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)
- Clallam PUD raises power rates
- U.S.' LNG projects in doubt after court ruling
- Cowlitz County stands firm on request for NorthernStar pipeline permits
- Group calls Washington's new heat rules 'ridiculous'
- Maryland – This is no time for Baltimore Gas & Electric to fail Fuel Fund for low income energy assistance
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission Takes 32 Years to Answer Nuclear Energy Watchdog Group’s Petition
- North Carolina – Eight protesters arrested at Duke Energy's Cliffside plant
- The Consumerist – IDT Energy Scamming Spreads Past New York City
- Florida – Sparks fly at Boca GOP club energy talk
- Killing of Oregon Sea Lions Postponed
- Time to Give Up On 2008 Salmon Season?
- Three Little Pigs Could Save The Salmon? No Fooling
- California State Senate OKs salmon habitat funds
- Cooperation at Salmon Harvest Talks
- Oregon Fish and Wildlife managers are angling for pricier fishing and hunting licenses
- NY Times Editorial – Patagonia without Dams
- Snohomish County – Snowpack near Spada Lake buries 1997 record
- Water Levels Stay Above Average This Spring
- Oregon pulls certification of water-testing lab
- Colorado town deals with salmonella-tainted water
- Energy Pulse Commentary – Why the Recent Texas Reliability Event Raises No Concerns about Much Higher Wind Penetration
- Where to store wind-powered energy? Under water!
- Australia – Not enough 'green energy' to meet carbon emission targets
- Bye, Bye, Biomass – San Francisco Chronicle Opinion – Bay Area fireplace ban makes sense
- News Release – PSE's Aggressive Energy Efficiency Plans Means More Customer Incentives, Bigger Energy Savings
- Beacon or Boondoggle? New Lights for the Capitol
- Proposed Battelle carbon project delayed
- Oregon proposes greenhouse gas reporting rules
- Are Carbon Off-Sets For Fools Only?
- Maryland – State Senate Rejects Carbon Credit Program
- Fiber-optic line vandalism costs Qwest $25,000
- Verizon needs $8B for airwave license
- FCC chairman to oppose Skype open-network petition
- Intel Makes a Push Into Pocket-Size Internet Devices
- NY Times Editorial – Broadening Broadband
- Australia cancels high-priced rural broadband deal
- How data centers are cooling down
- Comcast’s Blurry High Definition Picture
- Government ban on new IBM contracts stems from $84 million EPA deal awarded to another company
- Microsoft wins document format standards battle
- $4 gas for U.S. by summer?
- Blame our crazy spring weather on La Nina
- At Sanderson Field Near Shelton – No Drag Racing This Summer
- Beijing pollution risky for endurance athletes
- More than 150 trees in Tumwater have pruning damage
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Disremember • \dis-rih-MEM-ber\ • verb – Forget
“I must say, that I disremember the details of the dismembering of the different elements of my energy company,” droned the energy trader at his trial. “I do remember that our lawyers were out of the room at the time, so we may have just been joking,” he quipped, while slowly winking at the attractive juror number 6.
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
Clallam PUD raises power rates (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3518
U.S.' LNG projects in doubt after court ruling – Delaware can block a liquefied natural gas terminal in New Jersey, which could affect LNG proposals for Oregon (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/120702211864120.xml&coll=7
Cowlitz County stands firm on request for NorthernStar pipeline permits (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/04/02//area_news/doc47f2f9e0962f7512975073.txt
Group calls Washington's new heat rules 'ridiculous' (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/03/31/daily11.html?ana=from_rss
Maryland – This is no time for Baltimore Gas & Electric to fail Fuel Fund for low income energy assistance (Baltimore Sun)
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.hancock02apr02,0,3870091.column
Energy Dept. Hesitates on Dealing with Uranium – The government is sitting on an inventory of partly processed uranium that could be sold for billions of dollars (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/01/washington/01cnd-nuke.html?ex=1364788800&en=7c2541d90f18c929&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Takes 32 Years to Answer Nuclear Energy Watchdog Group’s Petition (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004320431_apslowfederalresponse.html?syndication=rss
North Carolina – Eight protesters arrested at Duke Energy's Cliffside plant (Charlotte Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/03/31/daily23.html?ana=from_rss
The Consumerist – IDT Energy Scamming Spreads Past New York City (Note that there may be PG-13 language in the comment section)
http://consumerist.com/consumer/snakeoil/idt-energy-scamming-spreads-past-new-york-city-257591.php
Florida – Sparks fly at Boca GOP club energy talk – The sparks flew, appropriately enough, over the subject of electricity and energy independence, both discussed last week at the Boca Raton Republican Club meeting (Boca Raton News)
http://www.bocaratonnews.com/news/local/329-sparks-fly-boca-gop-club-energy-talk.php
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Killing of Oregon Sea Lions Postponed (Associated Press)
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g2I_mWpkCUDgk32sjohuj32YJHXAD8VPGTQ80
Time to Give Up On 2008 Salmon Season? People who make a living from salmon fishing on the West Coast face a no-win question. Should they fight over crumbs or just give up on the 2008 season? (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/time-give-2008-salmon-season/
Three Little Pigs Could Save The Salmon? No Fooling (Eugene Register-Guard)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=86727&sid=40&fid=1
California State Senate OKs salmon habitat funds – Money would come from a $5.4 billion water bond approved in 2006 (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8780778?source=rss
Cooperation at Salmon Harvest Talks (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/apr/01/cooperation-seen-at-salmon-harvest-talks/
Oregon Fish and Wildlife managers are angling for pricier fishing and hunting licenses – Town hall meetings will be held throughout the state in coming weeks (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1207018530290270.xml&coll=7
NY Times Editorial – Patagonia without Dams – Recently, environmental activists and local residents gathered near the small Chilean town of Cochrane to protest a plan to build a series of hydroelectric dams.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/01/opinion/01tue3.html?ex=1364702400&en=f02daaa4c1685e30&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Snohomish County – Snowpack near Spada Lake buries 1997 record (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080402/NEWS01/567459102&news01ad=1
Water Levels Stay Above Average This Spring (KNDO-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=8103722
Oregon pulls certification of water-testing lab (The Oregonian, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1315749~Oregon_pulls_certification_of_water_testing_lab.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Colorado town deals with salmonella-tainted water – Chlorination treatment made drinking supply unusable, forcing schools to close and residents to avoid bathing (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8780756?source=rss
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Energy Pulse Commentary – Why the Recent Texas Reliability Event Raises No Concerns about Much Higher Wind Penetration
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1701
Where to store wind-powered energy? Under water! (CNN Technology)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/03/31/windpower/
Australia – Not enough 'green energy' to meet carbon emission targets (Yahoo! News)
http://au.news.yahoo.com/080402/21/16c6l.html
Bye, Bye, Biomass – San Francisco Chronicle Opinion – Bay Area fireplace ban makes sense
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/02/EDMMVU10L.DTL&feed=rss.opinion
CONSERVATION
News Release – PSE's Aggressive Energy Efficiency Plans Means More Customer Incentives, Bigger Energy Savings (Puget Sound Energy, via Earth Times)
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/pses-aggressive-energy-efficiency-plans,335068.shtml
Beacon or Boondoggle? New Lights for the Capitol – Update Would Conserve Energy, Democrats Say (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/01/AR2008040103145.html?nav=rss_politics
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Proposed Battelle carbon project delayed – The carbon sequestration demonstration project at the Wallula Gap Business Park has been delayed because seismic data analysis isn't complete (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/143648.html
Oregon proposes greenhouse gas reporting rules (The Associated Press)
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OR_GREENHOUSE_GAS_RULES_OROL-?SITE=ORKLA&SECTION=STATE&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Are Carbon Off-Sets For Fools Only? Activists around the world dubbed April First ‘Fossil Fools Day’ to draw attention to carbon emissions (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/are-carbon-sets-fools-only/
Maryland – State Senate Rejects Carbon Credit Program – Bill Was Crucial to O'Malley's Energy Conservation Plan (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/01/AR2008040101693.html
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Fiber-optic line vandalism costs Qwest $25,000 – Vandals cut a fiber-optic phone cable south of Kelso at around midnight Sunday, but apparently once they discovered the cable contained glass and not copper, they left. (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/04/02//area_news/doc47f2eb9359448487799391.txt
Verizon needs $8B for airwave licenses – Ambitious plan for a new wireless network has a big pricetag, and it's coming due (Fortune Magazine)
http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/01/news/companies/moritz_verizon.fortune/index.htm?source=yahoo_quote
FCC chairman to oppose Skype open-network petition (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN0126806320080401?feedType=nl&feedName=usmorningdigest
Intel Makes a Push Into Pocket-Size Internet Devices – Intel plans to proclaim Wednesday in Shanghai that the next big thing in consumer gadgets will be the “Internet in your pocket.” (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/02/technology/02chip.html?_r=1&ei=5088&en=4a7860afc5474b69&ex=1364875200&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1207151208-bWVgObNwzFpT0CdiiR56lg
NY Times Editorial – Broadening Broadband
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/29/opinion/29sat4.html?_r=2&ref=opinion&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
Australia cancels broadband deal – The Australian government has terminated a 958 million Australian dollar ($869 million) agreement with a Singapore-backed consortium to build a rural broadband network, officials said Wednesday. (The Associated Press, via Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/991/story/144332.html
How data centers are cooling down (CNET News)
http://www.news.com/2300-13842_3-6236292-1.html?tag=nl.e433
Comcast’s Blurry High Definition Picture – Not only has Comcast been slowing down Internet users exchanging files with the BitTorrent protocol, it has been quietly reducing the quality of some high definition television networks it carries as well. (NY Times)
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/31/comcasts-blurry-high-definition-picture/index.html?ex=1364875200&en=a021e89e17f70dd6&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Government ban on new IBM contracts stems from $84 million EPA deal awarded to another company (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8772251?source=rss
Microsoft wins document format standards battle (Reuters)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080401/tc_nm/microsoft_standard_dc_2
GENERAL NEWS
$4 gas for U.S. by summer? (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004321336_stoxcenter02.html?syndication=rss
Blame our crazy spring weather on La Nina (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_040108WAB_la_nina_spring_weather_TP.216ecc2b.html
AT SANDERSON FIELD NEAR SHELTON – NO DRAG RACING THIS SUMMER – The Port of Shelton Commission is NOT reconsidering its denial of the Shelton Drag Strip Association's request to hold races on Sanderson Field's decommissioned runway this summer. Last week, Commissioner Jack Miles started discussions with the other Port Commissioners about the possibility of holding the drag races this year sighting that the reasons for the Port's denial in February no longer apply. Those reasons included public safety due to construction work in the area and work to update the Port's Airport Master Plan. According to Miles, the construction work will be completed before the requested race dates and the Port can approve the races under the current Airport plan. With that in mind, Miles made a motion Tuesday for the Commission to reconsider their denial and allow the Association to only hold the Reunion Drag Race in August not all the events originally requested. That motion died for a lack of a second. For Commissioner Rick Byrd, the reasons not to reconsider the denial center on the Federal Aviation Administration which told him they are not in favor of those types of events at Sanderson Field as it is an airport. He also believes the Drag Racing issue has taken too much time away from other Port business. Commissioner Jay Hupp stands by his signature on the denial letter sent to the Shelton Drag Strip Association saying the subject has disrupted the business of the Port and the decision to deny the request was well thought out. Several people testified during Tuesday's meeting. Most drag race supporters said they understand the Commission's decision. Officials with the Shelton Drag Strip Association said they had already moved forward and are working to develop their own facility, away from the Airport. Not everyone was pleased with the situation but most made respectful comments as the drag racing issue at the airport is finished. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Beijing pollution risky for endurance athletes (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSPEK8843220080402?feedType=nl&feedName=ustopnewsearly
More than 150 trees in Tumwater have damage – An unprecedented rash of improper and unpermitted tree pruning has damaged more than 150 of the city's flowering cherry trees and other street tree species, arborists say. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/406331.html
DIVERSIONS
Pay-per-view funerals go live online in Britain
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=aa441b2a-b911-45b6-8430-732703a4befd&k=21826
Woman calls cops to buy cocaine
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080402/NEWS02/760275534/-1/RSS01
Burglar Plays Dead at Funeral Home
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/ODD_SPAIN_PLAYING_DEAD?SITE=ORKLA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-04-02-10-07-57
Man Escapes From Jail, Nobody Notices
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/ODD_JAIL_ESCAPE?SITE=ORKLA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-04-01-20-43-58
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Energy News Digest for April 1, 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)
- Do you care about PSE rate increases for electricity and gas?
- Scheduled Maintenance Cuts Power To Washington State Nuclear Reactor
- Cleanup crews at Washington nuclear site find buried reactor fuel
- A Rare Sight: 370-Ton Rotor Removed From Dam Generator
- Montana – Great Falls rejects opportunity to buy electricity from Texas company
- Energy companies plug coal's 'clean' benefits
- Constellation, Maryland accord could boost utility's credit rating
- Oil Prices Tumble, but Natural Gas Rises
- Columbia River gillnetting to begin Tuesday
- Montana – Into the breach - Clark Fork, Blackfoot rivers punch through Milltown Dam
- Tenino ready for sewer work, but residents have questions
- Florida – The profits on water are huge, but the raw material is free
- Treated Wastewater Could Water Lawns, Recharge Lakes
- Finches Die on Stevens Pass; Reasons Unknown
- Plans for Oregon wind farm in limbo
- California – Pacific Gas & Electric backs 3 solar plants in the Mojave
- 'Hydrogen Highway' stuck in first gear
- Small hydro, big potential – 'Run of river' projects set for a boom?
- Fish And Wildlife Employee Named To Wind Power Advisory Group
- New traffic signals slash energy use
- Maryland – Sparks fly over energy conservation
- Seattle's plans for future shaped by climate change still in infancy
- Critics say Canada's submission to UN climate change conference 'deceitful'
- Madison Avenue Sells S.U.V.’s. Can It Sell Climate Action?
- Who's to say Comcast won't meddle with Net again?
- Can they keep video from clogging the Web?
- At Cisco, Online Video Boom Helping Router Sales
- Government temporarily bans IBM from deals
- Home building tumbles for 24th month
- Some homes worth less than their copper pipes
- Portions of North Shore Road in North Mason County to Close
- Mid-Columbia businesses fighting fuel costs
- "God Pods" Coming to Washington Prisons?
- News Tribune Opinion – State agencies building computers to nowhere?
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Tarantism • \TAIR-un-tiz-um\ • noun – A dancing mania or malady of late medieval Europe
“I guess you could call it neo-tarantism, but one would expect the frantic dancing would at least be good,” said the music critic. “Spinning around until you collapse from dizziness is a performance, but is it art?”
From Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary – Between the 15th and 17th centuries, Taranto, Italy, was hit by a dance craze unlike any other. The town was afflicted by a malady that would come to be known as "tarantism" and was characterized by a hysterical impulse to dance. Some people claimed tarantism was caused by the bite of the European wolf spider, which is also known as the tarantula (and is also named after Taranto); such folks declared that dancing off the venom was the only cure. Musicians supposedly traveled to the region to help cure the epidemic, and some believe that the Italian folk dance called the "tarantella" resulted from the craze.
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
Do you care about PSE rate increases for electricity and gas? Even if you don't care, the state Attorney General's office does. Puget Sound Energy wants to raise the rates customers pay for electricity, up an estimated 12 percent, and natural gas, up 6 percent. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/business/2008/03/31/do_you_care_about_pse_rate_increases_for
SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE CUTS POWER TO NUCLEAR REACTOR – Energy Northwest reduced power at its Columbia nuclear reactor near Richland for scheduled maintenance. The reactor was listed as running at 65 percent of capacity in a report Sunday from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The maintenance includes work on control-rod and feedwater-pump systems, company spokesman Brad Peck said Monday in an e-mail. He described the work as "short term." Energy Northwest is a joint operating agency with 20 public power member utilities in Washington. Power from the Columbia reactor goes to the Bonneville Power Administration. The unit's capacity is about 1,150 megawatts, according to Energy Northwest. That's enough power for about 920,000 average homes, based on a U.S. Energy Department estimate. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
Cleanup crews at Washington nuclear site find buried reactor fuel (The Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/405547.html
A Rare Sight: 370-Ton Rotor Removed From Dam Generator – Mossyrock: Tacoma Power Officials Continue Major Rebuild of Hydroelectric Facility (The Chronicle, Centralia)
http://www.chronline.com/story.php?subaction=showfull&id=1206985000&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1
Montana – Great Falls rejects opportunity to buy electricity from Texas company (Billings Gazette)
http://billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/04/01/news/state/62-greatfallsenergy.txt
Energy companies plug coal's 'clean' benefits (McClatchy Tribune Business News, via the Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CjjoqqoqZVhc%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
Constellation, Maryland accord could boost utility's credit rating (Baltimore Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/03/31/daily6.html?ana=from_rss
Oil Prices Tumble, but Natural Gas Rises (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004311869_apoilprices.html?syndication=rss
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Columbia River gillnetting to begin Tuesday –The commercial fleet will start its spring Chinook salmon season beginning Tuesday in the Columbia River between Hayden Island and Beacon Rock (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/sports/localNews/2008/03/03312008_Gillnetting-to-begin-Tuesday.cfm
Montana – Into the breach - Clark Fork, Blackfoot rivers punch through Milltown Dam (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/29/news/top/news01.txt
Tenino ready for sewer work, but residents have questions – A modern sewer system is coming to Tenino, but so far the ride is bumpy at best (The Olympian )
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/405239.html
Florida – The profits on water are huge, but the raw material is free – Nestle came into Florida and managed to pull off quite the coup: The Company got a permit to take water belonging to Floridians — hundreds of millions of gallons a year from a spring in a state park — at no cost to Nestle (St. Petersburg Times)
http://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/water/article418793.ece
Treated Wastewater Could Water Lawns, Recharge Lakes (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/31/treated-wastewater-could-water-lawns-recharge/
Finches Die on Stevens Pass; Reasons Unknown (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3722
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Plans for Oregon wind farm in limbo (The Oregonian, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1313507~Plans_for_Oregon_wind_farm_in_limbo.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
California – Pacific Gas & Electric backs 3 solar plants in the Mojave – Oakland firm will design, build installations; sunlight, groundwater will generate power for 375,000 homes (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/01/BUA1VTCJT.DTL&feed=rss.business
'Hydrogen Highway' stuck in first gear – Four years ago, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed an order to create a network of hydrogen fueling stations. Today, not a single one has been built (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8768270?source=rss
Small hydro, big potential – 'Run of river' projects set for a boom? (Grist online)
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/3/27/183942/200
FISH AND WILDLIFE EMPLOYEE NAMED TO WIND POWER ADVISORY GROUP – Greg Hueckel of the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife has been appointed to serve on the national Wind Turbine Guidelines Advisory Committee, sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Hueckel, who heads the state agency's Habitat Program, is one of 18 people from across the nation who serves on the federal committee, which will be in place for two years. The multi-stakeholder group will provide recommendations to the secretary of the interior on developing effective plans to minimize the effects of land-based wind energy facilities on wildlife and habitats. These recommendations could serve as the foundation for a national policy on the use of wind power as a renewable energy source. (The Olympian)
CONSERVATION
New traffic signals slash energy use – Municipality to receive a rebate check for $85,000 Monday after converting 441 traffic lights to efficient light-emitting diode (LED) signals that cut energy use by 70 per cent (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=fecaf277-f0db-4227-8012-3694d0f23a05&k=45159
Maryland – Sparks fly over energy conservation (Baltimore Sun)
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/assembly/2008/03/sparks_fly_over_energy_conserv.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Seattle's plans for future shaped by climate change still in infancy (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/357223_port01.html?source=rss
Critics say Canada's submission to UN climate change conference 'deceitful' (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=f6d9ed61-44ba-411d-bac8-f64655283d61&k=84923
Madison Avenue Sells S.U.V.’s. Can It Sell Climate Action? (NY Times)
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/31/madison-avenue-sells-suvs-can-it-sell-climate-action/index.html?ex=1364702400&en=00c5e2782ec40511&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Who's to say Comcast won't meddle with Net again? (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755316?source=rss
Can they keep video from clogging the Web? BitTorrent scores as Comcast changes its mind and says it will cooperate to manage, rather than stifle, peer-to-peer traffic (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1206768307287470.xml&coll=7
At Cisco, Online Video Boom Helping Router Sales (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/03/31/at-cisco-online-video-boom-helping-router-sales/
Government temporarily bans IBM from deals – the company has been temporarily banned from receiving future contracts with federal agencies, the Environmental Protection Agency confirmed on Monday (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/991/story/142934.html
GENERAL NEWS
Home building tumbles for 24th month (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080401/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/economy_14
Some homes worth less than their copper pipes (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN2527885420080401?feedType=nl&feedName=ustopnewsearly
Portions of North Shore Road in North Mason County to Close (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/31/portions-of-north-shore-road-in-nm-to-close/
Mid-Columbia businesses fighting fuel costs (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/135313.html
"God Pods" Coming to Washington Prisons? (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3719
News Tribune Opinion – State agencies building computers to nowhere? Lawmakers are betting mightily on their ability to deliver paid family leave and tax rebates, even as the odds are stacked against them
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/323260.html
DIVERSIONS
After Drinking, Man Wakes Up In Nick Of Time Inside Garbage Truck
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15751744/detail.html
Texas University's Honor Code Plagiarized? Part Of Code's Wording Matches Another University's
http://www.kirotv.com/education/15746646/detail.html
Teen Tweaks Police With Root Beer Kegger – No-Alcohol Party Makes Point About Suspensions
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15740008/detail.html
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Do you care about PSE rate increases for electricity and gas?
- Scheduled Maintenance Cuts Power To Washington State Nuclear Reactor
- Cleanup crews at Washington nuclear site find buried reactor fuel
- A Rare Sight: 370-Ton Rotor Removed From Dam Generator
- Montana – Great Falls rejects opportunity to buy electricity from Texas company
- Energy companies plug coal's 'clean' benefits
- Constellation, Maryland accord could boost utility's credit rating
- Oil Prices Tumble, but Natural Gas Rises
- Columbia River gillnetting to begin Tuesday
- Montana – Into the breach - Clark Fork, Blackfoot rivers punch through Milltown Dam
- Tenino ready for sewer work, but residents have questions
- Florida – The profits on water are huge, but the raw material is free
- Treated Wastewater Could Water Lawns, Recharge Lakes
- Finches Die on Stevens Pass; Reasons Unknown
- Plans for Oregon wind farm in limbo
- California – Pacific Gas & Electric backs 3 solar plants in the Mojave
- 'Hydrogen Highway' stuck in first gear
- Small hydro, big potential – 'Run of river' projects set for a boom?
- Fish And Wildlife Employee Named To Wind Power Advisory Group
- New traffic signals slash energy use
- Maryland – Sparks fly over energy conservation
- Seattle's plans for future shaped by climate change still in infancy
- Critics say Canada's submission to UN climate change conference 'deceitful'
- Madison Avenue Sells S.U.V.’s. Can It Sell Climate Action?
- Who's to say Comcast won't meddle with Net again?
- Can they keep video from clogging the Web?
- At Cisco, Online Video Boom Helping Router Sales
- Government temporarily bans IBM from deals
- Home building tumbles for 24th month
- Some homes worth less than their copper pipes
- Portions of North Shore Road in North Mason County to Close
- Mid-Columbia businesses fighting fuel costs
- "God Pods" Coming to Washington Prisons?
- News Tribune Opinion – State agencies building computers to nowhere?
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Tarantism • \TAIR-un-tiz-um\ • noun – A dancing mania or malady of late medieval Europe
“I guess you could call it neo-tarantism, but one would expect the frantic dancing would at least be good,” said the music critic. “Spinning around until you collapse from dizziness is a performance, but is it art?”
From Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary – Between the 15th and 17th centuries, Taranto, Italy, was hit by a dance craze unlike any other. The town was afflicted by a malady that would come to be known as "tarantism" and was characterized by a hysterical impulse to dance. Some people claimed tarantism was caused by the bite of the European wolf spider, which is also known as the tarantula (and is also named after Taranto); such folks declared that dancing off the venom was the only cure. Musicians supposedly traveled to the region to help cure the epidemic, and some believe that the Italian folk dance called the "tarantella" resulted from the craze.
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
Do you care about PSE rate increases for electricity and gas? Even if you don't care, the state Attorney General's office does. Puget Sound Energy wants to raise the rates customers pay for electricity, up an estimated 12 percent, and natural gas, up 6 percent. (News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/business/2008/03/31/do_you_care_about_pse_rate_increases_for
SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE CUTS POWER TO NUCLEAR REACTOR – Energy Northwest reduced power at its Columbia nuclear reactor near Richland for scheduled maintenance. The reactor was listed as running at 65 percent of capacity in a report Sunday from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The maintenance includes work on control-rod and feedwater-pump systems, company spokesman Brad Peck said Monday in an e-mail. He described the work as "short term." Energy Northwest is a joint operating agency with 20 public power member utilities in Washington. Power from the Columbia reactor goes to the Bonneville Power Administration. The unit's capacity is about 1,150 megawatts, according to Energy Northwest. That's enough power for about 920,000 average homes, based on a U.S. Energy Department estimate. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
Cleanup crews at Washington nuclear site find buried reactor fuel (The Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/405547.html
A Rare Sight: 370-Ton Rotor Removed From Dam Generator – Mossyrock: Tacoma Power Officials Continue Major Rebuild of Hydroelectric Facility (The Chronicle, Centralia)
http://www.chronline.com/story.php?subaction=showfull&id=1206985000&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1
Montana – Great Falls rejects opportunity to buy electricity from Texas company (Billings Gazette)
http://billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/04/01/news/state/62-greatfallsenergy.txt
Energy companies plug coal's 'clean' benefits (McClatchy Tribune Business News, via the Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CjjoqqoqZVhc%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
Constellation, Maryland accord could boost utility's credit rating (Baltimore Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/03/31/daily6.html?ana=from_rss
Oil Prices Tumble, but Natural Gas Rises (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004311869_apoilprices.html?syndication=rss
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Columbia River gillnetting to begin Tuesday –The commercial fleet will start its spring Chinook salmon season beginning Tuesday in the Columbia River between Hayden Island and Beacon Rock (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/sports/localNews/2008/03/03312008_Gillnetting-to-begin-Tuesday.cfm
Montana – Into the breach - Clark Fork, Blackfoot rivers punch through Milltown Dam (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/29/news/top/news01.txt
Tenino ready for sewer work, but residents have questions – A modern sewer system is coming to Tenino, but so far the ride is bumpy at best (The Olympian )
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/405239.html
Florida – The profits on water are huge, but the raw material is free – Nestle came into Florida and managed to pull off quite the coup: The Company got a permit to take water belonging to Floridians — hundreds of millions of gallons a year from a spring in a state park — at no cost to Nestle (St. Petersburg Times)
http://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/water/article418793.ece
Treated Wastewater Could Water Lawns, Recharge Lakes (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/31/treated-wastewater-could-water-lawns-recharge/
Finches Die on Stevens Pass; Reasons Unknown (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3722
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Plans for Oregon wind farm in limbo (The Oregonian, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1313507~Plans_for_Oregon_wind_farm_in_limbo.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
California – Pacific Gas & Electric backs 3 solar plants in the Mojave – Oakland firm will design, build installations; sunlight, groundwater will generate power for 375,000 homes (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/01/BUA1VTCJT.DTL&feed=rss.business
'Hydrogen Highway' stuck in first gear – Four years ago, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed an order to create a network of hydrogen fueling stations. Today, not a single one has been built (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8768270?source=rss
Small hydro, big potential – 'Run of river' projects set for a boom? (Grist online)
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/3/27/183942/200
FISH AND WILDLIFE EMPLOYEE NAMED TO WIND POWER ADVISORY GROUP – Greg Hueckel of the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife has been appointed to serve on the national Wind Turbine Guidelines Advisory Committee, sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Hueckel, who heads the state agency's Habitat Program, is one of 18 people from across the nation who serves on the federal committee, which will be in place for two years. The multi-stakeholder group will provide recommendations to the secretary of the interior on developing effective plans to minimize the effects of land-based wind energy facilities on wildlife and habitats. These recommendations could serve as the foundation for a national policy on the use of wind power as a renewable energy source. (The Olympian)
CONSERVATION
New traffic signals slash energy use – Municipality to receive a rebate check for $85,000 Monday after converting 441 traffic lights to efficient light-emitting diode (LED) signals that cut energy use by 70 per cent (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=fecaf277-f0db-4227-8012-3694d0f23a05&k=45159
Maryland – Sparks fly over energy conservation (Baltimore Sun)
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/assembly/2008/03/sparks_fly_over_energy_conserv.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Seattle's plans for future shaped by climate change still in infancy (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/357223_port01.html?source=rss
Critics say Canada's submission to UN climate change conference 'deceitful' (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=f6d9ed61-44ba-411d-bac8-f64655283d61&k=84923
Madison Avenue Sells S.U.V.’s. Can It Sell Climate Action? (NY Times)
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/31/madison-avenue-sells-suvs-can-it-sell-climate-action/index.html?ex=1364702400&en=00c5e2782ec40511&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Who's to say Comcast won't meddle with Net again? (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755316?source=rss
Can they keep video from clogging the Web? BitTorrent scores as Comcast changes its mind and says it will cooperate to manage, rather than stifle, peer-to-peer traffic (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1206768307287470.xml&coll=7
At Cisco, Online Video Boom Helping Router Sales (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/03/31/at-cisco-online-video-boom-helping-router-sales/
Government temporarily bans IBM from deals – the company has been temporarily banned from receiving future contracts with federal agencies, the Environmental Protection Agency confirmed on Monday (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/991/story/142934.html
GENERAL NEWS
Home building tumbles for 24th month (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080401/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/economy_14
Some homes worth less than their copper pipes (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN2527885420080401?feedType=nl&feedName=ustopnewsearly
Portions of North Shore Road in North Mason County to Close (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/31/portions-of-north-shore-road-in-nm-to-close/
Mid-Columbia businesses fighting fuel costs (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/135313.html
"God Pods" Coming to Washington Prisons? (NW Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3719
News Tribune Opinion – State agencies building computers to nowhere? Lawmakers are betting mightily on their ability to deliver paid family leave and tax rebates, even as the odds are stacked against them
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/323260.html
DIVERSIONS
After Drinking, Man Wakes Up In Nick Of Time Inside Garbage Truck
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15751744/detail.html
Texas University's Honor Code Plagiarized? Part Of Code's Wording Matches Another University's
http://www.kirotv.com/education/15746646/detail.html
Teen Tweaks Police With Root Beer Kegger – No-Alcohol Party Makes Point About Suspensions
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15740008/detail.html
Monday, March 31, 2008
Energy News Digest for March 31, 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)
- Ex-Grant County PUD treasurer's lawsuit set
- We've got dams, dams, and even more dams
- Montana – NorthWestern rate deal questioned
- Pacific Gas and Electric putting money where its apology is
- North Carolina – Stanly County group to protest Alcoa plans
- April Is "PayItGreen" Month – Con Edison Urges Customers to Pay Bills Online
- North Carolina – Duke Energy's air quality permit illegal
- Delaware Wins High Court Fight Over proposed liquefied natural gas terminal
- Fuel cells, sweaters may be the future of electricity
- Oceanographer Predicts Better Salmon Runs Next Year
- Humane Society asks for injunction against killing Columbia River sea lions
- Dino Rossi takes the plunge – Salmon too scarce for GOP candidate
- Alaska’s record catch is herring on side of fortune
- California – Scientists breed smelt in case species becomes extinct
- Canada – North Coast declared off-limits for fish farms
- United Kingdom – Has salmon farming outgrown itself?
- Wading Through an Endangered Species Backlog
- NY Times Op-Ed Contributor – Did Your Shopping List Kill a Songbird?
- Chelan County PUD wants geese to cease nest takeovers
- Inland Northwest mountain snow levels higher than 30-year average
- Winter dredging of Cowlitz River finished, but more silt awaits
- Cost of new KingCo sewage plant rises to $1.8 billion
- Deadline near for Black Rock comment
- Proposed stream water rule could limit Sequim-area building development
- No clear winner in Cowlitz County's water taste test
- BPA calculates administrative costs of wind power
- Kennewick winery gets greener
- San Jose to share $2.4M as 'solar city'
- San Jose Mercury News Editorial: Trees trump solar panels
- The Global Wind Energy Council Says Wind Boom will Continue
- Farmers Expected to Plant Less Corn
- More inconvenient truths about energy efficiency
- New Jersey – Energy conservation good for world, pocketbook
- Sierra Sun Op/Ed – My Turn: Setting lighting standards versus banning bulbs
- PUD Dam on Columbia part of emergent climate exchange
- Gore begins huge public campaign to go green
- Warming felt more in Western U.S.
- Counties Begin Programs to Tackle Climate Change
- Canada – Carbon tax will bring jobs back home: report
- Life in the 'Burbs: Heavy Costs for Families, Climate
- San Francisco entrepreneur floats a bold idea to 'fertilize' ocean
- Applying Gandhi’s Ideas to Climate Change
- It's wait and see for two state computer projects
- Minneapolis Wi-Fi Network Working but Limited
- Chattanooga seeks federal funds for fiber optics
- Comcast Cable CTO: Bandwidth Hogs Will Experience Slowdowns
- Net Neutrality Redux: No Legislation Needed
- Asking a Judge to Save the World, and Maybe a Whole Lot More
- Reboot it! Microsoft broadband device shuts down during FCC test
- Metal thieves in Portland and Vancouver areas are taking connectors that firefighters use
- Police report: Metal thieves put public at risk
- Three Roy city employees suspended with pay
- Buyers' Revenge: Trash the House After Foreclosure
- Hybrid cars have unintentional flaw: They're too quiet
- Sixteenth Century Finds a Home in Belfair
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Sangfroid • \sawn-FWAH\ • noun – self-possession or imperturbability especially under strain – Etymology: French sang-froid, literally, cold blood
“Watch what happens when I open this breaker,” cackled the scientist. Instantly the entire eastern seaboard went dark, sparking a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission study into the hiring of “mad scientists with sangfroid tendencies”. Unfortunately, it also spawned 250 new regulations as part of the National Energy Reliability Corporation’s rule-making activities.
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
Ex-PUD treasurer's lawsuit set in Grant County – Fired employee seeks $4 million (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/03/28/news/news05.txt
We've got dams, dams, and even more dams (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/NEWS06/506294318/1025/rss1025
Montana – NorthWestern rate deal questioned – State agrees to a $15 million-a-year rate increase for the company's electric and natural gas rates - but not everyone believes it's a good deal (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/31/news/mtregional/news07.txt
Pacific Gas and Electric putting money where its apology is – Apologies and checks for January outages on the way (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755333?source=rss
North Carolina – Stanly County group to protest Alcoa plans – A Stanly County-financed group will stage protests in Raleigh against the relicensing of Alcoa Inc.'s hydroelectric operations on the Yadkin River. (Charlotte Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/03/24/daily51.html?ana=from_rss
News Release – April Is "PayItGreen" Month – Con Edison Urges Customers to Pay Bills Online (Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/080331/0381115.html
North Carolina – Duke Energy's air quality permit illegal (Associated Press)
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/state&id=6046600
Delaware Wins High Court Fight Over NJ – Delaware won a Supreme Court fight with New Jersey on Monday, likely killing a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal on the Delaware River (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/31/national/w071128D98.DTL&feed=rss.business
Fuel cells, sweaters may be the future of electricity (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004315149_sundaybuzz30.html?syndication=rss
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oceanographer Predicts Better Salmon Runs Next Year (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/oceanographer-predicts-better-salmon-runs-next-year/
Humane Society asks for injunction against killing Columbia River sea lions (Boston Herald)
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/national/west/view.bg?articleid=1083905&srvc=rss
Dino Rossi takes the plunge – Salmon too scarce for GOP candidate (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/23//area_news/10170522.txt
Record catch is herring on side of fortune – Fishermen in Alaska haul 14,723 tons of fish, making millions of dollars in a day (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8748766?source=rss
California – Scientists breed smelt in case species becomes extinct in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/823346.html
Canada – North Coast declared off-limits for fish farms – But licenses announced for South Coast anger environmentalists
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=7d674b46-2432-4c94-802d-7ab69d7acb30&k=42451
United Kingdom – Has salmon farming outgrown itself? (The Daily Telegraph)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/03/31/eawigan131.xml
Wading Through an Endangered Species Backlog (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89209746&ft=1&f=7
NY Times Op-Ed Contributor – Did Your Shopping List Kill a Songbird?
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/opinion/30stutchbury.html?ex=1364616000&en=9cbc717e643c4fc9&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Chelan County PUD wants geese to cease nest takeovers – The PUD has been thwarted at every turn in its six-year campaign to help out an osprey pair in the Sleepy Hollow area. The problem: Canada geese. (The Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080329/NEWS04/402071978
Inland Northwest mountain snow levels higher than 30-year average (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420ap_id_spring_snowpack.html
Winter dredging of Cowlitz River finished, but more silt awaits (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/31//area_news/10179927.txt
Cost of new KingCo sewage plant rises to $1.8 billion (Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/404556.html
Deadline near for Black Rock comment (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/141868.html
Proposed stream water rule could limit Sequim-area building development – The most powerful force to manage growth in Eastern Clallam County could flow out of your faucet. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080329/NEWS/803290303
No clear winner in Cowlitz County's water taste test (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/28/top_story/10177739.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
BPA calculates administrative costs of wind power – Windy days let energy producers cut back on the use of dams and coal-fired plants as more turbines are integrated into the power grid (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206757513278130.xml&coll=7
Kennewick winery gets greener “…three-kilowatt solar panels will provide most of the energy needed for the tasting room and on sunny days, when it creates more than they use, the power is returned to the grid through Benton PUD's net metering program…” (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/141874.html
San Jose to share $2.4M as 'solar city' (Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2008/03/24/daily75.html?ana=from_rss
San Jose Mercury News Editorial: Trees trump solar panels: They benefit neighborhoods
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755328?source=rss
The Global Wind Energy Council Says Wind Boom will Continue (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51984&src=rss
Farmers Expected to Plant Less Corn – Farmers are expected to plant less corn this year, which could mean higher continuing higher costs for consumers at the grocery store. (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2004317238_applantingreport.html?syndication=rss
CONSERVATION
More inconvenient truths about energy efficiency (The Economist, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/356885_greenenergy30.html?source=rss
New Jersey – Energy conservation good for world, pocketbook (Courier Post, Cherry Hill)
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080330/COLUMNISTS15/803300361/1003/business
Sierra Sun Op/Ed – My Turn: Setting lighting standards versus banning bulbs
http://www.sierrasun.com/article/20080330/OPINION/830876305
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
PUD Dam on Columbia part of emergent climate exchange – For nearly 50 years, Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia River has been quietly producing enough low-cost electricity to power two cities the size of Seattle. Now the dam north of Wenatchee is on the front lines of the nation's effort to control greenhouse-gas emissions and curb global warming (Seattle Times – Insert cynical comment about I-937 here)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004315714_carbon30m.html
Gore begins huge public campaign to go green (Washington Post, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004316880_gore31.html?syndication=rss
Warming felt more in Western U.S. – An analysis of 50 studies finds that the region's temperatures are increasing faster than in the rest of the country and the planet as a whole (Los Angeles Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/la-na-climate28mar28,0,4364705.story
Counties Begin Programs to Tackle Climate Change (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/30/counties-begin-programs-to-tackle-climate-change/
Canada – Carbon tax will bring jobs back home: report – tariffs would bring industry back to developed world in search of better efficiency (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=dabbb781-f95d-4a80-85b2-4b6d4e3bfa28
Life in the 'Burbs: Heavy Costs for Families, Climate (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89231809&ft=1&f=3
San Francisco entrepreneur floats a bold idea to 'fertilize' ocean – Sees ocean 'fertilized' with iron as a tool to slow climate change (Sacramento Bee – May require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/821934.html
Applying Gandhi’s Ideas to Climate Change (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/nyregion/30towns.html?ex=1364616000&en=6e68be72590a5c74&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
It's wait and see for two state computer projects – State agencies are preparing to launch two new computer projects that might never be used — at a cost of $7.5 million. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/403568.html
Minneapolis Wi-Fi Network Working but Limited – Slow speeds and too many trees among glitches to be worked out (Broadband Reports – comments may include PG-13 language)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Minneapolis-WiFi-Network-Working-but-Limited-93133
Chattanooga seeks federal funds for fiber optics – Chattanooga officials hope to use about $5.4 million in federal money to help EPB bring Internet, cable and telephone service to inner-city neighborhoods (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
http://timesfreepress.com/news/2008/mar/29/chattanooga-seeks-federal-funds-fiber-optics/?local
Comcast Cable CTO: Bandwidth Hogs Will Experience Slowdowns (GigaOM)http://gigaom.com/2008/03/31/comcast-cto-tony-werner/
Net Neutrality Redux: No Legislation Needed (The Motley Fool)
http://www.fool.com/investing/high-growth/2008/03/28/net-neutrality-redux-no-legislation-needed.aspx
Asking a Judge to Save the World, and Maybe a Whole Lot More – Plaintiffs think a giant particle accelerator might produce a black hole or something else that will spell the end of the Earth — and maybe the universe (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/29/science/29collider.html?_r=1&ex=1364616000&en=d2e8c16ad98184fd&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Reboot it! Microsoft broadband device shuts down during FCC test (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/2004314123_msmachine29.html
GENERAL NEWS
Metal thieves in Portland and Vancouver areas are taking connectors that firefighters use – Crooks make off with brass and iron fittings that help get water into buildings' automatic sprinkler systems (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/120676293893670.xml&coll=7
Police report: Metal thieves put public at risk (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03282008_Police-report-Metal-thieves-put-public-at-risk.cfm?newsletter=2
Three Roy city employees suspended with pay and a state audit is requested after the discovery of inconsistencies in its accounting system (Tacoma News Tribune)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/321803.html
Buyers' Revenge: Trash the House After Foreclosure – Banks Pay People Off To Deter Home Rage; Loose Pets, Paint Spills
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120665586676569881.html
Hybrid cars have unintentional flaw: They're too quiet – Pedestrians, in particular blind people, sometimes can't hear the approaching cars (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1206764705154400.xml&coll=7
Sixteenth Century Finds a Home in Belfair (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/28/sixteenth-century-finds-a-home-in-belfair/
DIVERSIONS
UK Treasury Chief Banned From Pubs Following Beer Tax Hike
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15733571/detail.html
Student's Science Project Sparks NYC Subway Scare
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15733637/detail.html
Judge To 3 Men: Learn English Or Go To Jail – Men Face Prison For Conspiracy To Commit Robbery
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15733012/detail.html
Bradbury novel a tough sell in E. Idaho community read program – The classic book "Fahrenheit 451" is getting the cold shoulder in an eastern Idaho community
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/404473.html
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Ex-Grant County PUD treasurer's lawsuit set
- We've got dams, dams, and even more dams
- Montana – NorthWestern rate deal questioned
- Pacific Gas and Electric putting money where its apology is
- North Carolina – Stanly County group to protest Alcoa plans
- April Is "PayItGreen" Month – Con Edison Urges Customers to Pay Bills Online
- North Carolina – Duke Energy's air quality permit illegal
- Delaware Wins High Court Fight Over proposed liquefied natural gas terminal
- Fuel cells, sweaters may be the future of electricity
- Oceanographer Predicts Better Salmon Runs Next Year
- Humane Society asks for injunction against killing Columbia River sea lions
- Dino Rossi takes the plunge – Salmon too scarce for GOP candidate
- Alaska’s record catch is herring on side of fortune
- California – Scientists breed smelt in case species becomes extinct
- Canada – North Coast declared off-limits for fish farms
- United Kingdom – Has salmon farming outgrown itself?
- Wading Through an Endangered Species Backlog
- NY Times Op-Ed Contributor – Did Your Shopping List Kill a Songbird?
- Chelan County PUD wants geese to cease nest takeovers
- Inland Northwest mountain snow levels higher than 30-year average
- Winter dredging of Cowlitz River finished, but more silt awaits
- Cost of new KingCo sewage plant rises to $1.8 billion
- Deadline near for Black Rock comment
- Proposed stream water rule could limit Sequim-area building development
- No clear winner in Cowlitz County's water taste test
- BPA calculates administrative costs of wind power
- Kennewick winery gets greener
- San Jose to share $2.4M as 'solar city'
- San Jose Mercury News Editorial: Trees trump solar panels
- The Global Wind Energy Council Says Wind Boom will Continue
- Farmers Expected to Plant Less Corn
- More inconvenient truths about energy efficiency
- New Jersey – Energy conservation good for world, pocketbook
- Sierra Sun Op/Ed – My Turn: Setting lighting standards versus banning bulbs
- PUD Dam on Columbia part of emergent climate exchange
- Gore begins huge public campaign to go green
- Warming felt more in Western U.S.
- Counties Begin Programs to Tackle Climate Change
- Canada – Carbon tax will bring jobs back home: report
- Life in the 'Burbs: Heavy Costs for Families, Climate
- San Francisco entrepreneur floats a bold idea to 'fertilize' ocean
- Applying Gandhi’s Ideas to Climate Change
- It's wait and see for two state computer projects
- Minneapolis Wi-Fi Network Working but Limited
- Chattanooga seeks federal funds for fiber optics
- Comcast Cable CTO: Bandwidth Hogs Will Experience Slowdowns
- Net Neutrality Redux: No Legislation Needed
- Asking a Judge to Save the World, and Maybe a Whole Lot More
- Reboot it! Microsoft broadband device shuts down during FCC test
- Metal thieves in Portland and Vancouver areas are taking connectors that firefighters use
- Police report: Metal thieves put public at risk
- Three Roy city employees suspended with pay
- Buyers' Revenge: Trash the House After Foreclosure
- Hybrid cars have unintentional flaw: They're too quiet
- Sixteenth Century Finds a Home in Belfair
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Sangfroid • \sawn-FWAH\ • noun – self-possession or imperturbability especially under strain – Etymology: French sang-froid, literally, cold blood
“Watch what happens when I open this breaker,” cackled the scientist. Instantly the entire eastern seaboard went dark, sparking a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission study into the hiring of “mad scientists with sangfroid tendencies”. Unfortunately, it also spawned 250 new regulations as part of the National Energy Reliability Corporation’s rule-making activities.
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
Ex-PUD treasurer's lawsuit set in Grant County – Fired employee seeks $4 million (Columbia Basin Herald)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/03/28/news/news05.txt
We've got dams, dams, and even more dams (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/NEWS06/506294318/1025/rss1025
Montana – NorthWestern rate deal questioned – State agrees to a $15 million-a-year rate increase for the company's electric and natural gas rates - but not everyone believes it's a good deal (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/03/31/news/mtregional/news07.txt
Pacific Gas and Electric putting money where its apology is – Apologies and checks for January outages on the way (San Jose Mercury News)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755333?source=rss
North Carolina – Stanly County group to protest Alcoa plans – A Stanly County-financed group will stage protests in Raleigh against the relicensing of Alcoa Inc.'s hydroelectric operations on the Yadkin River. (Charlotte Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/03/24/daily51.html?ana=from_rss
News Release – April Is "PayItGreen" Month – Con Edison Urges Customers to Pay Bills Online (Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/080331/0381115.html
North Carolina – Duke Energy's air quality permit illegal (Associated Press)
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/state&id=6046600
Delaware Wins High Court Fight Over NJ – Delaware won a Supreme Court fight with New Jersey on Monday, likely killing a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal on the Delaware River (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/31/national/w071128D98.DTL&feed=rss.business
Fuel cells, sweaters may be the future of electricity (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004315149_sundaybuzz30.html?syndication=rss
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Oceanographer Predicts Better Salmon Runs Next Year (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/oceanographer-predicts-better-salmon-runs-next-year/
Humane Society asks for injunction against killing Columbia River sea lions (Boston Herald)
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/national/west/view.bg?articleid=1083905&srvc=rss
Dino Rossi takes the plunge – Salmon too scarce for GOP candidate (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/23//area_news/10170522.txt
Record catch is herring on side of fortune – Fishermen in Alaska haul 14,723 tons of fish, making millions of dollars in a day (Contra Costa Times)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_8748766?source=rss
California – Scientists breed smelt in case species becomes extinct in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Sacramento Bee, may require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/823346.html
Canada – North Coast declared off-limits for fish farms – But licenses announced for South Coast anger environmentalists
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=7d674b46-2432-4c94-802d-7ab69d7acb30&k=42451
United Kingdom – Has salmon farming outgrown itself? (The Daily Telegraph)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/03/31/eawigan131.xml
Wading Through an Endangered Species Backlog (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89209746&ft=1&f=7
NY Times Op-Ed Contributor – Did Your Shopping List Kill a Songbird?
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/opinion/30stutchbury.html?ex=1364616000&en=9cbc717e643c4fc9&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Chelan County PUD wants geese to cease nest takeovers – The PUD has been thwarted at every turn in its six-year campaign to help out an osprey pair in the Sleepy Hollow area. The problem: Canada geese. (The Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080329/NEWS04/402071978
Inland Northwest mountain snow levels higher than 30-year average (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420ap_id_spring_snowpack.html
Winter dredging of Cowlitz River finished, but more silt awaits (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/31//area_news/10179927.txt
Cost of new KingCo sewage plant rises to $1.8 billion (Associated Press, via the Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/404556.html
Deadline near for Black Rock comment (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/141868.html
Proposed stream water rule could limit Sequim-area building development – The most powerful force to manage growth in Eastern Clallam County could flow out of your faucet. (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080329/NEWS/803290303
No clear winner in Cowlitz County's water taste test (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/28/top_story/10177739.txt
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
BPA calculates administrative costs of wind power – Windy days let energy producers cut back on the use of dams and coal-fired plants as more turbines are integrated into the power grid (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206757513278130.xml&coll=7
Kennewick winery gets greener “…three-kilowatt solar panels will provide most of the energy needed for the tasting room and on sunny days, when it creates more than they use, the power is returned to the grid through Benton PUD's net metering program…” (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/141874.html
San Jose to share $2.4M as 'solar city' (Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2008/03/24/daily75.html?ana=from_rss
San Jose Mercury News Editorial: Trees trump solar panels: They benefit neighborhoods
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_8755328?source=rss
The Global Wind Energy Council Says Wind Boom will Continue (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51984&src=rss
Farmers Expected to Plant Less Corn – Farmers are expected to plant less corn this year, which could mean higher continuing higher costs for consumers at the grocery store. (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2004317238_applantingreport.html?syndication=rss
CONSERVATION
More inconvenient truths about energy efficiency (The Economist, via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/356885_greenenergy30.html?source=rss
New Jersey – Energy conservation good for world, pocketbook (Courier Post, Cherry Hill)
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080330/COLUMNISTS15/803300361/1003/business
Sierra Sun Op/Ed – My Turn: Setting lighting standards versus banning bulbs
http://www.sierrasun.com/article/20080330/OPINION/830876305
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
PUD Dam on Columbia part of emergent climate exchange – For nearly 50 years, Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia River has been quietly producing enough low-cost electricity to power two cities the size of Seattle. Now the dam north of Wenatchee is on the front lines of the nation's effort to control greenhouse-gas emissions and curb global warming (Seattle Times – Insert cynical comment about I-937 here)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004315714_carbon30m.html
Gore begins huge public campaign to go green (Washington Post, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004316880_gore31.html?syndication=rss
Warming felt more in Western U.S. – An analysis of 50 studies finds that the region's temperatures are increasing faster than in the rest of the country and the planet as a whole (Los Angeles Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/la-na-climate28mar28,0,4364705.story
Counties Begin Programs to Tackle Climate Change (The Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/30/counties-begin-programs-to-tackle-climate-change/
Canada – Carbon tax will bring jobs back home: report – tariffs would bring industry back to developed world in search of better efficiency (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=dabbb781-f95d-4a80-85b2-4b6d4e3bfa28
Life in the 'Burbs: Heavy Costs for Families, Climate (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89231809&ft=1&f=3
San Francisco entrepreneur floats a bold idea to 'fertilize' ocean – Sees ocean 'fertilized' with iron as a tool to slow climate change (Sacramento Bee – May require free registration)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/821934.html
Applying Gandhi’s Ideas to Climate Change (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/nyregion/30towns.html?ex=1364616000&en=6e68be72590a5c74&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
It's wait and see for two state computer projects – State agencies are preparing to launch two new computer projects that might never be used — at a cost of $7.5 million. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/403568.html
Minneapolis Wi-Fi Network Working but Limited – Slow speeds and too many trees among glitches to be worked out (Broadband Reports – comments may include PG-13 language)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Minneapolis-WiFi-Network-Working-but-Limited-93133
Chattanooga seeks federal funds for fiber optics – Chattanooga officials hope to use about $5.4 million in federal money to help EPB bring Internet, cable and telephone service to inner-city neighborhoods (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
http://timesfreepress.com/news/2008/mar/29/chattanooga-seeks-federal-funds-fiber-optics/?local
Comcast Cable CTO: Bandwidth Hogs Will Experience Slowdowns (GigaOM)http://gigaom.com/2008/03/31/comcast-cto-tony-werner/
Net Neutrality Redux: No Legislation Needed (The Motley Fool)
http://www.fool.com/investing/high-growth/2008/03/28/net-neutrality-redux-no-legislation-needed.aspx
Asking a Judge to Save the World, and Maybe a Whole Lot More – Plaintiffs think a giant particle accelerator might produce a black hole or something else that will spell the end of the Earth — and maybe the universe (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/29/science/29collider.html?_r=1&ex=1364616000&en=d2e8c16ad98184fd&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Reboot it! Microsoft broadband device shuts down during FCC test (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/2004314123_msmachine29.html
GENERAL NEWS
Metal thieves in Portland and Vancouver areas are taking connectors that firefighters use – Crooks make off with brass and iron fittings that help get water into buildings' automatic sprinkler systems (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/120676293893670.xml&coll=7
Police report: Metal thieves put public at risk (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03282008_Police-report-Metal-thieves-put-public-at-risk.cfm?newsletter=2
Three Roy city employees suspended with pay and a state audit is requested after the discovery of inconsistencies in its accounting system (Tacoma News Tribune)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/321803.html
Buyers' Revenge: Trash the House After Foreclosure – Banks Pay People Off To Deter Home Rage; Loose Pets, Paint Spills
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120665586676569881.html
Hybrid cars have unintentional flaw: They're too quiet – Pedestrians, in particular blind people, sometimes can't hear the approaching cars (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1206764705154400.xml&coll=7
Sixteenth Century Finds a Home in Belfair (Kitsap Sun, may require free registration)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/mar/28/sixteenth-century-finds-a-home-in-belfair/
DIVERSIONS
UK Treasury Chief Banned From Pubs Following Beer Tax Hike
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15733571/detail.html
Student's Science Project Sparks NYC Subway Scare
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15733637/detail.html
Judge To 3 Men: Learn English Or Go To Jail – Men Face Prison For Conspiracy To Commit Robbery
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15733012/detail.html
Bradbury novel a tough sell in E. Idaho community read program – The classic book "Fahrenheit 451" is getting the cold shoulder in an eastern Idaho community
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/404473.html
Friday, March 28, 2008
Energy News Digest for March 28, 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 Paying After Circuit Court Ruling
- Puget Sound Energy rates to increase for green effort
- Gregoire signs bills – some bills of PUD interest are on this list
- News Release – Thieves hit BPA substation in Ferndale; reward offered
- Constellation Energy Group agrees to settle lawsuits with Maryland
- Baltimore Sun Columnist – Baltimore Gas & Electric settlement settles little
- Nevada Senator Pushes Coal Project
- Challenging Transmission Corridors – Two lawsuits intend to de-energize parts of the Energy Policy Act
- We need more nuclear plants to avoid blackouts, say German power chiefs
- News Release – California ISO Board of Governors Approves Five-Year Strategic Plan
- Washington State salmon season likely to be curtailed
- San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – Salmon run will collapse unless we reverse underlying causes of decline
- Salmon Recovery At Risk From Global Warming
- Three of five accused whalers plead guilty; two to stand trial
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Guest Columnist – Spirit Lake fishing threatens research project
- Don’t focus on spring Chinook at expense of late steelhead runs
- The science of scatology – Testing what sea lions eat isn't for the faint of nose
- Geoduck harvest suddenly in limbo
- Washington State Water War: The Fight Over Non-Permitted Wells
- News Release – FERC, Oregon sign Memorandum of Understanding for Wave Energy Projects
- Run of River Power CEO shocked at B.C. minister's decision to block power project
- SoCal Edison makes $875M bet on solar
- Massachusetts – Voters to set direction on wind power
- Rollcast Tapping Into Power Among The Trees
- Wisconsin – Myths of energy: Wind turbines, digesters are options, but opposition still a hurdle
- Massachusetts – Energy conservation a high priority
- How much will it cost to fix the climate? The numbers vary…
- Climate change may boost health risks in NW
- NOAA to Assess Whether Melting Ice Endangers Seals
- Carbon tariffs could reverse offshore trend: report
- Marni Soupcoff: How much energy does it take to promote Earth Hour?
- Comcast to modify network practices
- Broadband in the Boonies Gets a $267M Boost
- Companies Avoid Financial Penalties After Massive Computer Data Breaches
- California – Soaring metal prices lead to rash of catalytic converter thefts
- Thieves plague Portland light-rail project
- Judge OKs halt to Alcoa bribery lawsuit
- Machiavelli, Not Such a Bad Guy?
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Imbroglio • \im-BROLE-yo\ • noun – 1: a confused mass 2a: an intricate or complicated situation (as in a drama or novel) b: an acutely painful or embarrassing misunderstanding c: a violently confused or bitterly complicated altercation: embroilment d: scandal
Like some unholy game of Twister, the rugby players piled themselves on the loose ball, readying themselves for the inevitable scrum. That is, until the 400 pound fullback flung himself into the imbroglio, causing the entire pile to sink at least six inches into the muddy, bloody field below.
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 Paying After Circuit Court Ruling – Electricity: Bonneville Power Administration Paying After Circuit Court Ruling (The Daily Chronicle, Centralia)
http://www.chronline.com/story.php?subaction=showfull&id=1206639899&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&
Puget Sound Energy rates to increase for green effort – Puget Sound Energy received permission from state utility regulators Thursday to raise electric and natural-gas rates Tuesday to pay for an increase of energy conservation programs. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/401691.html
Gregoire signs bills – some bills of PUD interest are on this list (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/401702.html
News Release – Thieves hit BPA substation in Ferndale; reward offered (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/196447/
Constellation Energy Group agrees to settle lawsuits with Maryland (Washington Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/03/24/daily43.html?ana=from_rss
Baltimore Sun Columnist – Baltimore Gas & Electric settlement settles little
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.hancock28mar28,0,7802264.column
Nevada Senator Pushes Coal Project – The effort would help a coal-fired power plant proposed by Sierra Pacific Resources for eastern Nevada. (Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080328/wst_ensign_coal.html?.v=1
Challenging Transmission Corridors – Two lawsuits intend to de-energize parts of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Power Marketers Industry Publications)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5CjjhnopsUUmi%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
We need more nuclear plants to avoid blackouts, say German power chiefs (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/display_article/324063/6/ARTCL/Display/none/1/We-need-more-nuclear-plants-to-avoid-blackouts,-say-German-power-chiefs/
News Release – California ISO Board of Governors Approves Five-Year Strategic Plan Charts Course for New Energy Paradigm (CAISO, via Electric Energy Online)
http://www.electricenergyonline.com/IndustryNews.asp?m=1&id=86359
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Washington State salmon season likely to be curtailed (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/27/local_news/01news.txt
San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – Salmon run will collapse unless we reverse underlying causes of decline
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/28/EDFHVRKBT.DTL
Salmon Recovery At Risk From Global Warming – Three regional environmental groups released a report Thursday that says global warming is hurting salmon recovery (Oregon Public Broadcasting – and another example of Snake River Dam Removal Tourette’s Syndrome)
http://news.opb.org/article/salmon-recovery-risk-global-warming/
Three of five accused whalers plead guilty; two to stand trial (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080328/NEWS/803280303
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Guest Columnist – Spirit Lake fishing threatens research project
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/356757_spiritlake28.html?source=rss
Don’t focus on spring Chinook at expense of late steelhead runs (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/400548.html
Testing what sea lions eat isn't for the faint of nose – A graduate student at Portland State analyzes sea lions' scat to chart how much salmon they eat (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206672911212320.xml&coll=7
Geoduck harvest suddenly in limbo – Five years means five years. That’s the word from Pierce County deputy hearing examiner Terrence McCarthy, who decided this week that a Taylor Shellfish geoduck permit has run out. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/320104.html
Washington State Water War: The Fight Over Non-Permitted Wells (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/water-war-fight-over-non-permitted-wells/
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
News Release – FERC, Oregon sign Memorandum of Understanding for Wave Energy Projects (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/03-27-08.asp
Run of River Power CEO shocked at B.C. minister's decision to block power project (CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/03/26/bc-upper-pit.html
SoCal Edison makes $875M bet on solar (Los Angeles Business from bizjournals)
http://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/stories/2008/03/24/daily28.html?ana=from_rss
Massachusetts – Voters to set direction on wind power – At Harvard's annual Town Meeting Saturday, voters will be asked to approve a bylaw that would allow residents to erect wind turbines for individual, accessory use (The Boston Globe)
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/03/27/voters_to_set_direction_on_wind_power/
Rollcast Tapping Into Power Among The Trees – Energy industry veteran Penn Cox wants to make millions from wood scraps and tree trimmings usually dumped in landfills or left decaying on the forest floor. (McClatchy Tribune Business News, via Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CjiovsmiRUmi%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
Wisconsin – Myths of energy: Wind turbines, digesters are options, but opposition still a hurdle (Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter)
http://www.htrnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/MAN0101/803280517
CONSERVATION
Massachusetts – Energy conservation a high priority (The Hingham Journal)
http://www.wickedlocal.com/hingham/news/x1059920307
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
How much will it cost to fix the climate? The numbers vary – Even when experts look at the same data, they can come to vastly different conclusions (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0327/p17s01-sten.html
Climate change may boost health risks in NW (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/28//area_news/doc47ec8793c0957827494596.txt
NOAA to Assess Whether Melting Ice Endangers Seals (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/26/AR2008032602807.html?nav=rss_nation
Carbon tariffs could reverse offshore trend: report (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=f95c89fa-582a-4eab-8513-5d2aeca23de4&k=6
Marni Soupcoff: How much energy does it take to promote Earth Hour? (National Post, Canada)
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/03/27/marni-soupcoff-how-much-energy-does-it-take-to-promote-earth-hour.aspx
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Comcast to modify network practices – Company will change how it manages its network in response to accusations it blocks some Internet file-sharing services because they require large amounts of bandwidth. (Reuters, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080328/tc_nm/comcast_dc_3
Broadband in the Boonies Gets a $267M Boost (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/03/28/broadband-in-the-boonies-gets-a-boost-new-service-coming/
Companies Avoid Financial Penalties After Massive Computer Data Breaches (Associated Press, via the Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/27/AR2008032703436.html?nav=rss_technology
GENERAL NEWS
California – Soaring metal prices lead to rash of catalytic converter thefts (Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1307037~Soaring_metal_prices_lead_to_rash_of_catalytic_converter_thefts.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
Thieves plague Portland light-rail project (Daily Journal of Commerce, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1306042~Thieves_plague_Portland_light_rail_project.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Judge OKs halt to Alcoa bribery lawsuit (The Associated Press, via Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/business/business_wire/story/140429.html
Machiavelli, Not Such a Bad Guy? (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89153809&ft=1&f=2
DIVERSIONS
India’s marksmen fed up with shooting blanks – They may boycott the Beijing Olympics unless the government steps in to help alleviate a shortage of ammunition for training
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSREE85405120080328?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Australian Outback Town Chooses Mayor By Drawing Name From Trash Can
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15723645/detail.html
Scientists Try For 'Remote-Control Fish' – Researchers Seek To Bolster Bass Stock
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15713766/detail.html
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Bonneville Power Administration Paying After Circuit Court Ruling
- Puget Sound Energy rates to increase for green effort
- Gregoire signs bills – some bills of PUD interest are on this list
- News Release – Thieves hit BPA substation in Ferndale; reward offered
- Constellation Energy Group agrees to settle lawsuits with Maryland
- Baltimore Sun Columnist – Baltimore Gas & Electric settlement settles little
- Nevada Senator Pushes Coal Project
- Challenging Transmission Corridors – Two lawsuits intend to de-energize parts of the Energy Policy Act
- We need more nuclear plants to avoid blackouts, say German power chiefs
- News Release – California ISO Board of Governors Approves Five-Year Strategic Plan
- Washington State salmon season likely to be curtailed
- San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – Salmon run will collapse unless we reverse underlying causes of decline
- Salmon Recovery At Risk From Global Warming
- Three of five accused whalers plead guilty; two to stand trial
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Guest Columnist – Spirit Lake fishing threatens research project
- Don’t focus on spring Chinook at expense of late steelhead runs
- The science of scatology – Testing what sea lions eat isn't for the faint of nose
- Geoduck harvest suddenly in limbo
- Washington State Water War: The Fight Over Non-Permitted Wells
- News Release – FERC, Oregon sign Memorandum of Understanding for Wave Energy Projects
- Run of River Power CEO shocked at B.C. minister's decision to block power project
- SoCal Edison makes $875M bet on solar
- Massachusetts – Voters to set direction on wind power
- Rollcast Tapping Into Power Among The Trees
- Wisconsin – Myths of energy: Wind turbines, digesters are options, but opposition still a hurdle
- Massachusetts – Energy conservation a high priority
- How much will it cost to fix the climate? The numbers vary…
- Climate change may boost health risks in NW
- NOAA to Assess Whether Melting Ice Endangers Seals
- Carbon tariffs could reverse offshore trend: report
- Marni Soupcoff: How much energy does it take to promote Earth Hour?
- Comcast to modify network practices
- Broadband in the Boonies Gets a $267M Boost
- Companies Avoid Financial Penalties After Massive Computer Data Breaches
- California – Soaring metal prices lead to rash of catalytic converter thefts
- Thieves plague Portland light-rail project
- Judge OKs halt to Alcoa bribery lawsuit
- Machiavelli, Not Such a Bad Guy?
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Imbroglio • \im-BROLE-yo\ • noun – 1: a confused mass 2a: an intricate or complicated situation (as in a drama or novel) b: an acutely painful or embarrassing misunderstanding c: a violently confused or bitterly complicated altercation: embroilment d: scandal
Like some unholy game of Twister, the rugby players piled themselves on the loose ball, readying themselves for the inevitable scrum. That is, until the 400 pound fullback flung himself into the imbroglio, causing the entire pile to sink at least six inches into the muddy, bloody field below.
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 Paying After Circuit Court Ruling – Electricity: Bonneville Power Administration Paying After Circuit Court Ruling (The Daily Chronicle, Centralia)
http://www.chronline.com/story.php?subaction=showfull&id=1206639899&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&
Puget Sound Energy rates to increase for green effort – Puget Sound Energy received permission from state utility regulators Thursday to raise electric and natural-gas rates Tuesday to pay for an increase of energy conservation programs. (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/401691.html
Gregoire signs bills – some bills of PUD interest are on this list (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/401702.html
News Release – Thieves hit BPA substation in Ferndale; reward offered (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/196447/
Constellation Energy Group agrees to settle lawsuits with Maryland (Washington Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/03/24/daily43.html?ana=from_rss
Baltimore Sun Columnist – Baltimore Gas & Electric settlement settles little
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.hancock28mar28,0,7802264.column
Nevada Senator Pushes Coal Project – The effort would help a coal-fired power plant proposed by Sierra Pacific Resources for eastern Nevada. (Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080328/wst_ensign_coal.html?.v=1
Challenging Transmission Corridors – Two lawsuits intend to de-energize parts of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Power Marketers Industry Publications)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8kowu%5D%5CjjhnopsUUmi%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
We need more nuclear plants to avoid blackouts, say German power chiefs (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/display_article/324063/6/ARTCL/Display/none/1/We-need-more-nuclear-plants-to-avoid-blackouts,-say-German-power-chiefs/
News Release – California ISO Board of Governors Approves Five-Year Strategic Plan Charts Course for New Energy Paradigm (CAISO, via Electric Energy Online)
http://www.electricenergyonline.com/IndustryNews.asp?m=1&id=86359
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Washington State salmon season likely to be curtailed (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/27/local_news/01news.txt
San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – Salmon run will collapse unless we reverse underlying causes of decline
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/28/EDFHVRKBT.DTL
Salmon Recovery At Risk From Global Warming – Three regional environmental groups released a report Thursday that says global warming is hurting salmon recovery (Oregon Public Broadcasting – and another example of Snake River Dam Removal Tourette’s Syndrome)
http://news.opb.org/article/salmon-recovery-risk-global-warming/
Three of five accused whalers plead guilty; two to stand trial (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080328/NEWS/803280303
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Guest Columnist – Spirit Lake fishing threatens research project
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/356757_spiritlake28.html?source=rss
Don’t focus on spring Chinook at expense of late steelhead runs (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/400548.html
Testing what sea lions eat isn't for the faint of nose – A graduate student at Portland State analyzes sea lions' scat to chart how much salmon they eat (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206672911212320.xml&coll=7
Geoduck harvest suddenly in limbo – Five years means five years. That’s the word from Pierce County deputy hearing examiner Terrence McCarthy, who decided this week that a Taylor Shellfish geoduck permit has run out. (The News Tribune, Tacoma)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/320104.html
Washington State Water War: The Fight Over Non-Permitted Wells (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/water-war-fight-over-non-permitted-wells/
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
News Release – FERC, Oregon sign Memorandum of Understanding for Wave Energy Projects (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2008/2008-1/03-27-08.asp
Run of River Power CEO shocked at B.C. minister's decision to block power project (CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/03/26/bc-upper-pit.html
SoCal Edison makes $875M bet on solar (Los Angeles Business from bizjournals)
http://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/stories/2008/03/24/daily28.html?ana=from_rss
Massachusetts – Voters to set direction on wind power – At Harvard's annual Town Meeting Saturday, voters will be asked to approve a bylaw that would allow residents to erect wind turbines for individual, accessory use (The Boston Globe)
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/03/27/voters_to_set_direction_on_wind_power/
Rollcast Tapping Into Power Among The Trees – Energy industry veteran Penn Cox wants to make millions from wood scraps and tree trimmings usually dumped in landfills or left decaying on the forest floor. (McClatchy Tribune Business News, via Power Marketing Association Online)
http://powermarketers.netcontentinc.net/newsreader.asp?ppa=8knpp%5E%5CjiovsmiRUmi%216%3C%22bfen%5Fv
Wisconsin – Myths of energy: Wind turbines, digesters are options, but opposition still a hurdle (Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter)
http://www.htrnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/MAN0101/803280517
CONSERVATION
Massachusetts – Energy conservation a high priority (The Hingham Journal)
http://www.wickedlocal.com/hingham/news/x1059920307
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
How much will it cost to fix the climate? The numbers vary – Even when experts look at the same data, they can come to vastly different conclusions (Christian Science Monitor)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0327/p17s01-sten.html
Climate change may boost health risks in NW (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/28//area_news/doc47ec8793c0957827494596.txt
NOAA to Assess Whether Melting Ice Endangers Seals (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/26/AR2008032602807.html?nav=rss_nation
Carbon tariffs could reverse offshore trend: report (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=f95c89fa-582a-4eab-8513-5d2aeca23de4&k=6
Marni Soupcoff: How much energy does it take to promote Earth Hour? (National Post, Canada)
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/03/27/marni-soupcoff-how-much-energy-does-it-take-to-promote-earth-hour.aspx
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Comcast to modify network practices – Company will change how it manages its network in response to accusations it blocks some Internet file-sharing services because they require large amounts of bandwidth. (Reuters, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080328/tc_nm/comcast_dc_3
Broadband in the Boonies Gets a $267M Boost (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/03/28/broadband-in-the-boonies-gets-a-boost-new-service-coming/
Companies Avoid Financial Penalties After Massive Computer Data Breaches (Associated Press, via the Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/27/AR2008032703436.html?nav=rss_technology
GENERAL NEWS
California – Soaring metal prices lead to rash of catalytic converter thefts (Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1307037~Soaring_metal_prices_lead_to_rash_of_catalytic_converter_thefts.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
Thieves plague Portland light-rail project (Daily Journal of Commerce, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1306042~Thieves_plague_Portland_light_rail_project.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Judge OKs halt to Alcoa bribery lawsuit (The Associated Press, via Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/business/business_wire/story/140429.html
Machiavelli, Not Such a Bad Guy? (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89153809&ft=1&f=2
DIVERSIONS
India’s marksmen fed up with shooting blanks – They may boycott the Beijing Olympics unless the government steps in to help alleviate a shortage of ammunition for training
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSREE85405120080328?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Australian Outback Town Chooses Mayor By Drawing Name From Trash Can
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/15723645/detail.html
Scientists Try For 'Remote-Control Fish' – Researchers Seek To Bolster Bass Stock
http://www.kirotv.com/news/15713766/detail.html
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Energy News Digest for March 27, 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)
- Grays Harbor County PUD’s $6 million claim for storm recovery denied
- Jefferson County PUD opens door to public power study
- Northern Wasco County PUD plans rate cut – Reduction of about 6 percent hinges on Bonneville money
- Canada – Discarded opinions: Back to the future on clean, cheap power
- Western Canada hydro-electric project dealt blow
- Two LA firefighters injured in manhole explosion on electrical Vault
- Snow geese knock out Stanwood power
- Scientists: Puget Sound species in decline as pollution increases
- Salmon Virus Indicts Chile’s Fishing Methods
- Salmon Prices to Skyrocket
- 15 million salmon go under the knife
- Where to find elusive Chinook
- Outdoors Report: Working anglers being rewarded
- Washington Says More Dams May Become Reality
- Feds sue Gorge resort over work on wetlands
- The Clackamas River basin benefits from stewardship of the forests
- Water content in Sierra snowpack on par, but won't fill reservoirs
- EPA selects 8 finalists for Puget Sound cleanup grants
- Four towers would measure wind for possible turbines on Rattlesnake Hills
- Cooperative in Clallam County aims to promote local biomass energy
- Portland General Electric hydro plant gets 'green' certification
- Utah Company Nearing Geothermal Plant Deal
- Proposed boost to Michigan's wind power faces hurdles
- California Utility to Install Solar Panels
- Trumpeting a Move to Put the Sun in SunChips
- News Release – City of Kelowna "Goes Green" with Solar-Powered Area Lighting
- Baird says use stimulus rebate check on 'green' appliances
- Sierra Club pushes energy conservation on politicos
- Global warming causing stronger allergies
- Merrill Lynch Introduces Carbon Emissions Indices
- West Virginia – Hampshire's lack of fiber optics, highway access seen as liabilities
- Bell Canada Hit For Slowing Traffic To Independent ISPs
- Digital TV switch a 'death sentence,' lawsuit alleges
- Sequim public radio station to get permit
- City Of Shelton Reducing Staff To Offset Budget Shortfall
- Are crops the new copper? Rising prices make crops tempting target for thieves
- Free Web version of Photoshop launches
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Fritter • \FRIT-ter\ • verb – 1: to spend or waste bit by bit, on trifles, or without commensurate return usually used with away 2: to break into small fragments
OR
Fritter • \FRIT-ter\ • noun – A small mass of fried or sautéed batter often containing fruit or meat
Olaf was content to fritter the day away by frying up pan after pan of clam fritters while a strong, westerly wind swirled around his beach cabin. Unfortunately, there was a hole in the roof, that kept his mind from wandering…where it will goooooooooo.
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
Grays Harbor County PUD’s $6 million claim for storm recovery denied (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/26/local_news/04news.txt
Jefferson County PUD opens door to public power study (Port Townsend Leader)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=55&ArticleID=20437&TM=83982.88
Northern Wasco County PUD plans rate cut – Reduction of about 6 percent hinges on Bonneville money (The Dalles Chronicle)
http://www.thedalleschronicle.com/news/2008/03/news03-26-08-01.shtml
Canada – Discarded opinions: Back to the future on clean, cheap power – Former cabinet minister Pat McGeer wants B.C. to renew its commitment to big hydro dams and their legacy of "cheap, clean, renewable" electric power. (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=7a821fbd-a4a4-4c5c-a40d-9fc08c3b8d40
Western Canada hydro-electric project dealt blow (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSN2645180720080326
Two LA firefighters injured in manhole explosion on electrical Vault (Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1303526~2_LA_firefighters_injured_in_manhole_explosion.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
Snow geese knock out Stanwood power – Eagles chased the flock into power lines, a PUD official says (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080327/NEWS01/190070052
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Scientists: Puget Sound species in decline as pollution increases (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/400661.html
Salmon Virus Indicts Chile’s Fishing Methods – A virus called infectious salmon anemia, or I.S.A., is killing millions of salmon destined for export to Japan, Europe and the United States (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/world/americas/27salmon.html?ex=1364356800&en=4b2fce1db851825c&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Salmon Prices to Skyrocket – Grocery shoppers who want to buy wild salmon this year are going to have pay some wild prices (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89114999&ft=1&f=17
15 million salmon go under the knife (Newhouse News Service, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004309219_markingfish27.html?syndication=rss
Where to find elusive Chinook (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080327/SPORTS/54243564/1004
Outdoors Report: Working anglers being rewarded – Action spotty amid damp chill of early spring (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/othersports/356550_out27.html
Washington Says More Dams May Become Reality (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3730
Feds sue Gorge resort over work on wetlands – A Columbia River Gorge resort and its owners were sued Wednesday by the federal government for grading and filling 2.25 acres of wetlands (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03272008_Feds-sue-Gorge-resort-over-work-on-wetlands.cfm/
The Clackamas River basin benefits from stewardship of the forests – The Forest Service and environmental advocates earn kudos for teamwork (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206498320101840.xml&coll=7
Water content in Sierra snowpack on par, but won't fill reservoirs (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/BAFPVQR48.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
EPA selects 8 finalists for Puget Sound cleanup grants – Includes Squasin Island Tribe (KNDO-TV, Tri-cities)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=8073920
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Four towers would measure wind for possible turbines on Rattlesnake Hills (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/114188.html
Cooperative in Clallam County aims to promote local biomass energy (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3506
Portland General Electric hydro plant gets 'green' certification (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/03/24/daily22.html?ana=from_rss
UTAH COMPANY NEARING GEOTHERMAL PLANT DEAL –A Utah-based energy company is closer to building one of the largest geothermal electrical plants in Oregon in southern Klamath County. The Klamath County Planning Commission unanimously approved Raser Technologies’ request to add a geothermal resource overlay to farmland owned by Liskey Farms along Lower Klamath Lake Road. The commission also approved a conditional use permit to build the $35 million10-megatwatt power plant. (Herald and News, Klamath Falls)
Proposed boost to Michigan's wind power faces hurdles (Oakland Business Review)
http://www.mlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2008/03/proposed_boost_to_michigans_wi.html
California Utility to Install Solar Panels – An electric company plans to install a huge patchwork of solar cells, 10 times bigger than any previous such installation (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/business/27solar.html?_r=1&ex=1364356800&en=63ee59e9c500c985&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Trumpeting a Move to Put the Sun in SunChips – The initiative is centered on the addition of solar power to the Frito-Lay plant in Modesto, Calif., that makes SunChips. A 10-acre “farm” of solar collectors is being added, to provide up to 75 percent of the energy needed to produce the product (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/business/media/27adco.html?ex=1364356800&en=2fe6de7c645907a2&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
News Release – City of Kelowna "Goes Green" with Solar-Powered Area Lighting (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/partner/story?id=51964&src=rss
CONSERVATION
Baird says use stimulus rebate check on 'green' appliances (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/26//area_news/10173785.txt
Sierra Club pushes energy conservation on politicos – Sierra Club launches the Power2Change campaign over the next four weeks leading up to Earth Day (Wisconsin Radio Network)
http://www.wrn.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=ECAE2362-E245-8623-74EBBB5CFDBF5244
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Global warming causing stronger allergies – Farmers concerned about bigger weeds and increased pollen (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=13cb2081-2291-4566-bb6b-19dd0ddcc38c
Merrill Lynch Introduces Carbon Emissions Indices (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51967&src=rss
San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – California air board should stand by zero-emission vehicle mandate
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/27/EDK9VQRS7.DTL&feed=rss.opinion
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
West Virginia – Hampshire's lack of fiber optics, highway access seen as liabilities (Cumberland Times News)
http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_086094707.html
Bell Canada Hit For Slowing Traffic To Independent ISPs (Information Week, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/cmp/20080327/tc_cmp/206905979
Digital TV switch a 'death sentence,' lawsuit alleges (Associated Press, via the Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/139216.html
Sequim public radio station to get permit (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080327/NEWS/803270305
GENERAL NEWS
CITY OF SHELTON REDUCING STAFF TO OFFSET BUDGET SHORTFALL – The City of Shelton is reducing staff to offset budget shortfalls. Five people will be losing their jobs in the next year to help the City deal with a decrease in revenue. These jobs equate to 3.75 F-T-Es and are part of the City's plan to reduce costs while maintaining public safety. Among those losing their jobs is the clerical position in the Fire Department beginning July 1. That will save a total of $91,000 through 2009 ($30,000 this year and $61,000 next year). This move keeps all the firefighters as protecting life and property is a priority. In the Police Department, one officer will be transferred to the West Sound Narcotics Enforcement Team (WestNET) effective next year, saving $87,850. The third full time job cut is in the Community Development Department where the Building Inspector, a longtime City employee, will be losing his job effective July 1, saving $132,000 through 2009 ($39,000 this year; $93,000 next year). This cut is necessary as the first priority was to retain planning support. In the Administration, a half time employee will be cut effective January 1. And in the Finance Department, the reduction is .25 F-T-E beginning April 1, saving $15,000. Each City Department also made miscellaneous cuts trimming what fat they could without impacting services. Examples of these cuts are canceling the City's information technology support contract and slowing down computer purchases, saving $45,000 through 2009. One of the departments to cut more than targeted was Administration where a total of $78,710 will be saved. This includes City Administrator Dave O'Leary reducing his compensation package. O'Leary voluntarily chose to change his car allowance to mileage and reduce his phone allowance. This saves the City over $21,000. O'Leary told 1030 KMAS News that this plan will help the City get through the next 21 months and assumes that several things will develop during that time to help the City's revenues. These things include the Peacock Ridge Development and the Shelton Hills Development beginning construction and more commercial development associated with those projects opening by late 2009. The City will be monitoring its budget and revenues throughout and may need to make further adjustments. The Shelton City Commission still must take official action on these reductions. That action will likely occur at their next business meeting. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Are crops the new copper? Rising prices make crops tempting target for thieves (National Post, Canada)
http://www.nationalpost.com/newsletter/story.html?id=401673
Free Web version of Photoshop launches (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080327/ap_on_hi_te/adobe_photoshop_4
DIVERSIONS
Another reason to get rid of the belly fat: Dementia
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/BAJSVQR4T.DTL&feed=rss.news
Oops, wrong queen: Computer error blamed for Rhododendron Festival titlist for all of last year
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080327/NEWS/803270307
Russian farmer sues space agency for falling rocket
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL2621415320080327?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Owner fails to back own horse in 33-1 win
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL2546446520080326?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Glasses Not Geeky, Research Finds – Shortsighted People Not More Introverted
http://www.kirotv.com/health/15711366/detail.html
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Grays Harbor County PUD’s $6 million claim for storm recovery denied
- Jefferson County PUD opens door to public power study
- Northern Wasco County PUD plans rate cut – Reduction of about 6 percent hinges on Bonneville money
- Canada – Discarded opinions: Back to the future on clean, cheap power
- Western Canada hydro-electric project dealt blow
- Two LA firefighters injured in manhole explosion on electrical Vault
- Snow geese knock out Stanwood power
- Scientists: Puget Sound species in decline as pollution increases
- Salmon Virus Indicts Chile’s Fishing Methods
- Salmon Prices to Skyrocket
- 15 million salmon go under the knife
- Where to find elusive Chinook
- Outdoors Report: Working anglers being rewarded
- Washington Says More Dams May Become Reality
- Feds sue Gorge resort over work on wetlands
- The Clackamas River basin benefits from stewardship of the forests
- Water content in Sierra snowpack on par, but won't fill reservoirs
- EPA selects 8 finalists for Puget Sound cleanup grants
- Four towers would measure wind for possible turbines on Rattlesnake Hills
- Cooperative in Clallam County aims to promote local biomass energy
- Portland General Electric hydro plant gets 'green' certification
- Utah Company Nearing Geothermal Plant Deal
- Proposed boost to Michigan's wind power faces hurdles
- California Utility to Install Solar Panels
- Trumpeting a Move to Put the Sun in SunChips
- News Release – City of Kelowna "Goes Green" with Solar-Powered Area Lighting
- Baird says use stimulus rebate check on 'green' appliances
- Sierra Club pushes energy conservation on politicos
- Global warming causing stronger allergies
- Merrill Lynch Introduces Carbon Emissions Indices
- West Virginia – Hampshire's lack of fiber optics, highway access seen as liabilities
- Bell Canada Hit For Slowing Traffic To Independent ISPs
- Digital TV switch a 'death sentence,' lawsuit alleges
- Sequim public radio station to get permit
- City Of Shelton Reducing Staff To Offset Budget Shortfall
- Are crops the new copper? Rising prices make crops tempting target for thieves
- Free Web version of Photoshop launches
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Fritter • \FRIT-ter\ • verb – 1: to spend or waste bit by bit, on trifles, or without commensurate return usually used with away 2: to break into small fragments
OR
Fritter • \FRIT-ter\ • noun – A small mass of fried or sautéed batter often containing fruit or meat
Olaf was content to fritter the day away by frying up pan after pan of clam fritters while a strong, westerly wind swirled around his beach cabin. Unfortunately, there was a hole in the roof, that kept his mind from wandering…where it will goooooooooo.
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
Grays Harbor County PUD’s $6 million claim for storm recovery denied (The Daily World, Aberdeen)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/03/26/local_news/04news.txt
Jefferson County PUD opens door to public power study (Port Townsend Leader)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=55&ArticleID=20437&TM=83982.88
Northern Wasco County PUD plans rate cut – Reduction of about 6 percent hinges on Bonneville money (The Dalles Chronicle)
http://www.thedalleschronicle.com/news/2008/03/news03-26-08-01.shtml
Canada – Discarded opinions: Back to the future on clean, cheap power – Former cabinet minister Pat McGeer wants B.C. to renew its commitment to big hydro dams and their legacy of "cheap, clean, renewable" electric power. (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=7a821fbd-a4a4-4c5c-a40d-9fc08c3b8d40
Western Canada hydro-electric project dealt blow (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSN2645180720080326
Two LA firefighters injured in manhole explosion on electrical Vault (Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1303526~2_LA_firefighters_injured_in_manhole_explosion.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines
Snow geese knock out Stanwood power – Eagles chased the flock into power lines, a PUD official says (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080327/NEWS01/190070052
WATER, FISH & THE ENVIRONMENT
Scientists: Puget Sound species in decline as pollution increases (The Olympian)
http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/400661.html
Salmon Virus Indicts Chile’s Fishing Methods – A virus called infectious salmon anemia, or I.S.A., is killing millions of salmon destined for export to Japan, Europe and the United States (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/world/americas/27salmon.html?ex=1364356800&en=4b2fce1db851825c&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Salmon Prices to Skyrocket – Grocery shoppers who want to buy wild salmon this year are going to have pay some wild prices (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89114999&ft=1&f=17
15 million salmon go under the knife (Newhouse News Service, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004309219_markingfish27.html?syndication=rss
Where to find elusive Chinook (Everett Herald)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080327/SPORTS/54243564/1004
Outdoors Report: Working anglers being rewarded – Action spotty amid damp chill of early spring (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/othersports/356550_out27.html
Washington Says More Dams May Become Reality (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=3730
Feds sue Gorge resort over work on wetlands – A Columbia River Gorge resort and its owners were sued Wednesday by the federal government for grading and filling 2.25 acres of wetlands (The Columbian)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/03/03272008_Feds-sue-Gorge-resort-over-work-on-wetlands.cfm/
The Clackamas River basin benefits from stewardship of the forests – The Forest Service and environmental advocates earn kudos for teamwork (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1206498320101840.xml&coll=7
Water content in Sierra snowpack on par, but won't fill reservoirs (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/BAFPVQR48.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea
EPA selects 8 finalists for Puget Sound cleanup grants – Includes Squasin Island Tribe (KNDO-TV, Tri-cities)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=8073920
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Four towers would measure wind for possible turbines on Rattlesnake Hills (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/114188.html
Cooperative in Clallam County aims to promote local biomass energy (KONP Radio, Port Angeles)
http://www.konp.com/local/3506
Portland General Electric hydro plant gets 'green' certification (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/03/24/daily22.html?ana=from_rss
UTAH COMPANY NEARING GEOTHERMAL PLANT DEAL –A Utah-based energy company is closer to building one of the largest geothermal electrical plants in Oregon in southern Klamath County. The Klamath County Planning Commission unanimously approved Raser Technologies’ request to add a geothermal resource overlay to farmland owned by Liskey Farms along Lower Klamath Lake Road. The commission also approved a conditional use permit to build the $35 million10-megatwatt power plant. (Herald and News, Klamath Falls)
Proposed boost to Michigan's wind power faces hurdles (Oakland Business Review)
http://www.mlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2008/03/proposed_boost_to_michigans_wi.html
California Utility to Install Solar Panels – An electric company plans to install a huge patchwork of solar cells, 10 times bigger than any previous such installation (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/business/27solar.html?_r=1&ex=1364356800&en=63ee59e9c500c985&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Trumpeting a Move to Put the Sun in SunChips – The initiative is centered on the addition of solar power to the Frito-Lay plant in Modesto, Calif., that makes SunChips. A 10-acre “farm” of solar collectors is being added, to provide up to 75 percent of the energy needed to produce the product (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/business/media/27adco.html?ex=1364356800&en=2fe6de7c645907a2&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
News Release – City of Kelowna "Goes Green" with Solar-Powered Area Lighting (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/partner/story?id=51964&src=rss
CONSERVATION
Baird says use stimulus rebate check on 'green' appliances (The Daily News, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/26//area_news/10173785.txt
Sierra Club pushes energy conservation on politicos – Sierra Club launches the Power2Change campaign over the next four weeks leading up to Earth Day (Wisconsin Radio Network)
http://www.wrn.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=ECAE2362-E245-8623-74EBBB5CFDBF5244
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Global warming causing stronger allergies – Farmers concerned about bigger weeds and increased pollen (Vancouver Sun)
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=13cb2081-2291-4566-bb6b-19dd0ddcc38c
Merrill Lynch Introduces Carbon Emissions Indices (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51967&src=rss
San Francisco Chronicle Op/Ed – California air board should stand by zero-emission vehicle mandate
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/27/EDK9VQRS7.DTL&feed=rss.opinion
TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
West Virginia – Hampshire's lack of fiber optics, highway access seen as liabilities (Cumberland Times News)
http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_086094707.html
Bell Canada Hit For Slowing Traffic To Independent ISPs (Information Week, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/cmp/20080327/tc_cmp/206905979
Digital TV switch a 'death sentence,' lawsuit alleges (Associated Press, via the Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/139216.html
Sequim public radio station to get permit (Peninsula Daily News)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080327/NEWS/803270305
GENERAL NEWS
CITY OF SHELTON REDUCING STAFF TO OFFSET BUDGET SHORTFALL – The City of Shelton is reducing staff to offset budget shortfalls. Five people will be losing their jobs in the next year to help the City deal with a decrease in revenue. These jobs equate to 3.75 F-T-Es and are part of the City's plan to reduce costs while maintaining public safety. Among those losing their jobs is the clerical position in the Fire Department beginning July 1. That will save a total of $91,000 through 2009 ($30,000 this year and $61,000 next year). This move keeps all the firefighters as protecting life and property is a priority. In the Police Department, one officer will be transferred to the West Sound Narcotics Enforcement Team (WestNET) effective next year, saving $87,850. The third full time job cut is in the Community Development Department where the Building Inspector, a longtime City employee, will be losing his job effective July 1, saving $132,000 through 2009 ($39,000 this year; $93,000 next year). This cut is necessary as the first priority was to retain planning support. In the Administration, a half time employee will be cut effective January 1. And in the Finance Department, the reduction is .25 F-T-E beginning April 1, saving $15,000. Each City Department also made miscellaneous cuts trimming what fat they could without impacting services. Examples of these cuts are canceling the City's information technology support contract and slowing down computer purchases, saving $45,000 through 2009. One of the departments to cut more than targeted was Administration where a total of $78,710 will be saved. This includes City Administrator Dave O'Leary reducing his compensation package. O'Leary voluntarily chose to change his car allowance to mileage and reduce his phone allowance. This saves the City over $21,000. O'Leary told 1030 KMAS News that this plan will help the City get through the next 21 months and assumes that several things will develop during that time to help the City's revenues. These things include the Peacock Ridge Development and the Shelton Hills Development beginning construction and more commercial development associated with those projects opening by late 2009. The City will be monitoring its budget and revenues throughout and may need to make further adjustments. The Shelton City Commission still must take official action on these reductions. That action will likely occur at their next business meeting. (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
Are crops the new copper? Rising prices make crops tempting target for thieves (National Post, Canada)
http://www.nationalpost.com/newsletter/story.html?id=401673
Free Web version of Photoshop launches (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080327/ap_on_hi_te/adobe_photoshop_4
DIVERSIONS
Another reason to get rid of the belly fat: Dementia
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/BAJSVQR4T.DTL&feed=rss.news
Oops, wrong queen: Computer error blamed for Rhododendron Festival titlist for all of last year
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080327/NEWS/803270307
Russian farmer sues space agency for falling rocket
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL2621415320080327?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Owner fails to back own horse in 33-1 win
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL2546446520080326?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Glasses Not Geeky, Research Finds – Shortsighted People Not More Introverted
http://www.kirotv.com/health/15711366/detail.html
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