Energy News Digest for June 9, 2008

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

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Mason County Primary Election Match Ups Set – PUD 1 and PUD 3 will see contested race
- Massive marijuana-growing operation found in Longview
- Cops get creative to stop copper wire thefts
- Engineers Report More U.S. Dams Deteriorating
- Federal regulators OK environmental review for Oregon liquefied natural gas terminal
- Maryland – UniStar Energy secures another approval for nuclear reactor
- Swedes end probe of nuclear plant bomb scare
- Minnesota – Prairie Island tribe pushes for nuke storage site
- Florida – Martinez stumps for nuclear power
- NEW YORK – Smoking electric-utility manholes cause Brooklyn subway trouble
- Decision to close Columbia has tribe fishing for answers
- Idaho salmon run late, but coming
- A Future for Fish: Hopes Run High For Undammed White Salmon River
- Rogue River dams to come down
- Pike the biggest threat to salmon
- Pesticides blamed for plummeting salmon stocks
- Canada – Moss killer blamed for dead fish
- Oregonian Op/Ed – Thinking long term on salmon recovery
- Washington State Department Of Ecology Denies Squaxin Island Tribe Petition To Close Water Withdrawals
- Ecology offers water meters to Columbia River diverters
- King County crews wade in to clean Ravenna Creek sewage
- Water-Starved California Slows Development
- Swipe at city pollution leads owner of marina to lawsuit
- American Electric Technologies Inc enters wind energy market, uncovers power infrastructure risks
- CALIFORNIA – Dropouts cast shadow on solar rebate system
- Biofuel backlash: High prices, pollution worries hit consumers
- A grease shortage worries biodiesel makers
- Biodiesel backers rally around movie
- Clark County at Work: Biodiesel firm gives drivers alternatives
- MONTANA – Ex-Utility Executive Pushes for Renewable Electricity
- David Hendricks: Energy efficiency goal will hit homeowners
- Conservation: Virginia's hidden energy resource
- Running in Circles Over Carbon
- Washington Post Editorial – Climate Crash
- CANADA – Glossy Tory ad campaign takes aim at Liberal carbon tax
- Talking green: A guide to eco-English
- Why Amazon Went Down, and Why It Matters
- Technology should improve access in rural N. Idaho
- T-Mobile sues Starbucks over Wi-Fi deal
- Revenge of the Nerdette
- Snow warning in Cascades
- Get ready to park that cell phone
- Hundreds of new laws take effect in Washington State
- $5 gas? To some, it's not impossible
- Oil seen hitting $150 this summer: Goldman analyst
- Rural U.S. Takes Worst Hit as Gas Tops $4 Average
- Fuel prices hit governments hard
- List of local federal earmarks – Key earmarks authorized for South Sound
- Daily News Editorial – Rural counties better prepare for end to timber payments
- More Americans breaking into nest eggs

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

WORD OF THE DAY

Morass • \muh-RASS\ • noun – 1: marsh, swamp 2a: a situation that traps, confuses, or impedes *b: an overwhelming or confusing mass or mixture

“FERC, NERC, WECC, NUTS,” blurted the overwhelmed power supply analyst at the latest stack of paper that was piled onto his desk as part of the small utility’s effort to keep up with the documentation requirements of the eye-shaded bureaucrats in Washington, DC. “Wading through this morass of documents and requirements will mean the hiring of at least one person just to keep up,” the stalwart PUD employee stated. “Try to justify THAT to the ratepayers when and if we have a rate increase,” he opined.

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

Mason County Candidate Filings (Includes Mason County PUD No. 1 and PUD No. 3 filings)
http://wei.secstate.wa.gov/MASON/ELECTIONS/Pages/CandidateFilings.aspx

Mason County Primary Election Match Ups Set – PUD 1 and PUD 3 will see contested races (KMAS Radio, Shelton)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/159/reftab/1632/Default.aspx

Massive marijuana-growing operation found in Longview “…Large grids of electrical transformers were used to divert and use energy before it reached the home’s meter and could be billed by the Cowlitz PUD…” (The Daily news, Longview)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/06/07/breaking_news/doc484b18400e30e134211497.txt

Cops get creative to stop copper wire thefts (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/19607914.html

Engineers Report More U.S. Dams Deteriorating “…the number of dams considered unsafe has jumped 33 percent in the past decade…” (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91293215&ft=1&f=10

Federal regulators OK environmental review for Oregon liquefied natural gas terminal – Regulators sign off on an environmental review, but legal challenges loom for the terminal from an array of critics (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/121281092087900.xml&coll=7

Maryland – UniStar Energy secures another approval for nuclear reactor (Baltimore Business Journal, MD)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/06/02/daily49.html?ana=from_rss

Swedes end probe of nuclear plant bomb scare (Associated Press, via the Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004466571_apswedennuclearplant.html?syndication=rss

Minnesota – Prairie Island tribe pushes for nuke storage site (Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, MN)
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/06/02/daily41.html?ana=from_rss

Florida – Martinez stumps for nuclear power (Orlando Business Journal, FL)
http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2008/06/02/daily49.html?ana=from_rss

NEW YORK – Smoking electric-utility manholes cause Brooklyn subway trouble (The Associated Press)
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080609/ny_subways_suspended.html?.v=1

FISH & WILDLIFE

Decision to close Columbia has tribe fishing for answers – Yakama Nation fishermen not sure which direction to go after Columbia River season halted (Yakima Herald-Republic, WA)http://www.yakimaherald.com/stories/4786

Idaho salmon run late, but coming (The Associated Press, via Examiner.com)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1431230~Idaho_salmon_run_late__but_coming.html?cid=rss-Idaho_Headlines

A Future for Fish: Hopes Run High For Undammed White Salmon River (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/06/06092008_A-FUTURE-FOR-FISH-Hopes-run-high-for-undammed-river.cfm/

Rogue River dams to come down – Salmon runs are expected to grow in iconic Oregon river (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/121281811226290.xml&coll=7

Pike the biggest threat to salmon – Atlantic salmon no longer top Alaska's list of unwanted visitors (Anchorage Daily News, AK)
http://www.adn.com/outdoors/story/429969.html

Pesticides blamed for plummeting salmon stocks (New Scientist)
http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/dn14091-pesticides-blamed-for-plummeting-salmon-stocks-.html?feedId=earth_rss20

Canada – Moss killer blamed for dead fish – Moss killer is being blamed for killing hundreds of fish fry in a stream that runs into the Cowichan River, a fisheries officer has confirmed. (Victoria Tomes Colonist, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=c85a6d4e-a2dc-45fd-8da3-9ee9975d3f78

Oregonian Op/Ed – Thinking long term on salmon recovery “…Removing old dams from the Klamath and other rivers in the region is probably the single most important thing we could do to recover our salmon…” (Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/commentary/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1212708373276230.xml&coll=7

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Washington State Department Of Ecology Denies Squaxin Island Tribe Petition To Close Water Withdrawals From John’s Creek Near Shelton (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/160/reftab/1632/Default.aspx

Ecology offers water meters to Columbia River diverters (Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080606/NEWS04/754295313/1025/rss1025

King County crews wade in to clean Ravenna Creek sewage (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/366224_sewage08.html?source=rss

Water-Starved California Slows Development – Developers unable to find long-term water supplies (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/07/us/07drought.html?th&emc=th

Swipe at city pollution leads owner of marina to lawsuit (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/366129_marina07.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

American Electric Technologies Inc enters wind energy market, uncovers power infrastructure risks (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=22&ARTICLE_ID=330615&C=ENVIR&dcmp=rss

CALIFORNIA – Dropouts cast shadow on solar rebate system, one in eight program participants don’t install solar panels (San Francisco Business Times, CA)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/06/09/story12.html?ana=from_rss

Biofuel backlash: High prices, pollution worries hit consumers “.…scientists have questioned whether growing crops for biofuels produces more greenhouse gases than it prevents…” (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004464783_biofuels08.html

A grease shortage worries biodiesel makers – At $5 a gallon and competition for feedstock, Oregon's fledgling biodiesel industry could burn out before it ever gets going (The Oregonian, Portland, OR)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1212805520261970.xml&coll=7

Biodiesel backers rally around movie (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004464742_sundaybuzz08.html

Clark County at Work: Biodiesel firm gives drivers alternatives (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/business/businessNews/2008/06/06072008_Clark-County-at-Work-Biodiesel-firm-gives-drivers-alternatives.cfm?newsletter=1

MONTANA – Ex-Utility Executive Pushes for Renewable Electricity – A former utility executive and energy adviser says America can and should phase out coal-generated power and move entirely to renewable electricity within 30 years (RedOrbit)
http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1422871/exutility_executive_pushes_for_renewable_electricity/

CONSERVATION

David Hendricks: Energy efficiency goal will hit homeowners – Imagine trying to sell your house and being told that you first must replace the air-conditioning system or all of the windows (The Express News, San Antonio, TX)
http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/stories/MYSA060708.1D.hendricks.2e4b644.html

Conservation: Virginia's hidden energy resource – Home audits may cut demand (The Times-Dispatch, VA)
http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news/business.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-06-09-0014.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Running in Circles Over Carbon – Cutting carbon dioxide emissions is a fine idea, and a lot of companies would be proud to do it. But they would prefer to be second, if not third or fourth (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/weekinreview/08wald.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

Washington Post Editorial – Climate Crash
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/07/AR2008060701652.html?nav=rss_opinions

CANADA – Glossy Tory ad campaign takes aim at Liberal carbon tax (Canwest News Service)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=72595d04-7558-4005-8a17-6a4ae672dbf4

Talking green: A guide to eco-English – You'll need to know a new vocabulary to close the 'green gap' (Victoria Times-Colonist, Canada)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=c13f26de-442f-4d71-970f-907b4849dff9

TELECOMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Why Amazon Went Down, and Why It Matters (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2008/06/06/why-amazon-went-down-and-what-it-means-to-you/

Technology should improve access in rural N. Idaho (Associated Press, via The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/471931.html

T-Mobile sues Starbucks over Wi-Fi deal (CNET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-9962706-7.html

Revenge of the Nerdette – As geeks become chic in all levels of society, an unlikely subset is starting to roar. Meet the Nerd Girls: they're smart, they're techie and they're hot (Newsweek Magazine)
http://www.newsweek.com/id/140457?from=rss

GENERAL NEWS

Snow warning in Cascades (The Associated Press, via the Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/472993.html

Get ready to park that cell phone – After July 1, law bans talking without hands-free device (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/383797.html

Hundreds of new laws take effect in Washington State (Associated Press, via The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/472376.html

$5 gas? To some, it's not impossible (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/08/MN2S114T46.DTL&feed=rss.business

Oil seen hitting $150 this summer: Goldman analyst (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSSP3969220080609?feedType=nl&feedName=usbusinessearly

Rural U.S. Takes Worst Hit as Gas Tops $4 Average (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/09/business/09gas.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Fuel prices hit governments hard – Local agencies promote carpooling, video-conferencing but crime fighting can't be cut Fuel prices hit governments hard (Wenatchee World, WA)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080606/NEWS04/89825018/1025/rss1025

List of local federal earmarks – Key earmarks authorized for South Sound in the 2008 congressional budgets (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/472158.html

Daily News Editorial – Rural counties better prepare for end to timber payments (Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/06/09/editorial/doc48499cdccbc4a319408288.txt

More Americans breaking into nest eggs – Retirement plans see spike in early withdrawals for everyday expenses (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/08/BUP1114D52.DTL&feed=rss.business

ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER – DIVERSIONS

Newspapers run ads about fake airline Derrie-Air
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080606/ap_on_fe_st/philadelphia_newspapers_fake_ads;_ylt=AogT.R_6Ngx2VBwUB7DYPoztiBIF

Pa. crews rescue nude man stuck in portable potty
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080606/ap_on_fe_st/odd_stuck_in_toilet;_ylt=Ag1tfbDCQ59TiJtqLxnMK1ztiBIF

Poodle escapes putrification – Mill Valley poodles bites into electric cord, will survive (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9521832?source=rss

Cigarettes whisked out of sight at Canadian stores
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080609/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_cigarettes;_ylt=Amam5BdvvFnz.XvLJ3JpRzjtiBIF

Fire Officials Say Hoarded Gasoline Led To Fire
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/16526405/detail.html