Energy News Digest for April 13, 2009

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.

To subscribe, email jmyer@masonpud3.org

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Homes That Use Natural Gas for Heat Could Save Big
- Even In Hydro-Rich Northwest, Coal Still Major Power Source
- Challenged To Find Budget Cuts, Grays Harbor PUD Addresses Aberdeen
- Seattle City Council: No Utility Hikes In '09
- Oregon Electrical Co-Op Increases Its Rates
- Kalispell Tribe, Pend Oreille County PUD Agree On New Dam License
- Avista Warns Of Safety Line Break Nine Mile Dam North of Spokane
- Company Considering Hydro Project in N. Idaho
- BPA to Hold Smart Grid Workshop to Develop Regional Plan
- New ‘Smart Grid’ Will Change How Energy Goes From Plants to Homes
- PPL Chief's Compensation Slips 3.6 Percent in 2008
- Good Salmon News for State, Not So For California, Oregon
- Coho Seasons Comeback on the Oregon Coast
- What's Killing California's Salmon?
- Miners Lose Bid to Stop Tribal Salmon Fishing
- New Weir Helps Fish at Little Goose Dam
- Fish Stocking in North Cascades Lakes Set To End
- Lewis County Survey: Twin City Support Strong for Dam, Levies
- Skamania County Dam near Carson Will Be Removed This Summer
- Nisqually Delta Conservation Efforts Take a Big Step Forward
- WATER: Supply Outlook Good in Eastern Washington
- TVA Rejects Many Requests as It Buys Land Tainted by Coal-Ash Spill
- News Tribune - Tacoma Deserves Fair Treatment in Green Energy Bill
- Grays Harbor PUD Asks City Hall for Help on Small Hydro Bill
- Reinvent Grid For Shifty Bursts Of Wind
- Wind Power: Texas Is King, But Iowa Breezes Past California
- Backyard Windmills
- European Wind Energy Manufacturers Look to Oklahoma
- Biomass Brouhaha - Clean-Air Agency Makes Burn-Ban Violators Feel Heat
- Seattleites Call For Change in Biodiesel Industry
- Report: Ethanol Raises Cost Of Nutrition Programs
- San Francisco Renewable Power Plant Proposed For Farallones
- Disclosing a Home’s Energy Efficiency
- Big Tax Breaks for Energy Efficiency
- Who Will Get U.S. Millions In Energy Aid?
- Unplug Your Electronics, Save Money
- Md. To Redirect Cap-And-Trade Revenues
- A Carbon Cap Will Create More Jobs
- Editorial - Cap-And-Trade Bill Could Devastate Manufacturing
- Cost Is a Key Issue for Caps on Carbon
- Toronto Star Editorial - Costing Green Energy
- Expert: Don't 'Rinky-Dink around the Margins' Of Climate Change
- Australia May Have Climate Lessons for the U.S.
- Changing Environmental Tide Demands B.C. Lobbyist in Washington
- Sabey Continues Data Center Talks In Quincy
- FCC Plan: Free High-Speed Net Access across U.S.
- With Greater Broadband Speeds Come Greater Demand on Networks
- Scuttling Network Sabotage
- Bad Scenarios for The Smart-Grid Concept
- Fear of Viruses Could Be Causing PC Attacks: Report
- California - City Of Palo Alto’s Fiber Dreams Still Flickering
- Father of Fiber Optics Explains How It Began
- Co-Working: A Room Not Of Their Own
- Facebook, MySpace & Twitter: Free Advertising That Works
- 'Open Season' Comment Just Fine by Some Mason County Residents
- Taxable Retail Sales Down In Mason County
- Twittering all the rage on Capitol Hill

WORD OF THE DAY

Lickerish • \LIK-uh-rish\ • adjective - 1: greedy, desirous *2: lecherous

Bradley’s intense competitive streak would be his undoing. As he hammered each volley of the ping-pong ball at his diminutive opponent, the throng of onlookers gasped with derision. It was one thing to have a lickerish sense of victory and the destruction of an opponent. But to take it out on his eight year old child was one step too far. After the final set, the crowd rushed the table tennis equipment and folded Bradley into it. He was not found until the next week’s church youth group gathering.

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

Homes That Use Natural Gas for Heat Could Save Big (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009020382_apnaturalgasglut.html?syndication=rss

Even In Hydro-Rich Northwest, Coal Still Major Power Source (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/4742-even-hydro-rich-northwest-coal-still-major-power-source/

Challenged To Find Budget Cuts, Grays Harbor PUD Manager Addresses Aberdeen City Council (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2009/04/11/local_news/doc49e05bae0b8eb785859535.txt

Seattle City Council: No Utility Hikes In '09 (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/archives/166037.asp?source=pimail

Oregon Electrical Co-Op Increases Its Rates - Utilities are reacting to higher prices expected from the source of their power (Eugene Register Guard)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/cityregion/11635595-41/story.csp

Kalispell Tribe, Pend Oreille County PUD Agree On New Dam License (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_dam_deal.html?source=mypi

Avista Warns Of Safety Line Break Nine Mile Dam North of Spokane (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009031439_apwalakebreak.html?syndication=rss

Company Considering Hydro Project in N. Idaho (The Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/817185.html

BPA to Hold Smart Grid Workshop to Develop Regional Plan (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/267031/

New ‘Smart Grid’ Will Change How Energy Goes From Plants to Homes (Holland Sentinel, MI)
http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/x711735212/New-smart-grid-will-change-how-energy-goes-from-plants-to-homes

PPL Chief's Compensation Slips 3.6 Percent in 2008 (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009014003_appapplcorpexecutivecompensation.html?syndication=rss

FISH & WILDLIFE

Good Salmon News for State, Not So For California, Oregon (Wenatchee World)
http://wenatcheeworld.com/article/20090409/NEWS03/704099838/1024/rss1024

Coho Seasons Comeback on the Oregon Coast (The Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/bill_monroe/index.ssf/2009/04/coho_seasons_comeback_on_the_o.html

What's Killing California's Salmon? (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102997037&ft=1&f=7

Miners Lose Bid to Stop Tribal Salmon Fishing (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/816303.html

New Weir Helps Fish at Little Goose Dam (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/707702.html

Fish Stocking In North Cascades Lakes Set To End (Associated Press)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=155237

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Lewis County Survey: Twin City Support Strong for Dam, Levies (KELA Radio, Centralia, WA)
http://www.kelaam.com/pages/localnews/?Survey-Twin-City-Support-Strong-for-Dam-=1&blockID=48982&feedID=410

Skamania County Dam near Carson Will Be Removed This Summer (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://columbian.com/article/20090412/NEWS02/704129960/

Nisqually Delta Conservation Efforts Take a Big Step Forward (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/707558.html

WATER: Supply outlook good in Eastern Washington (Tri-City Herald)
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/945/story/540626.html

Tennessee Valley Authority Rejects Many Requests as It Buys Land Tainted by Coal-Ash Spill (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/12/us/12spill.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

RENEWABLE & ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

News Tribune Editorial - Tacoma Deserves Fair Treatment in Green Energy Bill
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/706877.html

Grays Harbor PUD Asks City Hall for Help on Small Hydro Bill (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2009/04/11/local_news/doc49e05b242befd250718005.txt

To Reinvent Grid for Shifty Bursts of Wind, Energy Overseers Must Rejigger Supply and Demand (Puget Sound Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2009/04/13/focus2.html?ana=from_rss

Wind Power: Texas Is King, But Iowa Breezes Past California (Associated Press)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iCCigqHwXLg0T4Qo1ExfgpLg-1TQD97H5D0O1

Backyard Windmills (WHYY Philadelphia, PA)
http://whyy.org/cms/news/health-science/2009/04/12/backyard-windmills/6025

European Wind Energy Manufacturers Look to Oklahoma Energy Current)
http://www.energycurrent.com/index.php?id=3&storyid=17347

Biomass Brouhaha - Clean-Air Agency Makes Burn-Ban Violators Feel Heat (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009029132_air13m.html?syndication=rss

Seattleites Call For Change in Biodiesel Industry (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_041109WAB-biodiesel-KS.c692a6fd.html?rss

Report: Ethanol Raises Cost Of Nutrition Programs (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2009014114_apfoodcostsethanol.html?syndication=rss

San Francisco Renewable Power Plant Proposed For Farallones (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/11/BUAP170KCO.DTL&feed=rss.business

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Disclosing a Home’s Energy Efficiency (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/10/AR2009041001404.html

Big Tax Breaks for Energy Efficiency (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/11/BU6L170I4F.DTL&feed=rss.business

Who Will Get U.S. Millions In Energy Aid? (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/government/story/706833.html

Unplug Your Electronics, Save Money (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/12/BUHS170INS.DTL&feed=rss.business

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Md. To Redirect Cap-And-Trade Revenues - Critics say rebates will short-circuit goals (Bloomberg News)
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090411/BUSINESS/904110308/1003

A Carbon Cap Will Create More Jobs (Miami Herald, FL)
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/environment/story/997500.html

Journal-Sentinel Editorial - Cap-And-Trade Bill Could Devastate Manufacturing (Milwaukee, WI)
http://www.jsonline.com/business/42829987.html

Cost Is a Key Issue for Caps on Carbon (Tampa Tribune, FL)
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/apr/12/bz-cost-is-a-key-issue-for-caps-on-carbon/news-money/

Toronto Star Editorial - Costing Green Energy
http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/617332

Expert: Don't 'Rinky-Dink around The Margins' Of Climate Change “…"The polar ice caps are melting…and we're banning plastic bags…'You have got to be kidding me!'" (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/405057_green11.html?source=pimail

Australia May Have Climate Lessons for the U.S. (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2009/04/10/10climatewire-australia-may-have-climate-lessons-for-the-u-10506.html

Changing Environmental Tide Demands B.C. Place a Lobbyist in Washington (Vancouver Sun, BC)
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/fp/Changing+environmental+tide+demands+place+lobbyist+Washington/1490734/story.html

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Sabey Continues Data Center Talks In Quincy - Buildings could go up later this year (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2009/04/10/news/doc49df737bc0b2b617679833.txt

FCC Plan: Free High-Speed Net Access across U.S. (Associated Press)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090411/BIZ/704119968/-1/RSS03

With Greater Broadband Speeds Come Greater Demand On Networks (Seattle Times)http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009021892_ptmacc11.html?syndication=rss

Scuttling Network Sabotage - Telecommunication companies are fighting vandals who use simple tools that can cut off service to thousands (Associated Press)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090411/BIZ/704119966/-1/RSS03

Bad Scenarios for The Smart-Grid Concept - Commentary: Cable cuts in Bay Area look like someone's testing network (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/bad-scenarios-smart-grid-concept/story.aspx?guid={4F799BF6-C977-4CE5-BA8A-6958108C6206}&dist=msr_1

Fear of Viruses Could Be Causing PC Attacks: Report (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN0749083820090408?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology

California - City Of Palo Alto’s Fiber Dreams Still Flickering (Palo Alto Online)
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/show_story.php?id=11913

Father of Fiber Optics Explains How It Began (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/10/MNGD170HIH.DTL

Co-Working: A Room Not Of Their Own (The Oregonian, Portland)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/04/coworking_a_room_not_of_their.html

Facebook, MySpace & Twitter: Free Advertising That Works (KEPR-TV, Tri-Cities)
http://www.keprtv.com/news/local/42880792.html

GENERAL NEWS

'Open Season' Comment Just Fine by Some Mason County Residents (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/42840257.html

Taxable Retail Sales Down In Mason County (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/smid/3468/ArticleID/6962/reftab/1632/t/TAXABLE-RETAIL-SALES-DOWN-IN-MASON-COUNTY/Default.aspx

Twittering All the Rage on Capitol Hill (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009028644_bttwitter13.html

DIVERSIONS

‘The Real Spinal Tap’
http://www.newsweek.com/id/193490?from=rss

Neighbors Say 'Barney' the Purple House Lowers Property Values
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20090412/news/304129978

Hammer Time for Cell Phone Used To Run Up $5K Bill
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090410/ap_on_fe_st/odd_phone_bill;_ylt=Aj13YqSDc0RpCHEP9cjgdnTtiBIF

Swedish Parishioners Unveil Lego Statue of Jesus
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090412/ap_on_fe_st/eu_sweden_lego_jesus_statue;_ylt=An_eEc1AiL_HMKGDUaIOHFHtiBIF

SONG OF THE DAY

Spinal Tap – Stonehenge (PG-13 for some ‘adult’ language)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXGbwIkvh38