Comment section may include PG-13 language)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/FCC-Denies-Then-Announces-Second-Neutrality-Hearing-92780

Competition Fuels Broadband Use in Europe (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/technology/19wireless-web.html?ex=1363665600&en=e530849e47605723&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Grant to help expand rural telemedicine (Associated Press, via the Tri City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/991/story/121727.html

GENERAL NEWS

OTHER SHELTON CITY EMPLOYEES JOIN NO CONFIDENCE VOTE – A reported 80% of other City of Shelton employees have voted "no confidence" in City Administrator Dave O'Leary. Joining the Shelton Police Officers Guild are the Public Works membership, the Customer Service membership, and the Financial Services membership of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, AFL-CIO, Woodworkers Local Lodge W38, and the Mason County Communications Officers Association. Although these groups did not speak during Monday night's Shelton City Commission meeting, they did submit written correspondence to the Commission stating their concerns that "the City has suffered greatly through mismanagement. Going from a Budget Surplus to Shortfall in such a short period of time shows a pattern of inability or unwillingness to look out for the best interest of the Community and Employees of the City of Shelton." This information was NOT provided to 1030 KMAS News until Tuesday morning. In a written statement, the employees of the City noted that those voting the "no confidence" are "dedicated City residents and employees who have risked much to give a voice and let the citizens know that there are serious issues within the City administration."

De-icer damaging thousands of trees on mountain passes (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004291523_treekill19m.html?syndication=rss

DIVERSIONS

Man Sues, Says Stripper Injured Him With Shoe During Lap Dance
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15631399/detail.html

Joining Office Pool? You're Not Alone – NCAA Tournament Pools Hurt Businesses' Bottom Lines
http://www.kirotv.com/money/15621026/detail.html

Man auctions his life
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSSYD30599020080319?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

Lloyd's insures winemaker's nose for $8 million
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1882618620080318?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

A Secret Love for Meetings – Most people say they hate meetings. Hiding beneath the disdain, there may be some love for a productive roundtable
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88483007&ft=1&f=17

Energy News Digest for March 18, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Oregon – Portion of Bonneville Power Administration settlement could fund Ashland solar project
- Australia – Energy 'collapse' will force nuclear use, says exper
- Agency OKs the killing of sea lions at Bonneville Dam
- Idaho – Committee backs stiffer fines for fishery destruction
- Salem Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Driving the salmon to extinction
- San Jose Mercury News Editorial – Don't let salmon go the way of the California grizzly
- Daily Astorian Editorial – Decline of smelt fishery is bad for us
- Lake Chelan drawdown forecast revised
- Washington State Cracks Down On Private Dams
- Southeast U.S. drought eases, water wars persist
- California – Pair accused of stealing water meters
- Next big biofuel could be garbage
- Corporate Sponsorship for a Wind Farm
- Wal-Mart 'green store' cuts energy
- Legislature approves four earth-friendly bills
- Melting Pace of Glaciers Is Accelerating, Report Says
- In a Warmer Yellowstone Park, a Shifting Environmental Balance
- Tank vs. Hybrid – Is it possible that a Hummer's better for the environment than a Prius
- City of Seattle issues Request for Information for Fiber to the Premises build out.
- Illinois – Princeton set to roll out city Internet: Broadband Over Power Lines
- Data Centers To Fall Short In 2-5 Years, HP Predicts
- Using Water Cooling in the Data Center Brings Challenges
- Qwest to cut jobs on lower traditional phone use
- Qwest Lobbied on Internet Issues
- Charter cable company sued for back pay
- Time to recognize Web addiction as illness
- Supreme Court rules in favor of Washington state primary
- Shelton Police Officers Vote No Confidence In Administrator
- Weyerhaeuser mills, plants facilities sold to IP

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Meticulous • \muh-TIK-yuh-lus\ • adjective – Marked by extreme or excessive care in the consideration or treatment of details

Slowly, but gently Joel placed his summer-blooming bulbs into the rich, dark earth; meticulously placing a generous helping of cayenne pepper around the precious little treasures. “Feast on THAT,” he muttered under his breath as a final benediction for the bulb and the voracious voles and pocket gophers that were secretly watching his ministrations from beneath the hydrangea bush.

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Oregon – Portion of Bonneville Power Administration settlement could fund Ashland solar project (Ashland Tidings)
http://www.dailytidings.com/2008/0317/stories/0317_council.php

Australia – Energy 'collapse' will force nuclear use, says expert – A professor of geology has warned there will be no option other than embracing nuclear power in Australia when other energy sources collapse. (ABC Online)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/17/2191969.htm

WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT

Agency OKs the killing of sea lions at Bonneville Dam (Associated Press, via the Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/18/area_news/doc47df550833648373256252.txt

Idaho – Committee backs stiffer fines for fishery destruction (Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/391762.html

Salem Statesman Journal Op/Ed – Driving the salmon to extinction
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080318/BLOGS13/80318007/1046/OPINION

San Jose Mercury News Editorial – Don't let salmon go the way of the California grizzly
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8609711?source=rss

Daily Astorian Editorial – Decline of smelt fishery is bad for us: Tribes get ball rolling toward endangered listing
http://www.dailyastorian.info/main.asp?SectionID=23&SubSectionID=392&ArticleID=49815&TM=59979.88

Lake Chelan drawdown forecast revised – Chelan County PUD: Less spring runoff means more water can remain in lake (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080317/NEWS04/545210983

Washington State Cracks Down On Private Dams (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/washington-state-cracks-down-private-dams/

Southeast U.S. drought eases, water wars persist (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2008-03-17-water-wars_N.htm?csp=34

California – Pair accused of stealing water meters – One of the two suspects is a contractor hired to install devices in new homes
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8610752?source=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Next big biofuel could be garbage – A report suggests a homegrown Northwest industry built, in part, by converting waste (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1205720713233110.xml&coll=7

Corporate Sponsorship for a Wind Farm (NY Times – almost like naming rights)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/business/18steel.html?_r=1&ex=1363579200&en=07698a0e5d86ef5a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

CONSERVATION

Wal-Mart 'green store' cuts energy (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080318/ap_on_bi_ge/wal_mart_energy_saving_2

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Legislature approves four earth-friendly bills – The environmental community's four top priority bills survived the 2008 state legislative session, but two of them were watered down to achieve political support. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/391908.html

Melting Pace of Glaciers Is Accelerating, Report Says (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/science/earth/18melt.html?ex=1363492800&en=e19b4b86c09cae9f&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

In a Warmer Yellowstone Park, a Shifting Environmental Balance (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/science/18griz.html?ex=1363579200&en=1e833588cba857e7&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Tank vs. Hybrid – Is it possible that a Hummer's better for the environment than a Prius is? (Slate Magazine)
http://www.slate.com/id/2186786/?from=rss

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

City of Seattle issues Request for Information for Fiber to the Premises build out.
http://www.seattle.gov/broadband/

Illinois – Princeton set to roll out city Internet: Broadband Over Power Lines service uses municipally owned electric lines (Princeton Journal Star)
http://www.pjstar.com/stories/031608/REG_BG2B394O.053.php

Data Centers To Fall Short In 2-5 Years, HP Predicts “…they would not be able to find the electricity, cooling capacity, space or budgets they need to continue to expand their data centers…”. (InformationWeek)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/cmp/20080318/tc_cmp/206904227

Using Water Cooling in the Data Center Brings Challenges – As racks get filled with high density equipment, facility executives are examining the impacts of bringing water into the data center (FacilitiesNet via Energy Ideas Clearinghouse)
http://www.facilitiesnet.com/bom/article.asp?id=8227&keywords=data%20centers

Qwest to cut jobs on lower traditional phone use (Reuters)
http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/080318/qwest_jobs.html?.v=1

Qwest Lobbied on Internet Issues – Qwest Communications Spent Nearly $3.4 Million to Lobby Government (Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080317/qwest_communications_lobbying.html?.v=1

Charter cable company sued for back pay (Associated Press, via the Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/business/business_wire/story/120125.html

Time to recognize Web addiction as illness “…about 86 per cent of Internet addicts have some other form of mental illness …” (Victoria Times-Colonist)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=b436303d-e3ba-46a5-86ae-46ef80db6248&k=25569

GENERAL NEWS

Supreme Court rules in favor of Washington state primary (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/breaking/story/311970.html

Supreme Court rules in favor of Washington state primary (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004289949_webprimary18m.html?syndication=rss

POLICE OFFICERS VOTE NO CONFIDENCE IN ADMINISTRATOR – The Shelton Police Officers Guild has voted “no confidence” in City Administrator Dave O'Leary and asked for his resignation. Detective Harry Heldreth spoke on behave of the guild during Monday's Shelton City Commission meeting telling the Commissioners their vote came on the heals of O'Leary asking for over $300,000 be cut from the Police Department's budget for next year. In his prepared statement, the Detective asked the Commission to hold O'Leary accountable for the City's current financial situation and limited revenues. According to O'Leary, the City's revenues have been diminishing for a variety of reasons including voter approved tax limiting measures such as Initiative 695 and Initiative 747, and increasing costs for fuel and medical insurance. O'Leary says officials are looking to cut about $600,000 from the 2009 budget and working on it now will help limit the impacts. O'Leary, City Commissioner of Finance Mike Byrne and the City's Finance Director Cathy Beierle will be meeting with department heads this week to discuss what kinds of cuts are needed. O'Leary plans on meeting with the guild and discussing the cuts further as the $300,000 is a worse case scenario. Those meetings will lead to a plan for the City that will be presented to the Shelton City Commission at a retreat on March 26th. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)

Weyerhaeuser mills, plants facilities sold to IP (Examiner.com – Includes plants in Olympia, Moses Lake, Yakima & Bellevue)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1283870~Weyerhaeuser_mills__plants_facilities_sold_to_IP.html

DIVERSIONS

Biologist Releases Fish In 1983, Catches It 25 Years Later
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15620076/detail.html

Mouse Holds Plane Hostage For 5 Hours
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15586864/detail.html

Cities Smile Atop Best Teeth Lists (Seattle was 27. What’s with Spokane and Portland? 98 and 94 respectively)
http://www.kirotv.com/health/15594577/detail.html

The Claim: Cold Water Boils More Quickly than Hot Water.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/health/18real.html?ex=1363579200&en=4e9291be6dd92c68&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Energy News Digest for March 17, 2008

All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Man severely burned inside Orcas Island substation
- News Release – Public invited to comment on BPA's electricity rate-setting process
- Idaho Power Co. seeks rate changes
- Hanford waste could go to Idaho
- Electricity use holds flat – Ashland's electricity use per person has dropped slightly since 1982
- The Power Drain – The Pinch At Home: Many Residents Stung By High Cost of Utilities
- Michigan – Electrical energy: State needs to create stability for utilities
- Changing and challenging winds in the power industry
- FERC rules on Sacramento Public Utilities’ projects
- News Release – BPA holding open houses to stress danger posed by trees and power lines
- Snohomish County PUD Names New Attorney
- Shutdown on salmon a major blow to anglers
- California Chinook Salmon Vanish Without a Trace
- West Coast salmon season imperiled by low stocks
- Cushman Dam water release will aid salmon
- Hood Canal – Young Steelhead Return to Familiar Waters
- Makah 'treaty warriors': Heroes or criminals?
- More testing sought for water
- Power from the people: Aberdeen lacks “gas”
- U.S. on the Verge of a Small Hydro Boom?
- Arizona Star Op/Ed – Say no to reneging on energy standards
- Energy portfolio in question – Some officials say local renewable energy projects better than buying credits
- Bright ideas in solar energy
- Switching off incandescents a no-brainer?
- Tri-City Herald Op/Ed – Dani Doane: Light bulbs: An illuminating accident
- Montana – Green and lean: Carbon-neutral home results in $28 February power bill
- Carbon-Trading Exchange Opens in New York
- The greening of Wall Street: environment's pot of gold?
- Canada – National carbon tax gets nod
- Wenatchee – Is it really greener here?
- Portland's gold standard for green meetings
- Corvallis named greenest city in U.S.
- Maryland lawmakers seek to speed rural Web access
- Taxpayers may be asked to help pay for political campaigns
- Metal thieves strike air conditioning units

These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest

WORD OF THE DAY

Fruition • \froo-ISH-un\ • noun – 1: pleasurable use or possession: enjoyment 2a: the state of bearing fruit *b: realization

Time was running out. All his years of practicing three point shots would hinge on his left corner shot…the fruition of his efforts was not to be, however, as a power outage reset Antonio’s NBA video game with two seconds left on the game clock. “Curses,” he fumed under his breath as he was forced to return to work in his cubicle on his first quarter reports.

From Merriam-Webster Dictionary – "Fruition" must come from the word "fruit," right? Not exactly. "Fruition" and "fruit" are related (both ultimately come from the Latin verb "frui," meaning "to enjoy"), but they were derived independently. The original meaning of "fruition" had nothing to do with fruit. Rather, when the term was first used in the early 15th century, it meant only "pleasurable use or possession." Not until the 19th century did "fruition" develop a second meaning, "the state of bearing fruit," possibly as the result of a mistaken assumption that "fruition" evolved from "fruit." The "state of bearing fruit" sense was followed quickly by the figurative application to anything that can be "realized" and metaphorically bear fruit, such as a plan or a project.

WEATHER

Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944

(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Man severely burned inside Orcas Island substation (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komotv.com/news/local/16727266.html

News Release – Public invited to comment on BPA's electricity rate-setting process (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/195351/

Idaho Power Co. seeks rate changes – Idaho Power wants a new fee to pay for conservation and an adjustment in power rates. (Idaho Statesman)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/business/story/324392.html

Hanford waste could go to Idaho (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355263_hanford17.html?source=rss

Electricity use holds flat – Ashland's electricity use per person has dropped slightly since 1982, even as average electricity use has jumped significantly in Oregon and the United States. (Ashland Daily Tidings)
http://www.dailytidings.com/2008/0315/stories/0315_electricity.php

The Power Drain – The Pinch At Home: Many Residents Stung By High Cost of Utilities (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/15/AR2008031501014.html?nav=rss_nation

Michigan – Electrical energy: State needs to create stability for utilities, closely evaluate plans (Livingston Daily Press & Argus)
http://www.dailypressandargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080317/OPINION01/803170308/1014/OPINION

Changing and challenging winds in the power industry – It's an awkward time in the energy business. Coal is plentiful, but coal-gas generation is carbon-spewing, and the body politic won't tolerate that. (Crosscut Seattle)
http://www.crosscut.com/politics-government/12625/Changing+and+challenging+winds+in+the+power+industry/

FERC rules on Sacramento Public Utilities’ projects – Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Upper American River Projects (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/industries/hydropower/enviro/eis/2008/03-14-08.asp

News Release – BPA holding open houses to stress danger posed by trees and power lines – Policy change resulting in additional tree removal will be explained (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/195240/

SNOHOMISH COUNTY PUD NAMES NEW ATTORNEY – Snohomish County PUD named Anne Spangler as its new general counsel. Spanger has more than 25 years of experience as an attorney, most recently as chief counsel for Tacoma Public Utilities. Her background includes work for the city of Tacoma, the Seattle city attorney and the Washington state attorney general. Spangler holds a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Reed College and a law degree with honors from the University of California's Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. She begins her new post May 5. (Everett Herald)

WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT

Shutdown on salmon a major blow to anglers – Final decisions on options will be adopted in April (Salem Statesman Journal)
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080316/NEWS/803160307

California Chinook Salmon Vanish Without a Trace (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/17/science/earth/17salmon.html?_r=1&ex=1363492800&en=8e708979a1f2a936&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

West Coast salmon season imperiled by low stocks (Christian Science Monitor)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080317/ts_csm/asalmon

Water release will aid salmon – Tacoma Power, Skokomish tribe reach deal on dam (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/391040.html

Hood Canal – Young Steelhead Return to Familiar Waters (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/16/steelhead-get-boost-in-hamma-hamma-river/

Makah 'treaty warriors': Heroes or criminals? Whaling case has political implications for all U.S. tribes (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355205_makah17.html?source=rss

More testing sought for water (The Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/391037.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Power from the people: Aberdeen lacks “gas” – A Grays Harbor County PUD study to see if Aberdeen’s wastewater could generate power determined that the city doesn’t produce enough methane gas to make the conversion worthwhile. (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/14/local_news/02news.txt

U.S. on the Verge of a Small Hydro Boom? (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51858&src=rss

Arizona Star Op/Ed – Say no to reneging on energy standards – U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/business/229856.php

Energy portfolio in question – Some officials say local renewable energy projects better than buying credits (The Coloradan)
http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080317/NEWS01/803170322

Bright ideas in solar energy (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004286878_btsoho17.html?syndication=rss

CONSERVATION

Switching off incandescents a no-brainer? (Toronto Star)
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/346692

Tri-City Herald Op/Ed – Dani Doane: Light bulbs: An illuminating accident – The Heritage Foundation
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/987/story/119707.html

Montana – Green and lean: Carbon-neutral home results in $28 February power bill (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/16/news/top/news01.txt

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Carbon-Trading Exchange Opens in New York (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88382450&ft=1&f=3

The greening of Wall Street: environment's pot of gold? (The Economist Magazine, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/355065_greenonline17.html?source=rss

Canada – National carbon tax gets nod from Dion – Liberal leader says levy on gasoline and other fuels would fight warming (Victoria Times-Colonist)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=0094730b-b485-4040-bd07-645fa0cb5e2e&k=74706

Is it really greener here? It's been nearly a year since Wenatchee found itself in a surprising national spotlight, being named the fifth-greenest city in America. (The Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080315/NEWS04/661595410

City's gold standard for green meetings – Portland is counting on its long-standing "green" reputation to help it become the destination of choice for people who want to meet in an eco-friendly place. (The Oregonian – Just don’t pay attention to that darned fuel mix report)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1205465133259710.xml&coll=7

Corvallis named greenest city in U.S. (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/03/10/daily39.html?ana=from_rss

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Maryland lawmakers seek to speed rural Web access (The News Journal. Wilmington, Delaware)
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080315/NEWS/80315004

GENERAL NEWS

Taxpayers may be asked to help pay for political campaigns (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/355246_pubmoney17.asp?source=rss

China-bound copper thefts stop Australian trains – With stopped trains, stolen phone lines and pilfered power cables, Australians are paying a hefty price for China's pre-Olympic building boom
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080313/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_australia_china_copper;_ylt=AmJs3zHR.k.volps8MAcSVftiBIF

Metal thieves strike air conditioning units (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03142008_Metal-thieves-strike-air-conditioning-units.cfm?newsletter=1

DIVERSIONS

Accountant loses $600,000 grape lawsuit – He tried to sue British retail chain Marks & Spencer after he slipped on a grape and injured himself
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080313/od_nm/court_grape_dc;_ylt=AnivFlZ2E0JnJEsZgLGpJn3tiBIF

Engagement ring ends up gone with the wind – Helium-filled balloon not the best delivery device…
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080314/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_engagement;_ylt=AspfQEFSOa9fGaLcRaM_frDtiBIF

Discipline despite Calif. bus rescue – A 15-year-old girl who stopped an out-of-control school bus she was riding on was handed a Saturday detention instead because she was skipping school.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080316/ap_on_fe_st/odd_school_bus_drama;_ylt=ApltMu1ZHRtzUQELpb4nOqTtiBIF

`Ben Franklin,' `Betsy Ross' to marry
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080315/ap_on_fe_st/odd_revolutionary_marriage;_ylt=AuKvXGpiA0cKVhvBt5SeXoDtiBIF