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)
- Gore Calls for Carbon-Free Electric Power
- Al Gore’s 100% Renewable Goal Distant, Even in Northwest
- PUD 3 Fuel Mix Report - Hydropower helps minimize Pacific Northwest “Carbon Footprint”
- Can the U.S. Reach 100 Percent Renewable Electricity in 10 Years?
- Lewis County Sheriff: "Wire Theft Ring Crushed"
- Copper theft task force makes more arrests
- Aberdeen – Fire started when power restored
- Umbrella causes brief Chelan County PUD power outage
- Clark Public Utilities ranks top in region
- Email Etiquette – Ex-employee candidate criticizes Grant PUD
- CALIFORNIA – Sacramento Utilities Department worker arrested in water meter probe
- MASSACHUSETTS – State orders utilities to restructure charges
- New York Power Authority halts 680 MW integrated gasification combines cycle plant
- MARYLAND – Clean energy advocates rally against proposed nuclear reactor at Calvert Cliffs
- Electrical Risks at Iraq Bases Are Worse Than Said
- FERC issues its acceptance of the transmission planning compliance filings by Avista and Puget Sound
- Oregonian Opinion – End the LNG threat that faces Oregon
- ALASKA – Sockeye surge is on
- Montana Fish-purging plan will proceed
- Should we move species to save them?
- Congressional Research Service – Davis-Bacon Act Coverage and the State Revolving Fund Program Under the Clean Water Act
- Weyco extends deadline on closing a deal on the sale of the Cosmopolis Pulp Mill
- AUSTRALIA – Green Energy Up In Smoke
- CALIFORNIA – Sacramento Municipal Utility District to offer $5.2M in solar power incentives
- NEW YORK – Watervliet gets OK from feds to study potential for new hydro plant
- Energy Pulse Commentary – Renewable Energy Industry Standards are Needed Now
- Can plug-in hybrids ride to America’s rescue?
- McCain: Electric car 'vital' to oil independence
- California adopts nation's first green building standards
- IDAHO – Meridian family on 30-day quest to slash energy, water use
- Warming Is Major Threat To Humans, EPA Warns
- Warming may affect Northwest way of life
- Cooling Off on Dubious Eco-Friendly Claims
- Seattle Post Intelligencer Columnist – Nuclear power no solution to climate change
- Nation's Largest ISPs Crafting Fake National Broadband Policy
- Comcast on the Defensive
- Why Metered Broadband Is Bad for Microsoft, Google & US
- Mason County Sheriff Spokesman Calls Disappearance of Union Man "Suspicious"
- Site dispute means no renaissance for medieval festival
- Scrap Metal Sting – Man convicted of buying stolen signs
- Oregon men accused in bleacher theft
- Snow still covers hiking trails in Cascades, Olympics
- Starbucks announces full list of store closings; 19 in Washington
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Bogart • \BOH-gart\ • verb – 1: bully, intimidate *2: to use or consume without sharing
Nymphadora was making everyone at the root beer decanting party nervous. Along with her bogart of the first bottle of brew taken from the fruit cellar, she was also making wise cracks about no “backwash” guarantees. Ewwwww!
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
Gore Calls for Carbon-Free Electric Power (NY Times – He likes Hydro!)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/washington/18gore.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1216397649-bypelA8043vLOSjMYY+BQg
Al Gore’s 100% Renewable Goal Distant, Even in Northwest – “…the Northwest has a big head start toward that goal if you count hydropower generation…” (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2621-al-gores-100-renewable-goal-distant-even-northwest/
News Release Archive – PUD 3 Fuel Mix Report - Hydropower helps minimize Pacific Northwest “Carbon Footprint” (Mason County PUD No. 3)
http://www.masonpud3.org/News/display.asp?NewsID=368
Can the U.S. Reach 100 Percent Renewable Electricity in 10 Years? (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/ate/story?id=53095&src=rss
Lewis County Sheriff: "Wire Theft Ring Crushed" (KELA Radio, Centralia, WA)
http://www.kelaam.com/pages/localnews/?Lewis-County-Sheriff-Wire-Theft-Ring-Cru=1&blockID=10479&feedID=410
Copper theft task force makes more arrests (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/25619599.html
Aberdeen – Fire started when power restored (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/18/local_news/06news.txt
Umbrella causes brief Chelan County PUD power outage (The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080718/NEWS04/750315821
Clark Public Utilities ranks top in region (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/07/07182008_Clark-Public-Utilities-ranks-top-in-region.cfm/
Email Etiquette – Ex-employee candidate criticizes Grant PUD – Retiring employee sent accusations in e-mail (The Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/17/news/news03.txt
CALIFORNIA – Sacramento Utilities Department worker arrested in water meter probe (The Sacramento Bee, CA)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/1091871.html
MASSACHUSETTS – State orders utilities to restructure charges – electric and natural gas companies told to restructure their distribution rates in such a way that it doesn't go against the utility's self-interest to help customers lower bills by consuming less (Boston Globe, MA)
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2008/07/17/mass_orders_utilities_to_restructure_charges/
New York Power Authority halts 680 MW integrated gasification combines cycle plant –officials say the electricity produced by the plant would be too expensive because of the technology involved (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=6&ARTICLE_ID=334543&C=PRODJ&dcmp=rss
MARYLAND – Clean energy advocates rally against proposed nuclear reactor at Calvert Cliffs (Baltimore Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/07/14/daily40.html?ana=from_rss
Electrical Risks at Iraq Bases Are Worse Than Said (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/world/middleeast/18contractors.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
News Release – FERC issues its acceptance of the transmission planning compliance filings by Avista and Puget Sound subject to modifications (Links to PDF File from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
http://www.ferc.gov/whats-new/comm-meet/2008/071708/E-4.pdf
Oregonian Opinion – End the LNG threat that faces Oregon (Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/commentary/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1216335319123450.xml&coll=7
FISH & WILDLIFE
ALASKA – Sockeye surge is on – 68,000-fish count for single day signals bonanza (Anchorage Daily News)
http://www.adn.com/fishing/story/468172.html
Montana Fish-purging plan will proceed (The Daily Interlake, Kalispell, MT)
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articles/2008/07/18/news/news01.txt
Should we move species to save them? (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008056947_apscisavingspecies.html?syndication=rss
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Congressional Research Service – Davis-Bacon Act Coverage and the State Revolving Fund Program Under the Clean Water Act
http://opencrs.com/document/RL31491
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Weyco extends deadline on closing a deal on the sale of the Cosmopolis Pulp Mill – Power plant would provide renewable cogeneration (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/07/18/local_news/04news.txt
AUSTRALIA – Green Energy Up In Smoke – Electricity customers who signed up for green power with two of South Australia's major energy retailers are being delivered power predominantly sourced from coal and gas (The Advertiser, Adelaide, Australia)
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24041344-5006301,00.html?from=public_rss
CALIFORNIA – Sacramento Municipal Utility District to offer $5.2M in solar power incentives (Sacramento Business Journal, CA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/14/daily45.html?ana=from_rss
NEW YORK – Watervliet gets OK from feds to study potential for new hydro plant (The Business Review, Albany, NY)
http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2008/07/14/daily29.html?ana=from_rss
Energy Pulse Commentary – Renewable Energy Industry Standards are Needed Now
http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=1781
Can plug-in hybrids ride to America’s rescue? The engineer behind many electric-car advances says oil’s days may be numbered (Christian Science Monitor)
http://features.csmonitor.com/innovation/2008/07/18/can-plug-in-hybrids-ride-to-america%E2%80%99s-rescue/
McCain: Electric car 'vital' to oil independence (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-07-18-McCain-automobile-industry_N.htm?csp=34
CONSERVATION
California adopts nation's first green building standards (Sacramento Business Journal, CA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/07/14/daily41.html?ana=from_rss
IDAHO – Meridian family on 30-day quest to slash energy, water use – Skenandores park the car, turn off the AC, share lighting *+(The Idaho Statesman, Boise, ID)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/eyepiece/story/445621.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Warming Is Major Threat To Humans, EPA Warns (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/17/AR2008071701557.html?nav=rss_business
Warming may affect Northwest way of life – Climate - The EPA pulls together earlier research to look at how human health and welfare will be affected (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1216351512184610.xml&coll=7
Cooling Off on Dubious Eco-Friendly Claims (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/business/media/18adco.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Seattle Post Intelligencer Columnist – Nuclear power no solution to climate change (Seattle, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/371199_amy18.html?source=rss
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Nation's Largest ISPs Crafting Fake National Broadband Policy – In order to make sure that no real, substantive ones take shape (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Nations-Largest-ISPs-Crafting-Fake-National-Broadband-Policy-96192
Comcast on the Defensive (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/17/comcast-on-the-defensive/
Why Metered Broadband Is Bad for Microsoft, Google & Us (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/17/why-metered-broadband-is-bad-for-microsoft-google-us/
GENERAL NEWS
Mason County Sheriff Spokesman Calls Disappearance of Union Man "Suspicious" (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/563/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Site dispute means no renaissance for medieval festival – Organizer lacks proper permit, officials say (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/371224_faire18.html?source=rss
Scrap Metal Sting – Man convicted of buying stolen signs (Yakima Herald Republic, WA)
http://www.yakimaherald.com/stories/5927
Oregon men accused in bleacher theft – Marion County authorities arrested two men accused of stealing metal bleachers from the Woodburn Dragstrip (The Associated Press, via Examinder.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1493367~Ore__men_accused_in_bleacher_theft.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines
Snow still covers hiking trails in Cascades, Olympics – Snowpack levels are at their highest since 1999, causing some hikers to rework their plans (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008058805_snowpack18m.html?syndication=rss
Starbucks announces full list of store closings; 19 in Washington (Puget Sound Business Journal, Seattle, WA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/07/14/daily30.html?ana=from_rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Fla. Officer Fired For Demanding Free Coffee – Employees: Officer Would Visit Starbucks Up To 6 Times A Night
http://www.kirotv.com/money/16919787/detail.html
Fisherman Hooks Drowning Man, Reels Him In – Man Calls 911, Is Advised To Throw Something To Drowning Man
http://www.kirotv.com/family/16919710/detail.html
With this fake wife, I divorce thee
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSDEL8150220080718?feedType=nl&feedName=ustopnewsearly
Kids give pope Mickey Mouse cap but he prefers white
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1810090620080718?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Friday, July 18, 2008
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 17, 2008
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- What would it cost Jefferson County PUD to get into power business?
- Proposed Whidbey Island Public Utility District seeks commissioners
- OREGON – Natural gas price increases could chill budgets
- OHIO – Vectren lobbies Congress over rising energy costs
- OREGON – Eugene Water & Electric Board sees rise in rates in future
- Coal firms sue Missouri utility over garnishments
- Satisfaction with Electric Utility Companies Increases – Clark Public Utilities and Tacoma Power leaders in the West
- Owl causes power outage in Shoreline
- CALIFORNIA – Nuclear plants, offshore drilling gain support
- FERC Okays California ISO's First Step in Clearing Backlog of Renewable Energy Power Plant Requests
- NORTH CAROLINA – Environmentalists sue Duke Energy
- MASSACHUSETTS – Utility’s "decoupling" designed to save energy
- WEST VIRGINIA – Eastern Panhandle needs more electric power
- News Release – Keep Metallic Balloons Away From Power Lines
- OREGON – Klamath River Dam Debate Gets Murkier
- ROGUE RIVER – Blasting begins of Oregon dam that hampered salmon
- Save salmon by eating it, shoppers told
- Salmon in sneakers? Salmon-Safe is latest green emblem
- CALIFORNIA – Lost Harvest: On land and at sea
- ALASKA – Dipping for red gold “here fishy, fishy!”
- Visitors urged to avoid oil in Diablo Lake
- Growing controversy over Haven Lake near Belfair
- Sewer Design Unveiling Part of Hood Canal Celebration
- Port Townsend Leader Opinion – Apparently no end to poisonous lakes
- Study: Future snowmelt in West twice as early as expected
- A history of the quest to find water on Mars
- OREGON – Shadow falls on sun power
- Gore sets energy goal for next president
- Waste Management launches CFL recycling program
- Montana Public Service Commission evaluating Northwestern Energy programs
- Seattle Times – Efficiency will help Northwest thrive in a carbon-constrained world
- ALASKA – Turning the Power Back on in Juneau
- Strategy 101 for greenhouse-gas deniers
- Audit finds Oregon's new $64 million data center lacking
- Lynnwood OKs fiber-optic TV from Verizon
- OREGON – Limited free WiFi returns to downtown Portland
- Congress asks about firm selling data on Web users
- Start-up thinks 'thin client' can span digital divide
- Little Interest in Buying AOL as the Unit Is Shopped Again
- Qwest: Things Are Just So Darn Competitive, We Must Raise Prices
- How Realistic Is BT’s Fiber Broadband Plan?
- State lands chief says he’s sorry
- Moving Too Fast to Drive 55
- Wireless microphones flap causing static
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Superannuated • \soo-per-AN-yuh-wait-tud\ • adjective – 1: outmoded, old-fashioned 2a: incapacitated or disqualified for active duty by advanced age *b: older than the typical member of a specified group
Sam’s superannuated hearse rolled silently to the curb in front of the PUD building, its size reminiscent of an impressive luxury yacht warping into port. Passersby stopped and stared as the two Toyota Yaris tugboats eased the huge, vintage vehicle into its two parking spots.
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
What would it cost Jefferson County PUD to get into power business? Try at least $30 million (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080717/NEWS/807170309
Proposed Whidbey Island Public Utility District seeks commissioners (The Whidbey Examiner, Coupeville, WA)
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=97249725369769959
OREGON – Natural gas price increases could chill budgets – PUC briefing says customers might see hikes of between 15 percent and 40 percent (Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121616606620737100
OHIO – Vectren lobbies Congress over rising energy costs – Soaring temperatures this summer could lead to rising heating costs this winter (Dayton Business Journal, OH)
http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2008/07/14/daily21.html?ana=from_rss
OREGON – Eugene Water & Electric Board sees rise in rates in future – Commissioners gazed into a 10-year crystal ball on Tuesday night and saw a decade of steady rate increases for water and electricity (The Register-Guard, Eugene, OR)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=124227&sid=4&fid=1
Coal firms sue Missouri utility over garnishments – Five firms, workers union say pressure to collect $25M forced mine into bankruptcy (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_9893601
News Release – J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Satisfaction with Electric Utility Companies Increases despite Volatile Energy Prices and Sluggish Economy “…Clark Public Utilities leads among midsize utility companies in the West region, followed by Colorado Springs Utilities and Tacoma Power…” (PR Newswire, via CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/200807170915PR_NEWS_USPR_____LATH047.htm
Owl causes power outage in Shoreline (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370980_citylight17.html?source=rss
CALIFORNIA – Nuclear plants, offshore drilling gain support (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/17/MN0511QA3H.DTL&feed=rss.business
News Release – FERC Okays California ISO's First Step in Clearing Backlog of Renewable Energy Power Plant Requests to Hook Up to Grid (California ISO)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080715/20080715006473.html?.v=1
NORTH CAROLINA – Environmentalists sue Duke Energy (Charlotte Business Journal, NC)
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/07/14/daily37.html?ana=from_rss
MASSACHUSETTS – Utility’s "decoupling" designed to save energy – The state has issued an order to begin the process of separating rates from sales volume for all electric and natural gas distribution utilities (The Associated Press, via the Boston Herald, MA)
http://news.bostonherald.com/business/general/view/2008_07_16_Mass__utility__decoupling__designed_to_save_energy/srvc=home&position=recent
WEST VIRGINIA – Eastern Panhandle needs more electric power, experts say at energy forum (The Herald-Mail, WV)
http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=198842&format=html
News Release – Keep Metallic Balloons Away From Power Lines – Mylar balloons cause power outages to nearly 20,000 ComEd customers in 2008 (Commonwealth Edison, via PR Newswire)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080717/aqth070.html?.v=50
FISH & WILDLIFE
OREGON – Klamath River Dam Debate Gets Murkier (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2607-klamath-river-dam-debate-gets-murkier/
ROGUE RIVER – Blasting begins of Oregon dam that hampered salmon (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/371002_dam17.html?source=rss
Save salmon by eating it, shoppers told – New Seasons campaign aims to protect Alaska’s threatened fishery (The Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=121607440420503100
Salmon in sneakers? Salmon-Safe is latest green emblem (The Oregonian, Portland OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215642324118530.xml&coll=7
CALIFORNIA – Lost Harvest: On land and at sea, two men grapple with a cursed summer (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9905961?nclick_check=1
ALASKA – Dipping for red gold – Anchorage woman looks to fill her freezer with 75 red salmon (Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/fishing/story/466990.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Visitors urged to avoid oil in Diablo Lake – Boaters are being warned to steer clear of oil slicks in Diablo Lake following a leak of PCBs from Ross Dam (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/371060_pcb17.html
Growing controversy over Haven Lake near Belfair (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_071608ENB_lake_poisoning_SW.60df7ecc.html?npc
Sewer Design Unveiling Part of Hood Canal Celebration – Mason County will host a Healthy Hood Canal Celebration on July 19 (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/16/sewer-design-unveiling-part-hood-canal-celebration/
Port Townsend Leader Opinion – Apparently no end to poisonous lakes – It now appears to be routine that our lakes are closed to most forms of recreation because of potentially toxic blue-green algae blooms (Port Townsend, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/Main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSectionID=35&ArticleID=21395
Study: Future snowmelt in West twice as early as expected; threatens ecosystems and water reserves (Physorg)
http://www.physorg.com/news135357885.html
A history of the quest to find water on Mars (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/16/MN0M11Q5E7.DTL&feed=rss.news
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
OREGON – Shadow falls on sun power – PacificCorp’s petition darkens outlook for Oregon’s nascent solar industry (The Portland Tribune)
http://portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=121607457160690500
Gore sets energy goal for next president – He is challenging the nation to produce every kilowatt of electricity through wind, sun and other Earth-friendly energy sources within 10 years (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2008-07-17-energy_N.htm?csp=34
CONSERVATION
Waste Management launches CFL recycling program (Houston Business Journal, TX)
http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2008/07/14/daily29.html?ana=from_rss
Montana Public Service Commission evaluating Northwestern Energy programs (KPAX-TV, Missoula, MT)
http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/global/story.asp?s=8688419
Seattle Times Op/Ed – Efficiency will help Northwest thrive in a carbon-constrained world (Seattle, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2008055277_craigop17.html?syndication=rss
ALASKA – Turning the Power Back on in Juneau (The Associated Press, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/us/17briefs-TURNINGTHEPO_BRF.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Strategy 101 for greenhouse-gas deniers – Using doubt to compete with a scientific body of fact (Grist Online)
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/7/14/15314/9459
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Audit finds Oregon's new $64 million data center lacking – It isn't saving money, increasing security, or managing state agencies' computer operations more efficiently (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1216266909190370.xml&coll=7
Lynnwood OKs fiber-optic TV from Verizon (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080717/BIZ/45598568/-1/rss03
OREGON – Limited free WiFi returns to downtown Portland (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/14/daily25.html?ana=from_rss
Congress asks about firm selling data on Web users – part of growing concern about Internet privacy. (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/17/BUKE11Q7D9.DTL&feed=rss.business
Start-up thinks 'thin client' can span digital divide – Ncomputing Links Many Workstations to 1 Computer (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9906113?source=rss
Little Interest in Buying AOL as the Unit Is Shopped Again (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/technology/17soft.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Qwest: Things Are Just So Darn Competitive, We Must Raise Prices – Lawyers pushing hard to eliminate price controls, grandfathered linesharing (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Qwest-Things-Are-Just-So-Darn-Competitive-We-Must-Raise-Prices-96183
How Realistic Is BT’s Fiber Broadband Plan? (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/15/how-realistic-is-bts-fiber-broadband-plan/
GENERAL NEWS
State lands chief says he’s sorry – Sutherland violated harassment policy (The Associated Press, via the News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/414816.html
Moving Too Fast to Drive 55 “…you might have thought an idea that could cut people’s gasoline costs by 15 percent or more as soon as they pulled out of the lot might have some appeal….” (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/nyregion/17towns.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Wireless microphones flap causing static (The Associated Press, via the San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9905919?source=rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Boy Checks Drivers' Speed With Toy Radar Gun
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16910773/detail.html
Woman Finds Python In Washing Machine – Load Of Laundry Turns Into Much More
http://www.kirotv.com/family/16909388/detail.html
Nightmare food: Lifelike dolls repel and attract
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080717/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_dolls_reborn;_ylt=AofKWXT8ZsBSw1btSVGMIXrtiBIF
South Korea's new high tech product: cloned dogs
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080717/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_korea_clones_dogs_life;_ylt=AujnugQWcVzhrM9VSlc820jtiBIF
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- What would it cost Jefferson County PUD to get into power business?
- Proposed Whidbey Island Public Utility District seeks commissioners
- OREGON – Natural gas price increases could chill budgets
- OHIO – Vectren lobbies Congress over rising energy costs
- OREGON – Eugene Water & Electric Board sees rise in rates in future
- Coal firms sue Missouri utility over garnishments
- Satisfaction with Electric Utility Companies Increases – Clark Public Utilities and Tacoma Power leaders in the West
- Owl causes power outage in Shoreline
- CALIFORNIA – Nuclear plants, offshore drilling gain support
- FERC Okays California ISO's First Step in Clearing Backlog of Renewable Energy Power Plant Requests
- NORTH CAROLINA – Environmentalists sue Duke Energy
- MASSACHUSETTS – Utility’s "decoupling" designed to save energy
- WEST VIRGINIA – Eastern Panhandle needs more electric power
- News Release – Keep Metallic Balloons Away From Power Lines
- OREGON – Klamath River Dam Debate Gets Murkier
- ROGUE RIVER – Blasting begins of Oregon dam that hampered salmon
- Save salmon by eating it, shoppers told
- Salmon in sneakers? Salmon-Safe is latest green emblem
- CALIFORNIA – Lost Harvest: On land and at sea
- ALASKA – Dipping for red gold “here fishy, fishy!”
- Visitors urged to avoid oil in Diablo Lake
- Growing controversy over Haven Lake near Belfair
- Sewer Design Unveiling Part of Hood Canal Celebration
- Port Townsend Leader Opinion – Apparently no end to poisonous lakes
- Study: Future snowmelt in West twice as early as expected
- A history of the quest to find water on Mars
- OREGON – Shadow falls on sun power
- Gore sets energy goal for next president
- Waste Management launches CFL recycling program
- Montana Public Service Commission evaluating Northwestern Energy programs
- Seattle Times – Efficiency will help Northwest thrive in a carbon-constrained world
- ALASKA – Turning the Power Back on in Juneau
- Strategy 101 for greenhouse-gas deniers
- Audit finds Oregon's new $64 million data center lacking
- Lynnwood OKs fiber-optic TV from Verizon
- OREGON – Limited free WiFi returns to downtown Portland
- Congress asks about firm selling data on Web users
- Start-up thinks 'thin client' can span digital divide
- Little Interest in Buying AOL as the Unit Is Shopped Again
- Qwest: Things Are Just So Darn Competitive, We Must Raise Prices
- How Realistic Is BT’s Fiber Broadband Plan?
- State lands chief says he’s sorry
- Moving Too Fast to Drive 55
- Wireless microphones flap causing static
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Superannuated • \soo-per-AN-yuh-wait-tud\ • adjective – 1: outmoded, old-fashioned 2a: incapacitated or disqualified for active duty by advanced age *b: older than the typical member of a specified group
Sam’s superannuated hearse rolled silently to the curb in front of the PUD building, its size reminiscent of an impressive luxury yacht warping into port. Passersby stopped and stared as the two Toyota Yaris tugboats eased the huge, vintage vehicle into its two parking spots.
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
What would it cost Jefferson County PUD to get into power business? Try at least $30 million (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080717/NEWS/807170309
Proposed Whidbey Island Public Utility District seeks commissioners (The Whidbey Examiner, Coupeville, WA)
http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=97249725369769959
OREGON – Natural gas price increases could chill budgets – PUC briefing says customers might see hikes of between 15 percent and 40 percent (Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121616606620737100
OHIO – Vectren lobbies Congress over rising energy costs – Soaring temperatures this summer could lead to rising heating costs this winter (Dayton Business Journal, OH)
http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2008/07/14/daily21.html?ana=from_rss
OREGON – Eugene Water & Electric Board sees rise in rates in future – Commissioners gazed into a 10-year crystal ball on Tuesday night and saw a decade of steady rate increases for water and electricity (The Register-Guard, Eugene, OR)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=124227&sid=4&fid=1
Coal firms sue Missouri utility over garnishments – Five firms, workers union say pressure to collect $25M forced mine into bankruptcy (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)
http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_9893601
News Release – J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Satisfaction with Electric Utility Companies Increases despite Volatile Energy Prices and Sluggish Economy “…Clark Public Utilities leads among midsize utility companies in the West region, followed by Colorado Springs Utilities and Tacoma Power…” (PR Newswire, via CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/200807170915PR_NEWS_USPR_____LATH047.htm
Owl causes power outage in Shoreline (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370980_citylight17.html?source=rss
CALIFORNIA – Nuclear plants, offshore drilling gain support (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/17/MN0511QA3H.DTL&feed=rss.business
News Release – FERC Okays California ISO's First Step in Clearing Backlog of Renewable Energy Power Plant Requests to Hook Up to Grid (California ISO)
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080715/20080715006473.html?.v=1
NORTH CAROLINA – Environmentalists sue Duke Energy (Charlotte Business Journal, NC)
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/07/14/daily37.html?ana=from_rss
MASSACHUSETTS – Utility’s "decoupling" designed to save energy – The state has issued an order to begin the process of separating rates from sales volume for all electric and natural gas distribution utilities (The Associated Press, via the Boston Herald, MA)
http://news.bostonherald.com/business/general/view/2008_07_16_Mass__utility__decoupling__designed_to_save_energy/srvc=home&position=recent
WEST VIRGINIA – Eastern Panhandle needs more electric power, experts say at energy forum (The Herald-Mail, WV)
http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=198842&format=html
News Release – Keep Metallic Balloons Away From Power Lines – Mylar balloons cause power outages to nearly 20,000 ComEd customers in 2008 (Commonwealth Edison, via PR Newswire)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080717/aqth070.html?.v=50
FISH & WILDLIFE
OREGON – Klamath River Dam Debate Gets Murkier (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2607-klamath-river-dam-debate-gets-murkier/
ROGUE RIVER – Blasting begins of Oregon dam that hampered salmon (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/371002_dam17.html?source=rss
Save salmon by eating it, shoppers told – New Seasons campaign aims to protect Alaska’s threatened fishery (The Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=121607440420503100
Salmon in sneakers? Salmon-Safe is latest green emblem (The Oregonian, Portland OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1215642324118530.xml&coll=7
CALIFORNIA – Lost Harvest: On land and at sea, two men grapple with a cursed summer (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9905961?nclick_check=1
ALASKA – Dipping for red gold – Anchorage woman looks to fill her freezer with 75 red salmon (Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/fishing/story/466990.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Visitors urged to avoid oil in Diablo Lake – Boaters are being warned to steer clear of oil slicks in Diablo Lake following a leak of PCBs from Ross Dam (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/371060_pcb17.html
Growing controversy over Haven Lake near Belfair (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_071608ENB_lake_poisoning_SW.60df7ecc.html?npc
Sewer Design Unveiling Part of Hood Canal Celebration – Mason County will host a Healthy Hood Canal Celebration on July 19 (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/16/sewer-design-unveiling-part-hood-canal-celebration/
Port Townsend Leader Opinion – Apparently no end to poisonous lakes – It now appears to be routine that our lakes are closed to most forms of recreation because of potentially toxic blue-green algae blooms (Port Townsend, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/Main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSectionID=35&ArticleID=21395
Study: Future snowmelt in West twice as early as expected; threatens ecosystems and water reserves (Physorg)
http://www.physorg.com/news135357885.html
A history of the quest to find water on Mars (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/16/MN0M11Q5E7.DTL&feed=rss.news
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
OREGON – Shadow falls on sun power – PacificCorp’s petition darkens outlook for Oregon’s nascent solar industry (The Portland Tribune)
http://portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=121607457160690500
Gore sets energy goal for next president – He is challenging the nation to produce every kilowatt of electricity through wind, sun and other Earth-friendly energy sources within 10 years (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2008-07-17-energy_N.htm?csp=34
CONSERVATION
Waste Management launches CFL recycling program (Houston Business Journal, TX)
http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2008/07/14/daily29.html?ana=from_rss
Montana Public Service Commission evaluating Northwestern Energy programs (KPAX-TV, Missoula, MT)
http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/global/story.asp?s=8688419
Seattle Times Op/Ed – Efficiency will help Northwest thrive in a carbon-constrained world (Seattle, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2008055277_craigop17.html?syndication=rss
ALASKA – Turning the Power Back on in Juneau (The Associated Press, via the NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/us/17briefs-TURNINGTHEPO_BRF.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Strategy 101 for greenhouse-gas deniers – Using doubt to compete with a scientific body of fact (Grist Online)
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/7/14/15314/9459
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Audit finds Oregon's new $64 million data center lacking – It isn't saving money, increasing security, or managing state agencies' computer operations more efficiently (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1216266909190370.xml&coll=7
Lynnwood OKs fiber-optic TV from Verizon (The Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080717/BIZ/45598568/-1/rss03
OREGON – Limited free WiFi returns to downtown Portland (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/07/14/daily25.html?ana=from_rss
Congress asks about firm selling data on Web users – part of growing concern about Internet privacy. (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/17/BUKE11Q7D9.DTL&feed=rss.business
Start-up thinks 'thin client' can span digital divide – Ncomputing Links Many Workstations to 1 Computer (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9906113?source=rss
Little Interest in Buying AOL as the Unit Is Shopped Again (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/technology/17soft.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Qwest: Things Are Just So Darn Competitive, We Must Raise Prices – Lawyers pushing hard to eliminate price controls, grandfathered linesharing (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Qwest-Things-Are-Just-So-Darn-Competitive-We-Must-Raise-Prices-96183
How Realistic Is BT’s Fiber Broadband Plan? (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/07/15/how-realistic-is-bts-fiber-broadband-plan/
GENERAL NEWS
State lands chief says he’s sorry – Sutherland violated harassment policy (The Associated Press, via the News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/414816.html
Moving Too Fast to Drive 55 “…you might have thought an idea that could cut people’s gasoline costs by 15 percent or more as soon as they pulled out of the lot might have some appeal….” (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/nyregion/17towns.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Wireless microphones flap causing static (The Associated Press, via the San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9905919?source=rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Boy Checks Drivers' Speed With Toy Radar Gun
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16910773/detail.html
Woman Finds Python In Washing Machine – Load Of Laundry Turns Into Much More
http://www.kirotv.com/family/16909388/detail.html
Nightmare food: Lifelike dolls repel and attract
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080717/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_dolls_reborn;_ylt=AofKWXT8ZsBSw1btSVGMIXrtiBIF
South Korea's new high tech product: cloned dogs
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080717/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_korea_clones_dogs_life;_ylt=AujnugQWcVzhrM9VSlc820jtiBIF
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 16, 2008
All the links in today’s news digest lead to current stories. Please note that some media organizations update their web sites regularly, which may result in broken links in the future.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Oregon Natural Gas Prices Expected To Skyrocket This Winter
- FERC removes Bradwood LNG project from Thursday agenda
- Avista takes precautionary measures due to dry weather
- Whatcom County PUD to investigate PSE purchase
- Wrongful death lawsuit against Tacoma reinstated over utility flagging
- Total nuke dump cost to top $90 billion
- North Carolina scuffles with Tennessee Valley Authority over coal plant pollution control
- AUSTRALIA – Electricity workers strike over pay
- Iraq: Not up to (electrical) code
- Congressional Research Service – The Enron Loophole
- Bill allows only sterile fish in North Cascades
- CALIFORNIA – Funding set for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project
- Pigeon lover pleads guilty to killing falcon
- Funding for Columbia Basin water projects in Senate bill
- Olympia Report calls for water rate jump
- The Southwest desert's solar power real estate boom
- Solar industry's challenge is to lower cost
- MONTANA – Wind 'rights' on the rise in hot spots
- New York wind farm deals under investigation
- University of Missouri experts help Mo. town become first in nation to run on wind energy
- High Corn Prices Cast Shadow Over Ethanol Plants
- AUSTRALIA – Catching the wave of renewable energy
- OHIO – City urges electricity conservation for fear of blackouts
- RHODE ISLAND – National Grid plans to invest $32 million in conservation
- KENTUCKY – Berea utilities rate hike could save money and promote conservation
- EPA unveils first rules on carbon dioxide storage
- P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – Gingrich spreads blame on global warming
- Canadian premiers agree to disagree on climate change
- Climate Change Could Mean Rise in Kidney Stones
- Congressional Research Service – Forest Carbon Markets: Potential and Drawbacks
- Mercury News Staff Columnist – FCC chair strikes chord with push for open Internet
- Don't Fear The Bandwidth Apocalypse
- UNITED KINGDOM – British Telecom Rolls Out a Massive Fiber Network
- Alert Mason County Corrections Officers And Inmates Save Life
- Utility pole repair underway – Alternating Traffic on Highway 3
- Mason County Burn Ban Goes Into Effect Thursday Morning
- Exxon decries paying interest charges on $507M punitive damages related to oil spill
- Dog's car death leads to warning
- Classic scam costs Mukilteo woman $60,000
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Belvedere • \BEL-vuh-deer\ • noun – A structure (as a cupola or a summerhouse) designed to command a view
To those familiar with the original, and the tepid made-for-TV copy, Mr. Belvedere was anything but…
Word Origin, from Merriam-Webster – It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder -- and someone with a belvedere will likely have a great deal of beauty to behold. Given the origins of the word, "belvedere" is the ideal term for a building (or part of a building) with a view; it derives from two Italian words, "bel," which means "beautiful," and "vedere," which means "view." The term has been used in English since at least 1593.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Oregon Natural Gas Prices Expected To Skyrocket This Winter (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2600-natural-gas-prices-expected-skyrocket-winter/
FERC removes Bradwood LNG project from Thursday agenda “…the commission will hold off while it reviews letters and comments citizens, government agencies and lawmakers…” (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/16//area_news/doc487cef2f2a96d493420866.txt
Avista takes precautionary measures due to dry weather (KHQ-TV, Spokane, via MSNBC)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25677613/
Whatcom County PUD to investigate PSE purchase (The Lynden Tribune, WA)
http://www.lyndentribune.com/node/3158
Wrongful death lawsuit against Tacoma reinstated – Suit filed against the City of Tacoma by a woman whose husband died after crashing his motorcycle into a car stopped by a flagger working for Tacoma Power (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/413656.html
Total nuke dump cost to top $90 billion – Turns out, it's going to cost taxpayers $32 billion more than first thought to open and operate the nation's first nuclear waste dump (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008052350_apyuccamountain.html?syndication=rss
North Carolina scuffles with Tennessee Valley Authority over coal plant pollution control testimony (The Tennessean, Nashville, TN)
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/NEWS0201/807150349/1009/news09
AUSTRALIA – Electricity workers strike over pay – Queensland electricity workers have begun a 48-hour strike and launched an advertising campaign in their bid for better pay (The Age, Australia)
http://news.theage.com.au/national/electricity-workers-strike-over-pay-20080716-3fs3.html
Iraq: Not up to (electrical) code (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07152008_Iraq-Not-up-to-code.cfm?newsletter=2
Congressional Research Service – The Enron Loophole
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RS22912
FISH & WILDLIFE
Bill allows only sterile fish in North Cascades (The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/NEWS04/545992697
CALIFORNIA – Funding set for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project, among the largest cold water anadromous fish restoration efforts in North America (Red Bluff Daily News, CA)
http://www.redbluffdailynews.com/news/ci_9898307
Pigeon lover pleads guilty to killing falcon – Kelso man is 12th prosecuted in bird club investigation (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370963_falcon16.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Funding for Columbia Basin water projects in Senate bill (The Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/15/news/news04.txt
Olympia Report calls for water rate jump (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/508038.html
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
The Southwest desert's real estate boom – From California to Arizona, demand for sites for solar power projects has ignited a land grab (Fortune Magazine, via CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/07/technology/woody_solar.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008071104
Solar industry's challenge is to lower cost – The solar power industry - in California and worldwide - is growing fast. Now, it needs to focus on price. (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/16/BUII11PLV8.DTL&feed=rss.business
MONTANA – Wind 'rights' on the rise in hot spots (The Billings Gazette, via the Missoulian)
http://missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/16/business/biz69.txt
New York wind farm deals under investigation “…did they improperly seek or obtain land-use agreements with citizens and public officials; whether improper benefits were given to public officials to influence their actions, and whether they entered into anti-competitive agreements or practices…” (Business First of Buffalo, NY)
http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/07/14/daily16.html?ana=from_rss
University of Missouri experts help Mo. town become first in nation to run on wind energy (St. Louis Business Journal, MO)
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2008/07/14/daily26.html?ana=from_rss
High Corn Prices Cast Shadow Over Ethanol Plants (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92559699&ft=1&f=1001
AUSTRALIA – Catching the wave of renewable energy (The Canberra Times, Australia)
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/catching-the-wave-of-renewable-energy/812013.aspx
CONSERVATION
OHIO – City urges electricity conservation for fear of blackouts (Middletown Journal, OH)
http://www.middletownjournal.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2008/07/15/hjn071608electric.html
RHODE ISLAND – National Grid plans to invest $32 million in conservation (The Providence Journal, RI)
http://www.projo.com/news/content/energy_report_07-16-08_CKASDC4_v14.3e850c3.html
KENTUCKY – Berea utilities rate hike could save money and promote conservation (Richmond Register, KY)
http://www.richmondregister.com/localnews/local_story_198082637.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
EPA unveils first rules on carbon dioxide storage (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/07/15/national/w111858D66.DTL&feed=rss.news
P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – Gingrich spreads blame on global warming - He has taken a contentious plague-on-both- your-parties stand in debate over how to put the brakes on global warming (Seattle, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/370939_joel16.html?source=rss
Canadian premiers agree to disagree on climate change (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=1864a212-cf12-4590-adc9-5fe0ff39b480
Climate Change Could Mean Rise in Kidney Stones (Finding Dulcinea)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/health/July-August-08/Rising-Temperatures-Could-Mean-Rise-in-Kidney-Stones.html
Congressional Research Service – Forest Carbon Markets: Potential and Drawbacks
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL34560
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Mercury News Staff Columnist Chris O'Brien – FCC chair strikes chord with push for open Internet (San Jose, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9895967?source=rss
Don't Fear The Bandwidth Apocalypse – Cable industry lobbies the FCC with some epic distortions (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Dont-Fear-The-Bandwidth-Apocalypse-96115
UNITED KINGDOM – British Telecom Rolls Out a Massive Fiber Network – The telecom giant announced a network investment expected to connect as many as 10 million homes to the superfast broadband service by 2012 (BusinessWeek Magazine)
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2008/gb20080715_837495.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
GENERAL NEWS
Alert Mason County Corrections Officers And Inmates Save Life (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/541/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Utility pole repair underway – Alternating Traffic on Highway 3 at Deer Creek (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/540/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Burn Ban Goes Into Effect Thursday Morning (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/543/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Exxon decries paying interest charges on $507M punitive damages related to Valdez’ Alaska oil spill (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008053889_exxon16m.html?syndication=rss
Dog's car death leads to warning (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080715/NEWS/807150305
Classic scam costs Mukilteo woman $60,000 (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008053896_scam16m0.html?syndication=rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Candidate speaks out on raw vegan chocolate mousse issue
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/olympiadispatch/story/240316.html
Officer's Squad Car Wrecked 29 Minutes Into Job
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16900379/detail.html
Batmobile Changes Through Cool History - Check Out Dark Knight's Ride Through The Years
http://www.kirotv.com/automotive/16781638/detail.html
‘M’m! M’m! Good!’ to get it back: Pseudo soup can with jewelry returned to owner
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07162008_Mm-Mm-Good-to-get-it-back-Pseudo-soup-can-with-jewelry-returned-to-owner.cfm?newsletter=2
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- Oregon Natural Gas Prices Expected To Skyrocket This Winter
- FERC removes Bradwood LNG project from Thursday agenda
- Avista takes precautionary measures due to dry weather
- Whatcom County PUD to investigate PSE purchase
- Wrongful death lawsuit against Tacoma reinstated over utility flagging
- Total nuke dump cost to top $90 billion
- North Carolina scuffles with Tennessee Valley Authority over coal plant pollution control
- AUSTRALIA – Electricity workers strike over pay
- Iraq: Not up to (electrical) code
- Congressional Research Service – The Enron Loophole
- Bill allows only sterile fish in North Cascades
- CALIFORNIA – Funding set for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project
- Pigeon lover pleads guilty to killing falcon
- Funding for Columbia Basin water projects in Senate bill
- Olympia Report calls for water rate jump
- The Southwest desert's solar power real estate boom
- Solar industry's challenge is to lower cost
- MONTANA – Wind 'rights' on the rise in hot spots
- New York wind farm deals under investigation
- University of Missouri experts help Mo. town become first in nation to run on wind energy
- High Corn Prices Cast Shadow Over Ethanol Plants
- AUSTRALIA – Catching the wave of renewable energy
- OHIO – City urges electricity conservation for fear of blackouts
- RHODE ISLAND – National Grid plans to invest $32 million in conservation
- KENTUCKY – Berea utilities rate hike could save money and promote conservation
- EPA unveils first rules on carbon dioxide storage
- P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – Gingrich spreads blame on global warming
- Canadian premiers agree to disagree on climate change
- Climate Change Could Mean Rise in Kidney Stones
- Congressional Research Service – Forest Carbon Markets: Potential and Drawbacks
- Mercury News Staff Columnist – FCC chair strikes chord with push for open Internet
- Don't Fear The Bandwidth Apocalypse
- UNITED KINGDOM – British Telecom Rolls Out a Massive Fiber Network
- Alert Mason County Corrections Officers And Inmates Save Life
- Utility pole repair underway – Alternating Traffic on Highway 3
- Mason County Burn Ban Goes Into Effect Thursday Morning
- Exxon decries paying interest charges on $507M punitive damages related to oil spill
- Dog's car death leads to warning
- Classic scam costs Mukilteo woman $60,000
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Belvedere • \BEL-vuh-deer\ • noun – A structure (as a cupola or a summerhouse) designed to command a view
To those familiar with the original, and the tepid made-for-TV copy, Mr. Belvedere was anything but…
Word Origin, from Merriam-Webster – It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder -- and someone with a belvedere will likely have a great deal of beauty to behold. Given the origins of the word, "belvedere" is the ideal term for a building (or part of a building) with a view; it derives from two Italian words, "bel," which means "beautiful," and "vedere," which means "view." The term has been used in English since at least 1593.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
Oregon Natural Gas Prices Expected To Skyrocket This Winter (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/2600-natural-gas-prices-expected-skyrocket-winter/
FERC removes Bradwood LNG project from Thursday agenda “…the commission will hold off while it reviews letters and comments citizens, government agencies and lawmakers…” (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/16//area_news/doc487cef2f2a96d493420866.txt
Avista takes precautionary measures due to dry weather (KHQ-TV, Spokane, via MSNBC)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25677613/
Whatcom County PUD to investigate PSE purchase (The Lynden Tribune, WA)
http://www.lyndentribune.com/node/3158
Wrongful death lawsuit against Tacoma reinstated – Suit filed against the City of Tacoma by a woman whose husband died after crashing his motorcycle into a car stopped by a flagger working for Tacoma Power (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/413656.html
Total nuke dump cost to top $90 billion – Turns out, it's going to cost taxpayers $32 billion more than first thought to open and operate the nation's first nuclear waste dump (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008052350_apyuccamountain.html?syndication=rss
North Carolina scuffles with Tennessee Valley Authority over coal plant pollution control testimony (The Tennessean, Nashville, TN)
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/NEWS0201/807150349/1009/news09
AUSTRALIA – Electricity workers strike over pay – Queensland electricity workers have begun a 48-hour strike and launched an advertising campaign in their bid for better pay (The Age, Australia)
http://news.theage.com.au/national/electricity-workers-strike-over-pay-20080716-3fs3.html
Iraq: Not up to (electrical) code (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07152008_Iraq-Not-up-to-code.cfm?newsletter=2
Congressional Research Service – The Enron Loophole
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RS22912
FISH & WILDLIFE
Bill allows only sterile fish in North Cascades (The Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/NEWS04/545992697
CALIFORNIA – Funding set for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project, among the largest cold water anadromous fish restoration efforts in North America (Red Bluff Daily News, CA)
http://www.redbluffdailynews.com/news/ci_9898307
Pigeon lover pleads guilty to killing falcon – Kelso man is 12th prosecuted in bird club investigation (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370963_falcon16.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Funding for Columbia Basin water projects in Senate bill (The Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/15/news/news04.txt
Olympia Report calls for water rate jump (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/508038.html
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
The Southwest desert's real estate boom – From California to Arizona, demand for sites for solar power projects has ignited a land grab (Fortune Magazine, via CNN Money)
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/07/technology/woody_solar.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008071104
Solar industry's challenge is to lower cost – The solar power industry - in California and worldwide - is growing fast. Now, it needs to focus on price. (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/16/BUII11PLV8.DTL&feed=rss.business
MONTANA – Wind 'rights' on the rise in hot spots (The Billings Gazette, via the Missoulian)
http://missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/16/business/biz69.txt
New York wind farm deals under investigation “…did they improperly seek or obtain land-use agreements with citizens and public officials; whether improper benefits were given to public officials to influence their actions, and whether they entered into anti-competitive agreements or practices…” (Business First of Buffalo, NY)
http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/07/14/daily16.html?ana=from_rss
University of Missouri experts help Mo. town become first in nation to run on wind energy (St. Louis Business Journal, MO)
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2008/07/14/daily26.html?ana=from_rss
High Corn Prices Cast Shadow Over Ethanol Plants (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92559699&ft=1&f=1001
AUSTRALIA – Catching the wave of renewable energy (The Canberra Times, Australia)
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/catching-the-wave-of-renewable-energy/812013.aspx
CONSERVATION
OHIO – City urges electricity conservation for fear of blackouts (Middletown Journal, OH)
http://www.middletownjournal.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2008/07/15/hjn071608electric.html
RHODE ISLAND – National Grid plans to invest $32 million in conservation (The Providence Journal, RI)
http://www.projo.com/news/content/energy_report_07-16-08_CKASDC4_v14.3e850c3.html
KENTUCKY – Berea utilities rate hike could save money and promote conservation (Richmond Register, KY)
http://www.richmondregister.com/localnews/local_story_198082637.html
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
EPA unveils first rules on carbon dioxide storage (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/07/15/national/w111858D66.DTL&feed=rss.news
P-I Columnist Joel Connelly – Gingrich spreads blame on global warming - He has taken a contentious plague-on-both- your-parties stand in debate over how to put the brakes on global warming (Seattle, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/370939_joel16.html?source=rss
Canadian premiers agree to disagree on climate change (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=1864a212-cf12-4590-adc9-5fe0ff39b480
Climate Change Could Mean Rise in Kidney Stones (Finding Dulcinea)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/health/July-August-08/Rising-Temperatures-Could-Mean-Rise-in-Kidney-Stones.html
Congressional Research Service – Forest Carbon Markets: Potential and Drawbacks
http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL34560
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Mercury News Staff Columnist Chris O'Brien – FCC chair strikes chord with push for open Internet (San Jose, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9895967?source=rss
Don't Fear The Bandwidth Apocalypse – Cable industry lobbies the FCC with some epic distortions (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Dont-Fear-The-Bandwidth-Apocalypse-96115
UNITED KINGDOM – British Telecom Rolls Out a Massive Fiber Network – The telecom giant announced a network investment expected to connect as many as 10 million homes to the superfast broadband service by 2012 (BusinessWeek Magazine)
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2008/gb20080715_837495.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
GENERAL NEWS
Alert Mason County Corrections Officers And Inmates Save Life (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/541/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Utility pole repair underway – Alternating Traffic on Highway 3 at Deer Creek (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/540/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Burn Ban Goes Into Effect Thursday Morning (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/543/reftab/1896/Default.aspx
Exxon decries paying interest charges on $507M punitive damages related to Valdez’ Alaska oil spill (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008053889_exxon16m.html?syndication=rss
Dog's car death leads to warning (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080715/NEWS/807150305
Classic scam costs Mukilteo woman $60,000 (The Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008053896_scam16m0.html?syndication=rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Candidate speaks out on raw vegan chocolate mousse issue
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/olympiadispatch/story/240316.html
Officer's Squad Car Wrecked 29 Minutes Into Job
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16900379/detail.html
Batmobile Changes Through Cool History - Check Out Dark Knight's Ride Through The Years
http://www.kirotv.com/automotive/16781638/detail.html
‘M’m! M’m! Good!’ to get it back: Pseudo soup can with jewelry returned to owner
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07162008_Mm-Mm-Good-to-get-it-back-Pseudo-soup-can-with-jewelry-returned-to-owner.cfm?newsletter=2
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 15, 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)
- News Release – Alcoa Reaches New Renewable Power Deal for Wenatchee Smelter
- Whatcom County Public Utility District to study power expansion
- CONNECTICUT – Soon, Electric Heat Could Be Cheaper Than Oil
- The Daily News Opinion – Yucca Mountain stalling only delays inevitable nuclear power push
- The Register Guard Op/Ed – Nuclear power still not safe
- Underground fire leaves Vancouver, B.C. in the dark
- For substation maintenance – One-day outage to put Steilacoom in the dark
- Clallam County PUD commissioners get raises
- News Release – New Kentucky Law Helps Police Stem Metal Thefts
- OREGON – Blasting of Elk Creek Dam on Rogue River will begin
- Offshore Drilling Moratorium Little Effect in NW
- Victoria sewage raising a stink on San Juans
- Mason County’s Haven Lake – North Mason Lake Due for Chemical Treatment
- Seattle man helps get clean water for developing countries
- CALIFORNIA – State rebates lead more people to go solar
- US Constellation unit works to tame wily wind power
- "Anaconda" Could Provide up to 20 MW of Wave Energy
- Home energy audit can help curb waste
- Ocean could be place to store fossil fuel mess
- Unusual Litmus Test – Green Speed Dating: Finding Carbon-Neutral Love
- Grant County PUD – Titan Building voices concern over dark fiber
- NORTH CAROLINA – Isolated N.C. County Gets Wired
- VERMONT – Fairpoint insists DSL Expansion on Track
- Pensioners battle Qwest over insurance benefit
- Microsoft deal spurned, outraged Icahn refocuses on ousting Yahoo board
- Allyn Man Injured in Skagit Construction Accident Dies
- Permit Reality Check Puts a Halt to Belfair Fantasy Faire
- Wildfire near Mount Adams unfurls eruption like smoke plume
- Starbucks announces first wave of closings; none in Washington
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Indurate • \IN-duh-rut\ • adjective – Physically or morally hardened
After weeks of working under the tutelage of a cane-wielding taskmaster of the Shady Lane Energy Trading Company, Bartholomew’s moral compass had hardened into an indurate, reptilian shell. Even the wailing stories of poor “Grandma Millie” failed to shake his new personae.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
News Release – Alcoa Reaches New Renewable Power Deal for Wenatchee, WA Smelter (BusinessWire – It’s nice to know that hydropower is considered renewable somewhere on this planet!)
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080715005215&newsLang=en
Whatcom County Public Utility District to study power expansion – The PUD has decided to take a serious look at enlarging its role in providing electric service (The Bellingham Herald, WA)
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/102/story/467506.html
CONNECTICUT – Soon, Electric Heat Could Be Cheaper Than Oil (The Hartford Courant. CT)
http://www.courant.com/business/custom/consumer/hc-heating0715.artjul15,0,425737.story
The Daily News Opinion – Yucca Mountain stalling only delays inevitable nuclear power push (Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/15/editorial/doc487bd23399ca7163372651.txt
The Register Guard Op/Ed – Nuclear power still not safe (Eugene, OR)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=123987&sid=5&fid=1
Underground fire leaves Vancouver, B.C. in the dark (The Associated Press, via MyNorthwest.com)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=73506
For substation maintenance – One-day outage to put Steilacoom in the dark (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/412499.html
Clallam County PUD commissioners get raises (KONP Radio, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.konp.com/local/3817
News Release – New Kentucky Law Helps Police Stem Metal Thefts – Metal Thefts Can Cause Dangerous Phone and Electric Outages, Potential for Electrocution (PR Newswire)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080715/aqtu533.html?.v=13
FISH & WILDLIFE
OREGON – Blasting of Elk Creek Dam will begin – Only a third complete, the dam on a branch of the Rogue River will be ripped apart to let Coho salmon go upstream (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1216092310156540.xml&coll=7
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Offshore Drilling Moratorium Little Effect in NW (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=4092
Victoria sewage raising a stink on San Juans – Lack of treatment an issue among candidates running for county commission (The Victoria Times Colonist, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=b59d7f7a-13dd-47f4-a49f-62d6b3700eab
Mason County’s Haven Lake – North Mason Lake Due for Chemical Treatment (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/north-mason-lake-due-for-chemical-treatment/
Seattle man helps get clean water for developing countries (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1486986~Man_helps_get_clean_water_for_developing_countries.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
CALIFORNIA – State rebates lead more people to go solar (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/14/BUNL11OVEF.DTL&feed=rss.business
US Constellation unit works to tame wily wind power “…BPA is reviewing the hydropower supply in the Northwest as additional wind generation and rising electric use strains the hydro network…” (Reuters)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N14434878.htm
"Anaconda" Could Provide up to 20 MW of Wave Energy (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53012&src=rss
CONSERVATION
Home energy audit can help curb waste – Process tests for leaks in the heating and cooling system (The News-Leader, Springfield, MO)
http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/LIFE/807150338
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Ocean could be place to store fossil fuel mess – Scientists say a partial solution to global warming may lie beneath the seafloor off the coasts of Washington and Oregon (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008051806_carbonstorage15m.html?syndication=rss
Unusual Litmus Test – Green Speed Dating: Finding Carbon-Neutral Love (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92537810&ft=1&f=3
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Grant County PUD – Titan Building voices concern over dark fiber – Company owning a commercial building wants dark fiber from the PUD to lure new businesses there to complete a multi-tenant data center (The Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/14/news/news02.txt
NORTH CAROLINA – Isolated N.C. County Gets Wired (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92529396
VERMONT – Fairpoint insists DSL Expansion On Track – Sats 75% of Vermont lines DSL ready by year end (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Fairpoint-insists-DSL-Expansion-On-Track-96100
Pensioners battle Qwest over insurance benefit – Seven retirees say a death benefit cut violates federal law and want to make their case a class action (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215840312294140.xml&coll=7
Microsoft deal spurned, outraged Icahn refocuses on ousting Yahoo board (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/07/12/financial/f235136D15.DTL&feed=rss.business
GENERAL NEWS
Allyn Man Injured in Skagit Construction Accident Dies (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/allyn-man-injured-construction-accident-dies/
Permit Reality Check Puts a Halt to Belfair Fantasy Faire (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/permitting-reality-check-puts-a-halt-to-fantasy/
Wildfire near Mount Adams unfurls eruption like smoke plume (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07142008_Wildfire-near-Mount-Adams-unfurls-eruptionlike-smoke-plume.cfm/
Starbucks announces first wave of closings; none in Washington (Puget Sound Business Journal, Seattle, WA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/07/14/daily3.html?ana=from_rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Top 10 hells on earth – Ten worst places to live (or die) – Includes the Seattle Sonics new home, Oklahoma City
http://features.us.reuters.com/destinations/news/03A79076-21FD-11DD-802F-79120433.html
Climate change Karma – 2 tourists drown as chunk of Greenland glacier breaks off
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=9038a438-1016-40e6-8687-2e80e57c5fb8
Amtrak Mooners Forced To Pull Up Pants – 8,000 Revelers Moon Amtrak Trains
http://www.kirotv.com/travelgetaways/16877115/detail.html
Man spent $1,000 a week on beer?
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSSYD22265820080715?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- News Release – Alcoa Reaches New Renewable Power Deal for Wenatchee Smelter
- Whatcom County Public Utility District to study power expansion
- CONNECTICUT – Soon, Electric Heat Could Be Cheaper Than Oil
- The Daily News Opinion – Yucca Mountain stalling only delays inevitable nuclear power push
- The Register Guard Op/Ed – Nuclear power still not safe
- Underground fire leaves Vancouver, B.C. in the dark
- For substation maintenance – One-day outage to put Steilacoom in the dark
- Clallam County PUD commissioners get raises
- News Release – New Kentucky Law Helps Police Stem Metal Thefts
- OREGON – Blasting of Elk Creek Dam on Rogue River will begin
- Offshore Drilling Moratorium Little Effect in NW
- Victoria sewage raising a stink on San Juans
- Mason County’s Haven Lake – North Mason Lake Due for Chemical Treatment
- Seattle man helps get clean water for developing countries
- CALIFORNIA – State rebates lead more people to go solar
- US Constellation unit works to tame wily wind power
- "Anaconda" Could Provide up to 20 MW of Wave Energy
- Home energy audit can help curb waste
- Ocean could be place to store fossil fuel mess
- Unusual Litmus Test – Green Speed Dating: Finding Carbon-Neutral Love
- Grant County PUD – Titan Building voices concern over dark fiber
- NORTH CAROLINA – Isolated N.C. County Gets Wired
- VERMONT – Fairpoint insists DSL Expansion on Track
- Pensioners battle Qwest over insurance benefit
- Microsoft deal spurned, outraged Icahn refocuses on ousting Yahoo board
- Allyn Man Injured in Skagit Construction Accident Dies
- Permit Reality Check Puts a Halt to Belfair Fantasy Faire
- Wildfire near Mount Adams unfurls eruption like smoke plume
- Starbucks announces first wave of closings; none in Washington
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Indurate • \IN-duh-rut\ • adjective – Physically or morally hardened
After weeks of working under the tutelage of a cane-wielding taskmaster of the Shady Lane Energy Trading Company, Bartholomew’s moral compass had hardened into an indurate, reptilian shell. Even the wailing stories of poor “Grandma Millie” failed to shake his new personae.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
News Release – Alcoa Reaches New Renewable Power Deal for Wenatchee, WA Smelter (BusinessWire – It’s nice to know that hydropower is considered renewable somewhere on this planet!)
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080715005215&newsLang=en
Whatcom County Public Utility District to study power expansion – The PUD has decided to take a serious look at enlarging its role in providing electric service (The Bellingham Herald, WA)
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/102/story/467506.html
CONNECTICUT – Soon, Electric Heat Could Be Cheaper Than Oil (The Hartford Courant. CT)
http://www.courant.com/business/custom/consumer/hc-heating0715.artjul15,0,425737.story
The Daily News Opinion – Yucca Mountain stalling only delays inevitable nuclear power push (Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/15/editorial/doc487bd23399ca7163372651.txt
The Register Guard Op/Ed – Nuclear power still not safe (Eugene, OR)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=123987&sid=5&fid=1
Underground fire leaves Vancouver, B.C. in the dark (The Associated Press, via MyNorthwest.com)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=73506
For substation maintenance – One-day outage to put Steilacoom in the dark (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/412499.html
Clallam County PUD commissioners get raises (KONP Radio, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.konp.com/local/3817
News Release – New Kentucky Law Helps Police Stem Metal Thefts – Metal Thefts Can Cause Dangerous Phone and Electric Outages, Potential for Electrocution (PR Newswire)
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080715/aqtu533.html?.v=13
FISH & WILDLIFE
OREGON – Blasting of Elk Creek Dam will begin – Only a third complete, the dam on a branch of the Rogue River will be ripped apart to let Coho salmon go upstream (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1216092310156540.xml&coll=7
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
Offshore Drilling Moratorium Little Effect in NW (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=4092
Victoria sewage raising a stink on San Juans – Lack of treatment an issue among candidates running for county commission (The Victoria Times Colonist, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=b59d7f7a-13dd-47f4-a49f-62d6b3700eab
Mason County’s Haven Lake – North Mason Lake Due for Chemical Treatment (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/north-mason-lake-due-for-chemical-treatment/
Seattle man helps get clean water for developing countries (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1486986~Man_helps_get_clean_water_for_developing_countries.html?cid=rss-Washington_Headlines
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
CALIFORNIA – State rebates lead more people to go solar (The San Francisco Chronicle, CA)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/14/BUNL11OVEF.DTL&feed=rss.business
US Constellation unit works to tame wily wind power “…BPA is reviewing the hydropower supply in the Northwest as additional wind generation and rising electric use strains the hydro network…” (Reuters)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N14434878.htm
"Anaconda" Could Provide up to 20 MW of Wave Energy (Renewable Energy World Online)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=53012&src=rss
CONSERVATION
Home energy audit can help curb waste – Process tests for leaks in the heating and cooling system (The News-Leader, Springfield, MO)
http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/LIFE/807150338
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Ocean could be place to store fossil fuel mess – Scientists say a partial solution to global warming may lie beneath the seafloor off the coasts of Washington and Oregon (The Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008051806_carbonstorage15m.html?syndication=rss
Unusual Litmus Test – Green Speed Dating: Finding Carbon-Neutral Love (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92537810&ft=1&f=3
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Grant County PUD – Titan Building voices concern over dark fiber – Company owning a commercial building wants dark fiber from the PUD to lure new businesses there to complete a multi-tenant data center (The Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/14/news/news02.txt
NORTH CAROLINA – Isolated N.C. County Gets Wired (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92529396
VERMONT – Fairpoint insists DSL Expansion On Track – Sats 75% of Vermont lines DSL ready by year end (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Fairpoint-insists-DSL-Expansion-On-Track-96100
Pensioners battle Qwest over insurance benefit – Seven retirees say a death benefit cut violates federal law and want to make their case a class action (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1215840312294140.xml&coll=7
Microsoft deal spurned, outraged Icahn refocuses on ousting Yahoo board (The Associated Press, via the San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/07/12/financial/f235136D15.DTL&feed=rss.business
GENERAL NEWS
Allyn Man Injured in Skagit Construction Accident Dies (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/allyn-man-injured-construction-accident-dies/
Permit Reality Check Puts a Halt to Belfair Fantasy Faire (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/14/permitting-reality-check-puts-a-halt-to-fantasy/
Wildfire near Mount Adams unfurls eruption like smoke plume (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/07/07142008_Wildfire-near-Mount-Adams-unfurls-eruptionlike-smoke-plume.cfm/
Starbucks announces first wave of closings; none in Washington (Puget Sound Business Journal, Seattle, WA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/07/14/daily3.html?ana=from_rss
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Top 10 hells on earth – Ten worst places to live (or die) – Includes the Seattle Sonics new home, Oklahoma City
http://features.us.reuters.com/destinations/news/03A79076-21FD-11DD-802F-79120433.html
Climate change Karma – 2 tourists drown as chunk of Greenland glacier breaks off
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=9038a438-1016-40e6-8687-2e80e57c5fb8
Amtrak Mooners Forced To Pull Up Pants – 8,000 Revelers Moon Amtrak Trains
http://www.kirotv.com/travelgetaways/16877115/detail.html
Man spent $1,000 a week on beer?
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSSYD22265820080715?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Monday, July 14, 2008
Energy News Digest for July 14, 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)
- In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options
- MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin
- NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case
- Oregon utilities try to offset rising costs
- Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say
- Grant PUD rate hikes on hold
- Idaho Power customers set record for energy use
- Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November
- TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts
- NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar
- ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna
- Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal
- UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt
- Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study
- OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees
- Taylor Shellfish accused of illegally farmed public tidelands
- Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey
- Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen
- NOAA’ Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead
- Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee
- Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea
- What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem?
- A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer
- State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
- Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste
- MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill
- Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone
- SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry
- NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table
- Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives
- Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar
- Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option
- Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke
- Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (?)
- Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors
- How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint
- Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense?
- Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley
- Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon
- CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California
- Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband
- FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning
- Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party
- Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer
- Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load
- Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling
- Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth
- Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near
- Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites
- Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Oracular • \uh-RACK-yuh-lerr\ • adjective –1: of the nature of, resembling, or suggesting an oracle: an oracular response 2: giving forth utterances or decisions as if by special inspiration or authority 3: uttered or delivered as if divinely inspired or infallible; sententious 4: ambiguous; obscure 5: portentous; ominous.
As the shadow of the company’s “Camping Carl” loomed in his office doorway Albert shuddered in anticipation of the two-hour recounting of his friend’s weekend activities. The oracular utterings rang hollow each Monday, as Carl droned on about his hang-gliding, mountain-climbing, high altitude adventures. It didn’t help his cause when Albert realized one day that they lived in the flattest state in the union.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080714/NEWS/807140307
MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin – 10.2 cents per kilowatt hour (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/13/news/local/news03.txt
NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/northwestern_bankruptcy.html?.v=2
Utilities try to offset rising costs – Portland General Electric now figures it needs to raise electricity rates by 14 to 15 percent next year to cover rising energy and operating costs (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310782300.xml&coll=7
Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say – Ratepayer advocates say the utility's proposed 15% increase is based on poor analysis “…PGE offers full-time employees, retired employees and spouses of deceased, retired or regular employees a 25 percent discount…” (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310882300.xml&coll=7
Grant PUD rate hikes on hold – A proposed 6 percent increase for Grant County PUD electrical customers won't happen in 2009 (Columbia Basin Herald, Moss Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/11/news/news02.txt
Idaho Power customers set record for energy use (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1479520~Idaho_Power_customers_set_record_for_energy_use.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines
Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November – Power to the people - private or public? Local voters will get to decide who should supply their electric power (The Whidbey Examiner, Coupeville, WA)
http://www.whidbeyexaminer.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=1550&TM=62995
TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts – Texans often receive high bills from replacement providers “…price per kilowatt-hour went from 11.8 cents with the now-defunct retailer National Power to 31.7 cents…” (The Houston Chronicle, TX)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/biz/5884406.html
NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar – NY's reliance on oil and gas to produce electricity hits power customers hard this summer (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/ny_electricity_rates.html?.v=1
ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna – The $1.75 billion proposal once had a dam but now has a drain (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463307.html
Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal – The Crow tribe in Montana says it has enough coal on its reservation to meet U.S. energy needs for nearly a decade (Finding Dulcinea)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/Americas/July-08/Montana-s-Crow-Nation-Seeks-to-Develop-its-Coal.html
UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt – Customers could be running up arrears because direct debits are set up only to cover predicted bills rather than the final amount (The London Times, UK)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/consumer_affairs/article4321562.ece
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study – An earlier similar request by Oregon's governor went unheeded (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583311382300.xml&coll=7
OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees (The Associated Press)
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i10L4E0TYuAyptf_4G9fFlLm7pygD91T4PF00
FISH & WILDLIFE
Taylor Shellfish illegally farmed public tidelands – Size of penalties awaits survey of encroached area (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370510_geoducks12.html
Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/505441.html
Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen (The Associated Press, via the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07112008news339571.cfm
News Release – NOAA’s Fisheries Service Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080711_willamette.html
Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee, but not at Baker Lake, Lake Washington (Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2008048589_outn13.html
Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea “…The Coast Salish includes… the Squaxin Island Indian Tribe…”(The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/front/topstories/story/411131.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem? (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/12/whats-the-answer-to-hood-canals-oyxgen-problem/
A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-oysters13-2008jul13,0,7294041.story
State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/238625.html
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/370473_runoffed.html?source=rss
Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste – People who hope to get rid of old computers and other electronic waste at a free recycling event this week in Tacoma have no guarantee that the equipment will be disposed of properly (The Olympian, via the News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/411794.html
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill (The Billings Gazette, MT)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/13/news/state/21-landfill.txt
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone (BusinessWire, via MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/pse-wind-facilities-each-reach/story.aspx?guid=%7B5B272D25-0BED-4AD9-BDD7-473393E94509%7D&dist=hppr
SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry – Deal on incentives stalled in Congress (The Times Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, SD)
http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080713/NEWS/807130337/1003/BUSINESS
NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table – Consumer agency says fee structure is unfair (The News-Observer, Raleigh, NC)
http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1140727.html
Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008049436_apheatingalternatives.html?syndication=rss
Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar – At least for its streetlights (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-solar14-2008jul14,0,1532793.story
CONSERVATION
Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option (the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/lifehome/lifeHomeNews/2008/07/07132008_Energy-adviser-Room-air-conditioners-can-be-a-cool-option.cfm?newsletter=1
Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/12/AR2008071200174.html?nav=rss_business
Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (Pittsburgh Business Times – Unless you consider the instantaneous demand issue: can your home’s wiring and transformer handle it?)
http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/07/14/focus12.html?ana=from_rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Zanesville Times-Recorder Op/Ed – Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors (Zanesville, OH)
http://zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/OPINION02/807140322/1014/OPINION
How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint – A new Canadian-based research study shows how we can all reduce our so-called carbon footprint - and save money - by following a few simple tips for PC usage at home, or in the office (PC World, Canada)
http://www.pcworld.ca/news/column/0e330b860a01040801318e595d89e679/pg1.htm
Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense? (Orlando Sentinel, FL)
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-lidcarbon1308jul13,0,3503052.story
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley (Port Townsend Leader, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=21356&TM=44425.35
Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon – Eight-fold increase in bandwidth expected next year (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463329.html
CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California – Perhaps at the expense of small community service districts (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/New-Bill-Could-Bridge-Digital-Divide-in-California-96072
Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband – not everyone has equal access (Boston MA)
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2008/07/13/strike_up_the_broadband/
FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning – The cable company violated rules that guarantee customers open access to the Internet, says the head of the commission in his disciplinary proposal (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008047592_netregs12.html
Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party – Many buyers were unable to activate new model (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/370431_iphone12.html
Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/technology/13yahoo.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load “…The very technologies that were supposed to replace paper - things like e-mail, electronic data storage and the Web - have led to more paper usage than ever before…” (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9875348?source=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling – But the move, by itself, will do nothing unless Congress acts as well (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008048076_apbush.html?syndication=rss
Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/14/business/worldbusiness/14beer.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near – Olympic Cellars principal owner Kathy Charlton says she's close to resolving a dispute with the U.S. Olympic Committee over her winery's use of the word Olympic (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080713/NEWS/807130304
Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/238062.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Man sues church over spiritual fall – A man says he was so consumed by the spirit of God that he fell and hit his head while worshipping
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120ap_odd_felled_by_spirit.html?source=mypi
Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07132008news339861.cfm
Roller Girls Give Chase In US Version Of Bull Run – Hundreds of people gathered outside a French Quarter bar Saturday morning to be chased down Bourbon Street by members of New Orleans' roller derby league (The editor smirks…)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16864042/detail.html
Party goers lose sight at laser show – Dozens of people have lost partial vision after a laser light show burned their retinas
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1452972520080714?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Dog Meat Taken Off China Menus For Olympics – Designated Restaurants Won't Serve Dog Meat During Games
http://www.kirotv.com/sports/16852588/detail.html
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
- In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options
- MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin
- NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case
- Oregon utilities try to offset rising costs
- Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say
- Grant PUD rate hikes on hold
- Idaho Power customers set record for energy use
- Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November
- TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts
- NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar
- ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna
- Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal
- UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt
- Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study
- OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees
- Taylor Shellfish accused of illegally farmed public tidelands
- Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey
- Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen
- NOAA’ Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead
- Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee
- Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea
- What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem?
- A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer
- State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
- Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste
- MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill
- Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone
- SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry
- NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table
- Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives
- Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar
- Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option
- Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke
- Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (?)
- Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors
- How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint
- Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense?
- Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley
- Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon
- CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California
- Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband
- FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning
- Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party
- Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer
- Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load
- Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling
- Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth
- Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near
- Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites
- Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
These and links to more stories in today’s Energy News Digest
WORD OF THE DAY
Oracular • \uh-RACK-yuh-lerr\ • adjective –1: of the nature of, resembling, or suggesting an oracle: an oracular response 2: giving forth utterances or decisions as if by special inspiration or authority 3: uttered or delivered as if divinely inspired or infallible; sententious 4: ambiguous; obscure 5: portentous; ominous.
As the shadow of the company’s “Camping Carl” loomed in his office doorway Albert shuddered in anticipation of the two-hour recounting of his friend’s weekend activities. The oracular utterings rang hollow each Monday, as Carl droned on about his hang-gliding, mountain-climbing, high altitude adventures. It didn’t help his cause when Albert realized one day that they lived in the flattest state in the union.
WEATHER
Forecast for Mason County, Washington
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?site=sew&smap=1&textField1=47.21528&textField2=-123.09944
(NOTE: Some readers have noted that the NWS forecast has not been updated regularly. Apparently there is a refresh issue with the weather web site. If you visit and the forecast isn’t updated, press F5 or refresh the web page. That should take care of the issue)
ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES
In Shelton Tuesday – Clallam PUD, other districts to discuss power options (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080714/NEWS/807140307
MONTANA – NorthWestern electric rates tops in region by widening margin – 10.2 cents per kilowatt hour (The Missoulian)
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/13/news/local/news03.txt
NorthWestern settles claim from bankruptcy case (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/northwestern_bankruptcy.html?.v=2
Utilities try to offset rising costs – Portland General Electric now figures it needs to raise electricity rates by 14 to 15 percent next year to cover rising energy and operating costs (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310782300.xml&coll=7
Portland General Electric’s rate-increase request doesn't add up, groups say – Ratepayer advocates say the utility's proposed 15% increase is based on poor analysis “…PGE offers full-time employees, retired employees and spouses of deceased, retired or regular employees a 25 percent discount…” (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583310882300.xml&coll=7
Grant PUD rate hikes on hold – A proposed 6 percent increase for Grant County PUD electrical customers won't happen in 2009 (Columbia Basin Herald, Moss Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/07/11/news/news02.txt
Idaho Power customers set record for energy use (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1479520~Idaho_Power_customers_set_record_for_energy_use.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines
Whidbey Island public power goes to vote in November – Power to the people - private or public? Local voters will get to decide who should supply their electric power (The Whidbey Examiner, Coupeville, WA)
http://www.whidbeyexaminer.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=1550&TM=62995
TEXAS – Here’s your new electricity supplier! Top wholesale power rates lead to jolts – Texans often receive high bills from replacement providers “…price per kilowatt-hour went from 11.8 cents with the now-defunct retailer National Power to 31.7 cents…” (The Houston Chronicle, TX)
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/biz/5884406.html
NEW YORK – Increase could reach 22% as electric bills surge as fuel prices soar – NY's reliance on oil and gas to produce electricity hits power customers hard this summer (The Associated Press, via Yahoo! Finance)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080711/ny_electricity_rates.html?.v=1
ALASKA – Hydro project revives as energy alternative at Lake Chakachamna – The $1.75 billion proposal once had a dam but now has a drain (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463307.html
Montana’s Crow Nation Seeks to Develop its Coal – The Crow tribe in Montana says it has enough coal on its reservation to meet U.S. energy needs for nearly a decade (Finding Dulcinea)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/Americas/July-08/Montana-s-Crow-Nation-Seeks-to-Develop-its-Coal.html
UNITED KINGDOM – Energy suppliers' direct debit system leaves people vulnerable to debt – Customers could be running up arrears because direct debits are set up only to cover predicted bills rather than the final amount (The London Times, UK)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/consumer_affairs/article4321562.ece
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urges federal regulators to do new LNG study – An earlier similar request by Oregon's governor went unheeded (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121583311382300.xml&coll=7
OHIO – Arguments erupt as utilities cut residential trees (The Associated Press)
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i10L4E0TYuAyptf_4G9fFlLm7pygD91T4PF00
FISH & WILDLIFE
Taylor Shellfish illegally farmed public tidelands – Size of penalties awaits survey of encroached area (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/370510_geoducks12.html
Taylor Shellfish speaks out after tidelands survey (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/505441.html
Feds say no to aid for salmon fishermen (The Associated Press, via the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07112008news339571.cfm
News Release – NOAA’s Fisheries Service Issues Biological Opinion to Protect Willamette Basin Salmon and Steelhead (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080711_willamette.html
Outdoors Optimism spreads for sockeye fishery at Lake Wenatchee, but not at Baker Lake, Lake Washington (Seattle Times, WA)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2008048589_outn13.html
Coast Salish tribes use ritual to monitor troubled sea “…The Coast Salish includes… the Squaxin Island Indian Tribe…”(The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/front/topstories/story/411131.html
WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT
What's the Answer to Hood Canal's Low-Oyxgen Problem? (The Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/jul/12/whats-the-answer-to-hood-canals-oyxgen-problem/
A warning from the sea – Oyster 'seeds' are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-oysters13-2008jul13,0,7294041.story
State agency looking beyond Black Rock reservoir to aid thirsty Yakima Basin (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/238625.html
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Opinion – Puget Sound: We're the polluters
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/370473_runoffed.html?source=rss
Questions raised over what happens to electronic waste – People who hope to get rid of old computers and other electronic waste at a free recycling event this week in Tacoma have no guarantee that the equipment will be disposed of properly (The Olympian, via the News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/411794.html
RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
MONTANA – Flathead Electric Cooperative plans to get power from landfill (The Billings Gazette, MT)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/13/news/state/21-landfill.txt
News Release – Puget Sound Energy Wind Facilities Each Reach Million Megawatt-Hour Milestone (BusinessWire, via MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/pse-wind-facilities-each-reach/story.aspx?guid=%7B5B272D25-0BED-4AD9-BDD7-473393E94509%7D&dist=hppr
SOUTH DAKOTA – Stalemate threatens State’s wind industry – Deal on incentives stalled in Congress (The Times Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, SD)
http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080713/NEWS/807130337/1003/BUSINESS
NORTH CAROLINA – Progress Energy fees for renewables on table – Consumer agency says fee structure is unfair (The News-Observer, Raleigh, NC)
http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1140727.html
Homeowners who use heating oil seek alternatives (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008049436_apheatingalternatives.html?syndication=rss
Iraq's electricity-starved capital goes solar – At least for its streetlights (The Los Angeles Times, CA)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-solar14-2008jul14,0,1532793.story
CONSERVATION
Energy adviser: Room air conditioners can be a cool option (the Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/lifehome/lifeHomeNews/2008/07/07132008_Energy-adviser-Room-air-conditioners-can-be-a-cool-option.cfm?newsletter=1
Keep Your Energy Dollars From Going Up in Smoke (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/12/AR2008071200174.html?nav=rss_business
Tankless water heaters gaining ground as energy-saving option (Pittsburgh Business Times – Unless you consider the instantaneous demand issue: can your home’s wiring and transformer handle it?)
http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/07/14/focus12.html?ana=from_rss
CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT
Zanesville Times-Recorder Op/Ed – Newlyweds rethink carbon footprint, offer green party favors (Zanesville, OH)
http://zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/OPINION02/807140322/1014/OPINION
How your operating system can reduce your carbon footprint – A new Canadian-based research study shows how we can all reduce our so-called carbon footprint - and save money - by following a few simple tips for PC usage at home, or in the office (PC World, Canada)
http://www.pcworld.ca/news/column/0e330b860a01040801318e595d89e679/pg1.htm
Everyone has a carbon footprint - but do 'offsets' make sense? (Orlando Sentinel, FL)
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-lidcarbon1308jul13,0,3503052.story
TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Port Ludlow – Embarq adds high-speed Internet to Beaver Valley (Port Townsend Leader, WA)
http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=21356&TM=44425.35
Alaskan Bandwidth to be Boosted by Cable to Oregon – Eight-fold increase in bandwidth expected next year (The Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/money/story/463329.html
CALIFORNIA – New Bill Could Bridge Digital Divide in California – Perhaps at the expense of small community service districts (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/New-Bill-Could-Bridge-Digital-Divide-in-California-96072
Boston Globe Opinion – Strike up the broadband – not everyone has equal access (Boston MA)
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2008/07/13/strike_up_the_broadband/
FCC chief hopes Comcast sanction serves as warning – The cable company violated rules that guarantee customers open access to the Internet, says the head of the commission in his disciplinary proposal (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008047592_netregs12.html
Network gridlock spoils iPhone's party – Many buyers were unable to activate new model (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, WA)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/370431_iphone12.html
Yahoo Again Spurns a Microsoft Offer (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/technology/13yahoo.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin
Paper's weight: Technology has added to the load “…The very technologies that were supposed to replace paper - things like e-mail, electronic data storage and the Web - have led to more paper usage than ever before…” (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9875348?source=rss
GENERAL NEWS
Bush to lift executive ban on offshore drilling – But the move, by itself, will do nothing unless Congress acts as well (The Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008048076_apbush.html?syndication=rss
Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to Belgian Brewery Behemoth (The NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/14/business/worldbusiness/14beer.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
Pact over use of 'Olympic' name near – Olympic Cellars principal owner Kathy Charlton says she's close to resolving a dispute with the U.S. Olympic Committee over her winery's use of the word Olympic (The Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080713/NEWS/807130304
Thieves targeting Tri-City construction sites (The Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/915/story/238062.html
ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS
Man sues church over spiritual fall – A man says he was so consumed by the spirit of God that he fell and hit his head while worshipping
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120ap_odd_felled_by_spirit.html?source=mypi
Wash your hands! Fecal bacteria found on UW computer keyboards
http://news.columbian.com/news/state/APStories/AP07132008news339861.cfm
Roller Girls Give Chase In US Version Of Bull Run – Hundreds of people gathered outside a French Quarter bar Saturday morning to be chased down Bourbon Street by members of New Orleans' roller derby league (The editor smirks…)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16864042/detail.html
Party goers lose sight at laser show – Dozens of people have lost partial vision after a laser light show burned their retinas
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1452972520080714?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Dog Meat Taken Off China Menus For Olympics – Designated Restaurants Won't Serve Dog Meat During Games
http://www.kirotv.com/sports/16852588/detail.html
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