Energy News Digest for October 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)

- $237,000 – PSE contributions to anti-PUD campaign jump in Jefferson County
- Columbia Rural Electric Association gains greater foothold in Walla Walla
- Pacific Power 8.5% increase starts today
- Tri-City utility shut-offs drop
- Chelan County PUD commissioners OK $175 million contingency plan
- BPA makes 25th annual U.S. Treasury payment in full, on time
- Canada – B.C. Hydro still looking for cause of Sunday’s massive blackout
- Former Enron lead prosecutor John Hueston tells his court tale
- Officials set Columbia River commercial fishing seasons for this week
- Montana Dam Removal Feted – EPA touts safety, quality on Milltown cleanup
- Clallam County PUD moves on with sewers for Carlsborg
- Grays Harbor County pitches in to fund sewer system west of Elma
- Tap Water’s Popularity Forces Pepsi to Cut Jobs
- Some bottled water toxicity shown to exceed law
- NY Times Editorial – Where Water Trumps Energy
- What's in your woodsmoke? You may be adding pollutants to an already tarnished airshed
- $2.58M Grant for Kitsap Sustainable Energy and Economic Development
- Seattle a test market for federal solar program
- State of Alabama drops insurance requirement for solar power
- Home energy monitors getting wise to solar
- Wind Energy: Unreliable, Heavily Subsidized
- A greener grid: Will energy be the next big thing for Google?
- When 'free' electricity flowed through Springfield skies
- UConn dorms compete for energy, water savings
- Expedition Sets Off for Antarctic Mountains That “Shouldn’t Be There”
- The Autumn leaves of red and gold
- Verizon Fiber – Unions Want Improper Cable Grounding Inspected
- Michigan – Missing link: Rural communities still waiting for high-speed Internet
- Georgia Power Announces Wireless Co-location on Select Transmission Towers
- Belfair man faces federal charges after pipe bomb found in car wreck
- Pot Farm Causes Heavy Damage In National Park
- Auditor faults Olympia's use of impact fees

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

WORD OF THE DAY

Fete • \PAH-see\ • noun – 1: festival 2a: a lavish often outdoor entertainment b: a large elaborate party

“C’mon guys, the CEO has a fete planned in the cafeteria for today’s big debt payment!” shouted the administrative assistant to his sharp-dressed associates.

WEATHER

Shelton Forecast and Weather Alerts
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?textField1=47.213805&textField2=-123.113412&site=all&smap=1&searchresult=Shelton%2C%20WA%2C%20USA

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

$237,000 – PSE contributions to anti-PUD campaign jump in Jefferson County (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20081015/NEWS/310159993

Columbia Rural Electric Association gains greater foothold in Walla Walla – A new agreement with city expands where the nonprofit can compete with Pacific Power (Union Bulletin, Walla Walla, WA)
http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2008/10/14/local_news/081014local06.txt

Pacific Power 8.5% increase starts today (Yakima Herald-Republic , WA)
http://www.yakimaherald.com/stories/2008/10/14/pacific-power-increase-starts-wednesday

Tri-City utility shut-offs drop (Tri-City Herald, WA)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/kennewick_pasco_richland/story/350170.html

Chelan County PUD commissioners OK $175 million contingency plan (Wenatchee World, WA)http://wenatcheeworld.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081014/NEWS04/710149946

News Release – BPA makes 25th annual U.S. Treasury payment in full, on time (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/232400/

Canada – B.C. Hydro still looking for cause of Sunday’s massive blackout – Outage hit lines south of Ladysmith leaving 200,000 customers in dark (Victoria Times-Colonist, BC)
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=94ebc2c8-3f63-4b60-bb36-cda001f5e6ee

Former Enron lead prosecutor John Hueston tells his court tale (Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, CA)
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_10720957?source=rss

FISH & WILDLIFE

Officials set Columbia River commercial fishing seasons for this week (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/10/15//area_news/doc48f52ce8d2b9e593595791.txt

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Montana Dam Removal Feted – EPA touts safety, quality on Milltown cleanup (The Missoulian, MT)
http://missoulian.com/articles/2008/10/15/news/top/news01.txt

Clallam County PUD moves on with sewers for Carlsborg (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20081014/news/310149993

Grays Harbor County pitches in to fund sewer system west of Elma (Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2008/10/14/local_news/07news.txt

Tap Water’s Popularity Forces Pepsi to Cut Jobs (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/business/15pepsi.html?adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1224090500-gLK4J5jAU6IVXZn1lOjscg

Some bottled water toxicity shown to exceed law (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/14/MNGV13H0L4.DTL&feed=rss.news

NY Times Editorial – Where Water Trumps Energy
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/opinion/15wed3.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

What's in your woodsmoke? You may be adding pollutants to an already tarnished airshed (Portland Tribune, OR)
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=122402224676190000

Bremerton Port Commissioners Accept $2.58M Grant for Kitsap Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2008/oct/14/bremerton-port-commissioners-accept-grant-for/?partner=RSS

Seattle a test market for federal solar program (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/10/13/daily9.html?ana=from_rss

State of Alabama drops insurance requirement for solar power (Birmingham Business Journal)
http://birmingham.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2008/10/13/story7.html?b=1223870400%5E1714592

Home energy monitors getting wise to solar (C/NET News)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10066715-54.html

Wind Energy: Unreliable, Heavily Subsidized (Hawaii Reporter)
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story.aspx?1e623879-2faf-47a2-8cc7-3cd02b3bd770

A greener grid: Will energy be the next big thing for Google? (Los Angeles Times)
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2008/10/in-some-ways-th.html

Republican Editorial –When 'free' electricity flowed through Springfield skies (Springfield, MA)
http://www.masslive.com/news/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1223970691116380.xml&coll=1

CONSERVATION

UConn dorms compete for energy, water savings (Diverse Magazine)
http://diverseeducation.com/artman/publish/article_11823.shtml

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Expedition Sets Off for Antarctic Mountains That “Shouldn’t Be There” (Discover Channel)
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2008/10/15/expedition-sets-off-for-antarctic-mountains-that-shouldnt-be-there/

The Autumn leaves of red and gold ... colourful canopy of leaves in British woodlands (The Daily Mail)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1077950/The-Autumn-leaves-red-gold---colourful-canopy-leaves-British-woodlands.html

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Verizon Fiber – Unions Want Improper Cable Grounding Inspected, Too: FiOS grounding issue has cable, telcos jawing (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Unions-Want-Improper-Cable-Grounding-Inspected-Too-98436

Michigan – Missing link: Rural communities still waiting for high-speed Internet (Muskegon Chronicle, MI)
http://blog.mlive.com/chronicle/2008/10/missing_link_rural_communities_still_waiting_for_high-speed_internet.html

Georgia Power Announces Wireless Co-location on Select Transmission Towers (BusinessWire)
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20081014005441&newsLang=en

GENERAL NEWS

Belfair man faces federal charges after pipe bomb found in car wreck (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/30988859.html

Pot Farm Causes Heavy Damage In National Park (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/17712651/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news

Auditor faults Olympia's use of impact fees – Report criticizes city’s collection and spending methods (The Olympian, Olympia, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/localnewsfeed/story/621453.html

DIVERSIONS

Dozens get 35 cent a gallon gas in Wisconsin after mistake
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081015/ap_on_fe_st/odd_super_cheap_gas;_ylt=As6eMLQwvOa9ZoSM4qrzQ3ftiBIF

Missouri grandmother's curiosity squashes scam
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081014/ap_on_fe_st/odd_grandmother_dodges_scam;_ylt=Au4aCTLprMr7VlVhsocVbeLtiBIF

United Kingdom – Watch who you shake hands with up North
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081015/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_britain_hands;_ylt=AoQDim_B2EmrY7SjML6gctztiBIF

Cops: Man tries to pay for fast food meal with pot
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081014/ap_on_fe_st/odd_marijuana_meal;_ylt=AinwrCU0GHEt8iOwqS8aYfLtiBIF

Wild Night in the Midwest – Man allegedly goes for wild ride on stolen combine
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081014/ap_on_fe_st/odd_combine_theft;_ylt=AlS8uef5Nkehy2VxjRs.qvntiBIF