Energy News Digest for September 30, 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)

- IDAHO – State to fight elimination of credit on electric customers' bills
- OREGON – Power provider will pay Ashland $812,915
- Grant County PUD discusses energy plans – Conservation, focus on renewable sources slated
- Anonymous tipster rewarded $4,000 for information about Flathead wire theft
- Manager: Oregon Trail Electric Consumers Cooperative has plenty of options
- MARYLAND – State must protect Baltimore Gas & Electric customers
- PENNSYLVANIA – PPL takes next step toward potential new nuclear plant
- On this Day: First Hydroelectric Plant Opens
- A building ban near rivers? Feds call for moratorium in bid to protect salmon, orcas
- Documentary reaches for heart of matters with Snake River dams
- Oregon fisherman faces hefty fine
- Invisibly Emptied Oceans
- Water shortage declared for Fairview area of Clallam PUD
- Construction on Spokane's Waste Water Treatment Plant Waiting for EPA Phosphorus Allowance
- OKLAHOMA – Judge rules against bird waste injunction
- US Lawmakers at Impasse on Incentives for Renewable Energy
- Study: Wave energy could have impact on ocean, species
- Xcel to use wood chips for electricity at northern Wisconsin plant
- Snohomish County PUD offers tips on how to prepare for winter
- As power costs climb, homeowner and agency among those exploring way to save, create energy
- MICHIGAN – DTE Energy Offers Tips to Help Manage Winter Heating Costs
- Northeast Initiative Carbon Sale Raises $40 Million
- Ballmer sees global crisis hitting Microsoft
- Microsoft, Washington state sue over 'scareware' pop-up ads
- Congress poised to pass Internet radio legislation
- Historic Sell-Off Hits Market
- Investors see new villains in WaMu drama
- Shelton City Commission Gets Preliminary 2009 Budget
- Snow falling on Mars
- 'Grapes Of Wrath' And The Politics of Book Burning

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

WORD OF THE DAY

Consigliere • \kohn-sil-YEH-reh\ • noun – Counselor, adviser

“Don’t sign it!” barked the utility attorney into the ear of the board chairman. “I’ve read every line, and unless you want to have electrodes attached to your ears, you’ll slowly pull the pen away from the paper.” It was at that moment that the utility board had their first qualms about hiring an attorney who had the word consigliere as a part of his firm’s name: Hagen, Hagen and Hagen, ‘Peace-Time Consiglieres.’

The word "consigliere" comes from Italian and has been a part our language since 1615; it was originally used of someone who served on a council in Italy. Currently, it is most commonly used to designate advisers to the Mafia -- a use that first appeared in English in a document from a 1963 session of the U.S. Senate. It is also often used generally of a political or financial adviser, or any other trusted adviser for that matter.

WEATHER
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/index.php?minlon=-124.8&maxlon=-120.57&minlat=46.2&maxlat=49.33&mapwidth=354&map.x=144&map.y=269

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

IDAHO – State to fight elimination of credit on electric customers' bills (Idaho Statesman, Boise)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/235/story/518682.html

OREGON – Power provider will pay Ashland $812,915 (Ashland Daily Tidings, OR)
http://www.dailytidings.com/2008/0929/stories/0929_bonneville.php

Grant County PUD discusses energy plans – Conservation, focus on renewable sources slated (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2008/09/29/news/news02.txt

Anonymous tipster rewarded $4,000 for information about Flathead wire theft (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/230171/

Manager: Oregon Trail Electric Consumers Cooperative has plenty of options (Baker City Herald , OR)
http://www.bakercityherald.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=7403

MARYLAND – State must protect Baltimore Gas & Electric customers (Baltimore Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/09/29/editorial1.html?b=1222660800^1706647&brthrs=1

PENNSYLVANIA – PPL takes next step toward potential new nuclear plant (Utility Automation & Engineering)
http://uaelp.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=22&ARTICLE_ID=340969&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss

On this Day: First Hydroelectric Plant Opens – On Sept. 30, 1882, the world’s first hydroelectric power plant began operation in Wisconsin, producing enough energy to supply three buildings. (Finding Dulcinea – Ed. Note: Great Grandpa Theodore had a micro hydro plant also – “…In 1905, an electric dynamo was attached to a waterwheel, (at the Myer homestead in Alpha Prairie) producing the first electricity in rural Lewis County.)
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/on-this-day/September-October-08/On-this-Day--First-Hydroelectric-Plant-Opens.html

FISH & WILDLIFE

A building ban near rivers? Feds call for moratorium in bid to protect salmon, orcas (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/381087_endangered30.html?source=rss

Documentary reaches for heart of matters with Snake River dams – ‘River Ways' has been praised as a fair, balanced approach to the issue (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, WA)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2008/09/29/local_news/080929local03snakeriverfilm.txt

Oregon fisherman faces hefty fine (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1613762~Ore__fisherman_faces_hefty_fine.html?cid=rss-Oregon_Headlines

Invisibly Emptied Oceans (NY Times)
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/emptied-oceans/?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Water shortage declared for Fairview area of Clallam PUD (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080930/NEWS/809300305

Construction on Spokane's Waste Water Treatment Plant Waiting for EPA Phosphorus Allowance (Northwest Public Radio)
http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=4376

OKLAHOMA – Judge rules against bird waste injunction – State sought to stop 13 Arkansas poultry companies from disposing of bird waste in the Illinois River watershed (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008215013_apfarmscenepoultrylitter.html?syndication=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

US Lawmakers at Impasse on Incentives for Renewable Energy (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/washington/30energy.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

Study: Wave energy could have impact on ocean, species (Portland Business Journal, OR)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/09/29/daily9.html?ana=from_rss

Xcel to use wood chips for electricity at northern Wisconsin plant (Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN)
http://www.twincities.com/news/ci_10598267?source=rss

CONSERVATION

Snohomish County PUD offers tips on how to prepare for winter (Everett Herald, WA)
http://heraldnet.com/article/20080930/NEWS01/709309904

TENNESSEE – As power costs climb, homeowner and agency among those exploring way to save, create energy (Knoxville News Sentinel, TN)
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2008/sep/28/efficient-frontier/

MICHIGAN – DTE Energy Offers Tips to Help Manage Winter Heating Costs (Electric Energy Online)
http://www.electricenergyonline.com/IndustryNews.asp?m=1&id=97883

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Carbon Sale Raises $40 Million – Northeast Initiative, First in Nation, Seeks to Curb Emissions (Washington Post – This doesn’t seem like all that much money, relatively speaking)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/29/AR2008092903414.html?nav=rss_business

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Ballmer sees global crisis hitting Microsoft (Reuters)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080930/tc_nm/us_microsoft_ballmer_7

Microsoft, Washington state sue over 'scareware' pop-up ads (C/NET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10053565-83.html?tag=nl.e703

Congress poised to pass Internet radio legislation (Associated Press)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_10592727?source=rss

GENERAL NEWS

Historic Sell-Off Hits Market (The Associated Press)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/381110_wallstreet30.html

Investors see new villains in WaMu drama (Seattle Post Intelligencer)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/virgin/381074_virgin30.html

Shelton City Commission Gets Preliminary Look At 2009 Budget (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/selectmoduleid/3468/ArticleID/5169/reftab/1896/Default.aspx

Snow falling on Mars – NASA"s Phoenix spacecraft has discovered evidence of past water at its Martian landing site and spotted falling snow for the first time, scientists reported Monday. (Associated Press)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_10593180?source=rss

'Grapes Of Wrath' And The Politics of Book Burning – Sept. 29 marks the beginning of the American Library Association's annual "Banned Books Week" (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95190615&ft=1&f=3

DIVERSIONS

Instant Ipecac – Iowa Woman Drinks Bat-Infused Coffee: Woman Finds Bat In Coffee Filter
http://www.kirotv.com/irresistible/17578911/detail.html

Follow Up File – Charge Dropped Against Man Accused of Passing Gas
http://www.kirotv.com/news/17565471/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=irresistible

Prisoners allowed to order out restaurant food
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE48S5V320080929?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

Move over priests-Nepal state names "living goddess"
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE48S5W420080929?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews