Energy News Digest for April 21, 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.

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TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

- Classifying Hydropower Becomes Hot Topic in Legislature
- ‘Smart Grid’ Uniting More Than Power
- New Tacoma Public Utilities Meter Reader Feels like One In A Million
- Wanapum Heritage Center Honors the River People
- Court Rejects Former Kan. Utility CEO's Appeal
- Nearly $200 Million Spent On Energy Ads since Obama’s Inauguration
- Columbia River May Face Threat Of Mussels
- Letting the Water Flow Allows The Salmon Chums To Grow
- Environmental Agency's Embarrassing Sewer Problem Fixed
- West Is Told to Expect Water Shortfalls
- How Drier I Am: Flow of Many Rivers in Decline
- NY Times Editorial - De-Watering Wyoming
- Politicians Accuse Each Other Of Playing Dirty Politics
- Skagit County - Bids on PUD Pipe Job Come in At Half the Estimate
- Washington Could Be Closer to Recognizing Hydropower as Renewable Resource
- Forestry briefing explores wood as renewable energy source
- Biomass Energy Could Be Carbon "Sinner"
- Residents Testify About REC Silicon’s Expansion
- Offshore Wind Energy Blows In To NW Coast
- Neverending Story - Bremerton Port Nears Deal on SEED Support Services
- Britain Falls Behind On Investment in 'Clean' Energy
- Palo Alto Leads Nation in Renewable Energy Participants
- Solar Power Cheaper than Utilities for First Time in Northeast
- Canada - Electronic vampires, be gone
- EPA Recognizes The Evergreen State College Green Power Champion
- Winning the War of Energy Words Takes Repetition
- Environmental Wars - Old Growth Logging With a Green Stamp of Approval?
- Carbon tax - S.C. utilities wary of proposal: could increase bills up to 50 percent
- Amazon breaks ground at new South Lake Union headquarters
- Internet Upstarts Left Sun In the Dust
- Can New York Save Broadband?
- Fiber Optics Brings Power and Speed to Tribe’s Computers
- Google Improves Image Search, Adds News Timeline
- Hood Canal Bridge Set To Close May 1 for 6 Weeks
- Legislature Overhauls Public Education

WORD OF THE DAY

Besotted • \bih-SAHT-edd\ • verb - 1: infatuated 2: to be made dull or stupid; especially: to muddle with drunkenness

Bartholomew’s pudgy, trembling fingers reached for another chocolate from the tray at his elbow. Besotted from his excellent feast of port and chocolates, he wavered on the edge of consciousness, sure that there was no better combination of treats than what he was enjoying at that very moment.

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

Classifying Hydropower Becomes Hot Topic in Legislature (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/715884.html

‘Smart Grid’ Uniting More Than Power (Idaho Business Review)
http://www.idahobusiness.net/archive.htm/2009/04/20/Smart-Grid-uniting-more--than-power

New Tacoma Public Utilities Meter Reader Feels like One In A Million (The News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/715677.html

Wanapum Heritage Center Honors the River People (Indian Country Today)
http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/northwest/43279202.html

Court Rejects Former Kan. Utility CEO's Appeal (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009088284_apwittigsentence.html?syndication=rss

Nearly $200 Million Spent On Energy Ads since Obama’s Inauguration (Grist)
http://www.grist.org/article/2009-04-20-industry-groups-energy-ads/

FISH & WILDLIFE

Columbia River May Face Threat Of Mussels - A meeting Tuesday will focus on the potential invasion of zebra mussels in the Columbia River (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
http://union-bulletin.com/articles/2009/04/20/local_news/090420local01invasivespeciessemina.txt

Letting The Water Flow Allows The Salmon Chums To Grow - Grays River project returns pastureland to marsh (The Daily Astorian)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=398&ArticleID=60171&TM=54085.61

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Environmental agency's embarrassing sewer problem fixed (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/43326612.html

West Is Told to Expect Water Shortfalls (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/21/science/21obriver.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

How Drier I Am: Flow of Many Rivers in Decline (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2009093817_apusscishrinkingrivers.html?syndication=rss

NY Times Editorial - De-Watering Wyoming
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/21/opinion/21tues4.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Politicians Accuse Each Other Of Playing Dirty Politics (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/43322767.html

Skagit County - Bids on PUD Pipe Job Come in At Half the Estimate (Skagit Valley Herald)
http://www.goskagit.com/home/article/bids_on_pud_pipe_job_come_in_at_half_the_estimate/

RENEWABLE & ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Washington Could Be Closer to Recognizing Hydropower as Renewable Resource (KNDU-TV, Tri-Cities, WA)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=10217058

Forestry briefing explores wood as renewable energy source (The Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://columbian.com/article/20090420/NEWS02/704219986/

Biomass Energy Could Be Carbon "Sinner" (Reuters)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUKLL65478420090421

Residents Testify About REC Silicon’s Expansion - DOE Considering New Air Quality Permit “…Former plant neighbors…moved after two plant explosions in 1998. Claimed his wife’s skin began burning after the second explosion and paint peeled from their car...” (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)
http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/articles/2009/04/21/news/doc49edd6dfa7ec7193650133.txt

Offshore Wind Energy Blows In To NW Coast (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/4813-offshore-wind-energy-blows-nw-coast/

Neverending Story - Bremerton Port Nears Deal on SEED Support Services (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/apr/20/bremerton-port-nears-deal-on-seed-support/?partner=RSS

Britain Falls Behind On Investment in 'Clean' Energy (Financial Times Of London)
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b4c5b9f2-2e0c-11de-9eba-00144feabdc0.html

Palo Alto Leads Nation in Renewable Energy Participants (Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2009/04/20/daily14.html?ana=from_rss

Solar Power Cheaper than Utilities for First Time in Northeast (Renewable Energy World)
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/partner/alteris-4286/news/article/2009/04/solar-power-cheaper-than-utilities-for-first-time-in-northeast?src=rss

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Canada - Electronic vampires, be gone: Plasma TVs, microwaves, even your cell phone chargers suck up power when they're turned off, but there is a magic bullet for these phantoms (Canada.com)
http://www.canada.com/life/future-friendly/Electronic+vampires+begone/1452449/story.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

EPA Recognizes The Evergreen State College Green Power Champion (Earth Times)
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/epa-recognizes-the-evergreen-state,792227.shtml

Winning the War of Energy Words Takes Repetition (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/04/21/21greenwire-winning-the-war-of-words-takes-repetition-10615.html

Environmental Wars - Old Growth Logging With a Green Stamp of Approval? (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20090420.BCHUME20ART2225/TPStory//?page=rss&id=GAM.20090420.BCHUME20ART2225

Carbon tax - S.C. utilities wary of proposal: could increase bills up to 50 percent (The State, Columbia, SC)
http://www.scoop.com/remote/article/include/86015580/53616c7465645f5f9471cb928f6084200ece3f3cd1904240b95a81eb66a7fce0

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Amazon breaks ground at new South Lake Union headquarters (KIRO Radio, Seattle)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=158176

Internet Upstarts Left Sun In the Dust (San Francisco Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/20/BU4I175SA3.DTL&feed=rss.business

Can New York Save Broadband? (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/04/20/can-new-york-save-broadband/

Fiber Optics Brings Power and Speed to Tribe’s Computers (Indian Country Today)
http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/plains/43277532.html

Google Improves Image Search, Adds News Timeline (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_12186063

GENERAL NEWS

Hood Canal Bridge Set To Close May 1 for 6 Weeks (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/43302367.html

Legislature Overhauls Public Education (Associated Press)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=158370

DIVERSIONS

100-Year-Old Woman Rolls into Bowling History
http://www.kirotv.com/family/19224321/detail.html

Porterhouse Sizzles at Bulldog Beauty Contest
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090421/ap_on_fe_st/beautiful_bulldog_contest;_ylt=AqD6HltIQdYoWDT3jm0ITc3tiBIF

Indebted Spaniard Kidnaps His Banker
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090417/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_spain_bank_hostage;_ylt=Ar8IW9Ex6RZDGOCS1AUok9XtiBIF

Indian Politicians Demand Protection From Flying Shoes
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090417/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_india_election_shoes;_ylt=AgowKNN3zeB.rHI15BI999vtiBIF

SONG OF THE DAY

Debbie Harry & Kermit the Frog - The Rainbow Connection
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRvhRhWWE44

Sarah Mclachlan - The Rainbow Connection
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4GBnpS83As

Willie Nelson - Rainbow Connection
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oX9E_D_HjBo&feature=PlayList&p=80E68A06E34C054E&index=0&playnext=1