Energy News Digest for September 1, 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)

• Puget Sound Energy Natural-Gas Rates May Fall 17%
• BPA - $32M Power Deal Doesn't Add Up, 9th Circuit Rules
• Avista Seeks Oregon Natural Gas Rate Cut
• Eugene Natural Gas Prices to Decline, But Electricity’s Going Up
• Great Falls Plans to Write off Some of Its $2.3 Million Power Plant Investment as Losses
• Tacoma Power Scores Fifth In Region on J.D. Power Survey
• Grid Lock: New Transmission Lines Key for Clean Energy–And Coal
• Siberia Dam Accident Could Aid Aluminum Industry
• Wisconsin - Lawsuits Seek Payment from Manitowoc Aluminum Mill
• Climate Change Bill to Boost Nuclear Plants
• Editorial - Obama’s Plan B for Nuke Waste: Hanford
• United Kingdom Is ‘Facing 70s-Style Blackouts’
• Op/Ed - Collaborating For Salmon
• Op/Ed - Washington View: Breaching Snake River dams will return farmland to desert
• Editorial - New Salmon Voices Are Welcome
• Columbia River & Tributaries Fish Reports
• Mussel Invasion Closes In On Northwest Waters
• The Art in Returning A Stream to Its Natural State
• Kingco May Declare Green River Flood Emergency
• Editorial - Great Lakes Rescue
• Editorial - Tax Dollars Blowin' in the Wind
• Editorial - Not Blowing Smoke: The reality of wind energy shows promise of living up to the hype
• Europe’s Ban on Old-Style Light Bulbs Begins
• Hoarding Energy-Guzzling Bulbs Ahead Of European Union Ban
• Firm's Hybrid Bulbs Put Spotlight on Incandescents
• Compact Fluorescent Bulbs Shine in Tests
• EPA To Declare Carbon Dioxide a Dangerous Pollutant
• U.S. Climate Change Bill Hits New Senate Delay
• US Agriculture Interests Split Over Energy Bill
• Op/Ed - ‘Cap & Trade’ Will Hit Montana Hard
• Venture Firm’s ‘Green’ Funds Top $1 Billion
• California - Palo Alto Plans for Electric Car Boom
• Key Milestones in the Development of Internet
• Report: Microsoft Hosts Weekly 'Screw Google' Meetings
• Surprise! Wi-Fi Alliance Says Travelers Want Wi-Fi on Planes
• Referendum to Overturn Gay Partnership Law Makes Ballot
• Wash. Panel Wants Repeal of Lawmaker Public Records Exemption
• St. Edwards "Unwavering" In Sale of Former Shelton Church Building
• Modeled on PUD 3 Program – Shelton City Employees Raise Funds for S-O-S Program
• Recession Trims Seattle Traffic Congestion 8%

WORD OF THE DAY

Animadversion • \an-uh-mad-VER-zhun\ • noun – *1: a critical & usually censorious remark - often used with "on" 2: adverse criticism

It was a surreal moment. In a room full of energy analysts, it was expected that the power marketers would walk the “party line” of their corporate bosses. That’s what made the animadversion of the XYZ Energy representative (who blurted out Tourettes fashion) that he wasn’t interested in price equity, his company just wanted to squeeze all the utilities for as much as they could get. The ensuing, jaw-dropping silence was deafening.

WEATHER

Shelton Forecast & 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

Puget Sound Energy Natural-Gas Rates May Fall 17% “…the utility also has a separate, & unrelated, request pending before the utilities commission that would increase rates next year…” (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009782277_gasrates01m.html

BPA - $32M Power Deal Doesn't Add Up, 9th Circuit Rules (Courthouse News Service)
http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/08/31/$32M_Power_Deal_Doesn_t_Add_Up_9th_Circuit_Rules.htm

Avista Seeks Oregon Natural Gas Rate Cut (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/08/31/daily8.html?ana=from_rss

Eugene Natural Gas Prices to Decline, But Electricity’s Going Up (Eugene Register-Guard, OR)
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/cityregion/19459044-41/story.csp

Great Falls Plans to Write off Some of Its $2.3 Million Power Plant Investment as Losses (Great Falls Tribune, MT)
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20090901/NEWS01/909010301/City-plans-to-write-off-some-of-its--2.3-million-as-losses

Tacoma Power Scores Fifth In Region on J.D. Power Survey (Tacoma Public Utilities)
http://www.mytpu.org/newsroom/power-news/tacoma-power-scores.htm

Grid Lock: New Transmission Lines Key for Clean Energy–And Coal (Wall Street Journal)
http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/08/31/grid-lock-new-transmission-lines-key-for-clean-energy-and-coal/

Siberia Dam Accident Could Aid Aluminum Industry (Yahoo! Finance)
http://uk.biz.yahoo.com/18082009/323/siberia-dam-accident-aid-aluminum-industry.html

Wisconsin - Lawsuits Seek Payment From Manitowoc Aluminum Mill – Disputes over services rendered but not paid for or metal that has gone missing (Herald Times Reporter, Manitowoc, WI)
http://www.htrnews.com/article/20090901/MAN0101/909010489/1984/MAN04

Climate Change Bill to Boost Nuclear Plants (Washington Times)
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/sep/01/climate-change-bill-to-boost-nuclear-plants/

News Tribune Editorial - Obama’s Plan B for Nuke Waste: Hanford
http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/863291.html

United Kingdom Is ‘Facing 70s-Style Blackouts’ - Report casts doubt over the Government's pledge that renewable sources can make up for lower output from nuclear & coal (Press Association, UK)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5jGxxCQiHSsrWH_wMcfxmR-cRfyGw

FISH & WILDLIFE

Oregonian Op/Ed - Collaborating For Salmon
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/08/collaborating_for_salmon.html

Columbian Op/Ed - Washington View: Breaching Snake River dams will return farmland to desert
http://columbian.com/article/20090818/BIZ01/708189998/-1/BIZ

Astorian Editorial - New Salmon Voices Are Welcome: Lower river joint fisheries commission can be a constructive force
http://www.dailyastorian.info/main.asp?SectionID=23&SubSectionID=392&ArticleID=63709&TM=56871.56

Columbia River & Tributaries Fish Reports (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/reeltimenorthwest/2009781639_columbia_river_and_tributaries.html

Mussel Invasion Closes In On Northwest Waters - threaten to gum up the dams that produce the region's cheap electricity (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2009776836_mussels31.html

The Art in Returning A Stream to Its Natural State (Bend Bulletin, OR)
http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090831/NEWS0107/908310372/-1/rss

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Kingco May Declare Green River Flood Emergency (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009785728_apwagreenriverflooding.html?syndication=rss

NY Times Editorial - Great Lakes Rescue “…the lakes still suffer — from lingering industrial pollution, toxics like mercury, deteriorating wetlands &, more recently, invasive species that have devastated the fishing industry & fouled shorelines…”
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/opinion/01tue3.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Oregonian Editorial - Tax Dollars Blowin' in the Wind “…Oregon taxpayers are paying an unnecessarily high price to encourage clean renewable energy…”
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/08/tax_dollars_blowin_in_the_wind.html

Columbian Editorial - Not Blowing Smoke: The reality of wind energy shows promise of living up to the hype
http://columbian.com/article/20090901/OPINION02/709019986/-1/OPINION

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Europe’s Ban on Old-Style Light Bulbs Begins (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/business/energy-environment/01iht-bulb.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Hoarding Energy-Guzzling Bulbs Ahead Of European Union Ban (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE57U4WT20090831?feedType=nl&feedName=usmorningdigest

Firm's Hybrid Bulbs Put Spotlight on Incandescents (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112407832&ft=1&f=2

Compact Fluorescent Bulbs Shine in Tests (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112416464&ft=1&f=2

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

EPA To Declare Carbon Dioxide a Dangerous Pollutant (SF Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/08/31/MNM219GIJD.DTL&feed=rss.news

U.S. Climate Change Bill Hits New Senate Delay (Reuters)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKWBT01311020090831

US Agriculture Interests Split Over Energy Bill (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/01/financial/f000050D77.DTL&feed=rss.business

Missoulian Op/Ed - ‘Cap & Trade’ Will Hit Montana Hard
http://www.missoulian.com/news/opinion/columnists/article_1d300018-9700-11de-bffa-001cc4c03286.html

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Venture Firm’s ‘Green’ Funds Top $1 Billion (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/business/01khosla.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

California - Palo Alto Plans for Electric Car Boom (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_13244410?nclick_check=1

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Key Milestones in The Development Of Internet (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009779438_apustecinternetat40timeline.html?syndication=rss

Report: Microsoft Hosts Weekly 'Screw Google' Meetings (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://blog.seattlepi.com/microsoft/archives/177866.asp?source=pimail

Surprise! Wi-Fi Alliance Says Travelers Want Wi-Fi on Planes (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/08/31/surprise-wi-fi-alliance-says-travelers-want-wi-fi-on-planes/

GENERAL NEWS

Referendum to Overturn Gay Partnership Law Makes Ballot (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/20653666/detail.html

Wash. Panel Wants Repeal of Lawmaker Public Records Exemption (Associated Press)
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_sunshine_committee.html?source=pimail

St. Edwards "Unwavering" In Sale of Former Shelton Church Building (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/smid/3468/ArticleID/8115/reftab/1632/Default.aspx

Modeled on PUD 3 Program – Shelton City Employees Raise Funds for S-O-S Program (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/News/NewsArticle/tabid/1897/smid/3468/ArticleID/8121/reftab/1632/t/CITY-EMPLOYEES-RAISE-FUNDS-FOR-S-O-S-PROGRAM/Default.aspx

Recession Trims Seattle Traffic Congestion 8% (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009785888_webtraffic01m.html?syndication=rss

ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS

Detroit Mailman Charged After Thousands of Pieces Found
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_13240728

Teacher Accused of Selling Grades for Cash - Students Told Money Went To Charity
http://www.kirotv.com/news/20653270/detail.html

Ohio Judge Silences Defendant with Duct Tape
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090901/ap_on_re_us/us_odd_defendant_s_mouth_taped;_ylt=Apf.SQNEiUem6SAg_7rCEg3tiBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTJ2N2h1MTdhBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkwOTAxL3VzX29kZF9kZWZlbmRhbnRfc19tb3V0aF90YXBlZARjcG9zAzEEcG9zAzEEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDb2hpb2p1ZGdlc2ls

“Too Tall” Chinese Basketball Player Sparks Fan Violence
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090827/od_nm/us_china_violence;_ylt=Ag2EJBVuez4BUvrfIei.Z9ntiBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTJtM2RzaW9sBGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMDkwODI3L3VzX2NoaW5hX3Zpb2xlbmNlBHBvcwM1BHNlYwN5bl9hcnRpY2xlX3N1bW1hcnlfbGlzdARzbGsDcXVvdHRvb3RhbGxx

SONG OF THE DAY

Make Me Lose Control - Eric Carmen (Just don’t get any of this bubblegum in your hair, Eric – BTW, George Lucas wants his white Thunderbird from America Graffiti back…)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zajTU5h_YGM