Energy News Digest for September 15, 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)

• Natural Gas Prices Jump 12 Percent
• Natural Gas Has Spiked 60% Since Labor Day. Why?
• Avista Cutting Natural Gas Rates
• TransAlta Earns Statewide Award
• Tennessee Valley Authority to Pay $43 Million on Projects in Spill Area
• New York Independent System Operator Seeks Changes to Energy Bidding
• Beware Of Utility Bill Phishing
• Colorado - Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association to Return $1.6 Million to Members
• Indiana - Alcoa Offers Incentives for Workers Who Leave
• Florida - Downtown Power Lines Battle Could Grow Into Lawsuit
• The Obama Administration Reveals Its Salmon Plan
• Obama Administration Backs Columbia Salmon and Dam Plan
• Salmon Plan Boosts Protection, Administration Says
• News Release - NOAA Strengthens 2008 Columbia River Salmon Protection Strategy
• Administration Presents Plan to Adapt to Change, Provide Insurance Policy for Fish
• Op/Ed - Energizing the Future to Save Our Salmon
• Inmates Join Battle against Weed to Protect North Mason Salmon Run
• Male Bass in Many US Rivers Feminized, Study Finds
• About 100 Dead or Sick Sea Ducks Found At Kalaloch, LaPush
• Bat Experts Watch Health of Northwest Colonies
• Headline Hilarity - PNW Study Suggests Less Total Precip in Dry Years
• People for Puget Sound Gets New Leader
• Schwarzenegger Plans Executive Order on Renewable Energy
• Editorial - A Clean-Energy Plan in Doubt
• California Renewables Push Could Drive Up Prices in Oregon
• Montana - Deal on Wind Power Sealed, Schweitzer Says
• Montana - Second Huge Wind Farm Planned For Toole, Glacier Counties
• Denmark – World’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm to Go Online
• Europe Wind Power Body Sees Big Offshore Potential
• It’s Time to Regulate Wind Farms
• PSE's Green Power Program Wins National Award
• Editorial - Tax Dollars should not Be Used to Hype Alternatives to Fossil Fuels
• Can Solar Energy Pay Off Without Subsidies?
• German Thieves' New Take on Solar Panel Recycling
• Can Energy Efficiency Goals Be Met Without More Laws?
• Oregon Proposes New Rules for Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions
• Clark County Calculates Which ‘Green’ Purchasing Efforts Pay Off
• Amazon Halts Work On Oregon Data Center Complex
• Comcast to Encrypt Signals
• $350 Million for Broadband Mapping: Too Much?
• Broadband over Powerline's Pulse Still Beats
• Google Hopes Readers Will 'Flip' Over New Format
• Deputies Arrest 'Polite' North Mason Robber
• City Of Shelton to Seek Stimulus Funds to Improve 101/Wallace Kneeland Interchange
• WA Gov Releases Natural Resource Reform Ideas
• People Empowered - Shelton-Area Family Pedals across Country

WORD OF THE DAY

Intestate • \in-TESS-tayt\ • adjective - 1: having made no valid will 2: not disposed of by will

The silence in the dark-paneled lawyer’s office was deafening. Brutus’ extended family had dutifully trooped into the hushed chamber, punctuated by silent coughs and the scraping of moving chairs. All 50 attendees had expected at least a share in the “Joanie Loves Chachi” memorabilia collection…breathless in anticipation over what the treasured items would bring in a planned Sotheby’s auction. The stunned silence was palpable as the attorney announced that Brutus died intestate. “But I thought he died in Omaha,” barked his clearly agitated uncle.

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

Natural Gas Prices Jump 12 Percent (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/14/financial/f022422D65.DTL&feed=rss.business

Natural Gas Has Spiked 60% Since Labor Day. Why? (Seeking Alpha)
http://seekingalpha.com/article/161308-natural-gas-has-spiked-60-since-labor-day-why?source=feed

Avista Cutting Natural Gas Rates - Utility hopes to have new prices in effect by November (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA)
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/sep/14/avista-cutting-gas-rates-third-time-year/

TransAlta Earns Statewide Award (KELA Radio, Centralia, WA)
http://www.kelaam.com/pages/localnews?TransAlta-Earns-Statewide-Award=1&blockID=75139&feedID=410

Tennessee Valley Authority to Pay $43 Million on Projects in Spill Area (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/15/us/15ash.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

New York Independent System Operator Seeks Changes to Energy Bidding (The Business Review)
http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/othercities/albany/stories/2009/09/14/daily5.html

Beware Of Utility Bill Phishing (KTHV-TV, Little Rock, AR)
http://www.todaysthv.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=90870&catid=2

Colorado - Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association to Return $1.6 Million to Members (The Coloradan, Fort Collins)
http://www.coloradoan.com/article/20090914/UPDATES03/90914013/PVREA+to+return++1.6+million+to+members+

Indiana - Alcoa Offers Incentives for Workers Who Leave (Journal Courier, Lafayette, IN)
http://www.jconline.com/article/20090915/BUSINESS/909150323

Florida - Downtown Power Lines Battle Could Grow Into Lawsuit (Cape Coral Daily Breeze, FL)
http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/510210.html?nav=5011

FISH & WILDLIFE

The Obama Administration Reveals Its Salmon Plan (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/09/the_obama_administration_revea.html

Obama Administration Backs Columbia Salmon and Dam Plan (Idaho Statesman, Boise)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/environment/story/900609.html

Salmon Plan Boosts Protection, Administration Says (Associated Press)
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/sep/15/obama-administration-release-salmon-plan/

News Release - NOAA Strengthens 2008 Columbia River Salmon Protection Strategy - Plan based on sound science; strengthened contingency plan added as insurance for salmon (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration)
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2009/20090915_salmon.html

Administration Presents Plan to Adapt to Change, Provide Insurance Policy for Fish (salmonrecovery.gov)
http://www.salmonrecovery.gov/Biological_Opinions/FCRPS/2008_biop/index.cfm

Oregonian Op/Ed - Energizing the Future to Save Our Salmon
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/09/energizing_the_future_to_save.html

Inmates Join Battle against Weed to Protect North Mason Salmon Run (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/59290287.html

Male Bass in Many US Rivers Feminized, Study Finds (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009864392_apussciintersexfish.html?syndication=rss

About 100 Dead or Sick Sea Ducks Found At Kalaloch, LaPush Beaches (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2009860574_seabirds14m.html

Bat Experts Watch Health of Northwest Colonies - After Northeast bat colonies suffer a deadly infection, a local bat study takes on new urgency
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2009860734_bats14m.html

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Headline Hilarity - PNW Study Suggests Less Total Precip in Dry Years (Associated Press)
http://www.kndu.com/global/story.asp?s=11131103

People for Puget Sound Gets New Leader (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/971202.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Schwarzenegger Plans Executive Order on Renewable Energy (Sacramento Bee, CA)
http://www.sacbee.com/capitolandcalifornia/story/2183025.html

SF Chronicle Editorial - A Clean-Energy Plan in Doubt
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/14/EDS919N0PE.DTL&feed=rss.opinion

California Renewables Push Could Drive Up Prices in Oregon (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/09/california_renewables_push_cou.html

Montana - Deal on Wind Power Sealed, Schweitzer Says (The Missoulian, MT)
http://www.missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/article_b24f828e-a1b6-11de-929d-001cc4c03286.html

Montana - Second Huge Wind Farm Planned For Toole, Glacier Counties (Great Falls Tribune, MT)
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20090913/NEWS01/909130303

Denmark – World’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm to Go Online (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/15/largest-offshore-wind-farm-to-go-online/

Europe Wind Power Body Sees Big Offshore Potential (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-GreenBusiness/idUSTRE58D30J20090914

It’s Time to Regulate Wind Farms - For the past decade, Northwest policymakers have treated wind energy like a newborn, lavishing it with political love and bathing it in tax credits and other incentives (AgWeek)
http://www.agweek.com/articles/?id=6100&article_id=15000&property_id=41

PSE's Green Power Program Wins National Award (iStock Analyst)
http://www.istockanalyst.com/article/viewiStockNews/articleid/3480984

Washington Post Editorial - Self-Serve, Please: Tax Dollars should not Be Used to Hype Alternatives to Fossil Fuels
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/13/AR2009091302448.html?nav=rss_opinions

Can Solar Energy Pay Off Without Subsidies? (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112839270&ft=1&f=3

German Thieves' New Take on Solar Panel Recycling (National Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112839276&ft=1&f=3

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Can Energy Efficiency Goals Be Met Without More Laws? (Power Engineering)
http://pepei.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ARTCL&PUBLICATION_ID=6&ARTICLE_ID=369025&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Oregon Proposes New Rules for Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/09/oregon_proposes_new_rules_for.html

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Clark County Calculates Which ‘Green’ Purchasing Efforts Pay Off (Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://columbian.com/article/20090915/NEWS02/709159953/

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Amazon Halts Work On Oregon Data Center Complex (Portland Business Journal)
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/09/14/daily8.html?ana=from_rss

Comcast to Encrypt Signals (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009860393_brier14.html

$350 Million for Broadband Mapping: Too Much? One company says they could do it for $3.5 million (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/350-Million-For-Broadband-Mapping-Too-Much-104442

Broadband over Powerline's Pulse Still Beats (Fierce Telecom)
http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/broadband-over-powerlines-pulse-still-beats/2009-09-14

Google Hopes Readers Will 'Flip' Over New Format (Associated Press)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/14/financial/f160151D97.DTL&feed=rss.business

GENERAL NEWS

Deputies Arrest 'Polite' North Mason Robber (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/14/deputies-arrest-polite-north-mason-robber/?partner=RSS

City Of Shelton to Seek Stimulus Funds to Improve 101/Wallace Kneeland Interchange (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=169:city-applying-for-stimulus-funds-to-improve-101wallace-kneeland-interchange-&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50

WA Gov Releases Natural Resource Reform Ideas (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/5807-wa-gov-releases-natural-resource-reform-ideas/

People Empowered - Shelton-Area Family Pedals across Country (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/971191.html

ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS

California Disability Applicant Arrested After Video Shows Her Bowling
http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/2183027.html

Cruzin' Cooler Is A Drink Cooler That You Can Ride
http://consumerist.com/5359742/cruzin-cooler-is-a-drink-cooler-that-you-can-ride

Pharmacy Tech Sues Employer over Mock Holdup
http://www.kirotv.com/news/20900565/detail.html

Worker Honored For 50 Years at McDonald's
http://www.kirotv.com/money/20910531/detail.html

SONG OF THE DAY

Billy Joel - Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UBpt1dya60