Energy News Digest for September 17, 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)

• Jefferson PUD Prepares to Go to Community on Bid to Acquire Electrical Service
• Dam Tourism: Nation's Highest-Wattage Hydroelectric Wonders Are In Washington
• New Jersey - Nation's Oldest Nuclear Plant Showing Its Age
• Panel Says Electrical Grid Vulnerable To Terrorist Attack
• Natural Gas Prices Set To Slump
• Shares of Itron Rise on Stimulus View
• Audit: King Co. Utilities Wasting Tens of Millions
• Hastings Says Dam Removal Alternative Is Political
• Feds Push For Salmon Recovery
• Congressmen Question NOAA Head on Snake River Dam Removal
• Editorial - Obama Did Little for Dam Breaching Advocates
• Gregoire, Obama Administration Ink $40.5M Salmon Deal
• Washington State Signs Agreement with Federal Action Agencies
• Fishery: It's Only a Test
• Pink Fishing Winding Down, But Coho Picking Up Slack
• That’s my Tribe - Salmon People Feast: Cowlitz Tribal Gatherings
• Scientist Won’t ID Beaches That Tested Positive for Bacteria
• Toxic Soup Danger in Green River Flood Threat
• Puget Sound-Area Organizations Join to Fight Water Pollution
• Shellfish Gathering Closed In Bellingham Harbor
• Obama's Ocean Task Force to Recommend New Policy
• Weevils get to work in Capitol Lake – Milfoil
• Comments Favor Name Proposal for ‘Salish Sea’
• Editorial - Harvest Wind an Impressive Energy Project
• State Could Shine As Solar Hub
• United Kingdom - Caithness Man Killed In Accident at Wind Farm
• Michigan - New Program Pays Biomass Plant Suppliers
• Tucson Electric Power Plans Vast Solar Power Plants
• New York - Residential Windmill Gives Man Independence from Electric Bills
• Obama Administration Pushes Climate Talks into 2010
• Climate Bill Drifts Into a Potomac Fog
• Another Health-Care Casualty: The Cap-&-Trade Bill
• Cap-&-Trade Memos Fire up the Skeptics
• A Few Western Glaciers Growing; What's Up With That?
• World’s Oceans Were Warmest on Record in June through August
• Dong Energy: 'Clean' Denmark's Dirty Secret
• Op/Ed - Energy 'Sprawl' & the Green Economy
• Carbon Footprint - Will Eugene Green Its Sooty Foot?
• College Students Protest Coal Use on Campuses
• I.B.M. Sets Out to Make a City in Iowa ‘Smarter’
• Cable Beating Telcos in Phone Service
• Florida - Comcast, Springfield Cable Disagreement Leads to Arrest
• Google Updates Browser, Plans to Gain Share
• School Bus Hit In Belfair, Driver & Kids Unhurt
• Judge Accused of Assuming Clerk's ID to Attack Opponent
• Venture Bank Stock Likely Has No Value

WORD OF THE DAY

Proffer • \PRAH-fer\ • verb - To present for acceptance: tender, offer

I proffer this verse
Henry Gibson said mildly
Rest in peace my friend

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

Jefferson PUD Prepares to Go to Community on Bid to Acquire Electrical Service (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20090917/news/309179992

Dam Tourism: Nation's Highest-Wattage Hydroelectric Wonders Are In Washington (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2009880632_nwwdams17.html

New Jersey - Nation's Oldest Nuclear Plant Showing Its Age (Associated Press)
http://www.lakewyliepilot.com/427/story/468103.html

Panel Says Electrical Grid Vulnerable To Terrorist Attack (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/2009-09-16-electrical-grid-attack_N.htm

Natural Gas Prices Set To Slump: Expert (Commodity Online)
http://www.commodityonline.com/news/Natural-gas-prices-set-to-slump-Expert-21154-3-1.html

Shares of Itron Rise on Stimulus View (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009887116_apusitronmover.html?syndication=rss

Audit: King Co. Utilities Wasting Tens of Millions (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/archives/179318.asp?source=pimail

FISH & WILDLIFE

Hastings Says Dam Removal Alternative Is Political (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/882785.html

Feds Push For Salmon Recovery - Plan includes: habitat, harvest activities, hatchery production, hydropower operations (East Oregonian, Pendleton, OR)
http://eastoregonian.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=97892&SectionID=13&SubSectionID=48

Congressmen Question NOAA Head on Snake River Dam Removal (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/09/congressman_questions_noaa_hea.html

Idaho Statesman Editorial - Obama Did Little for Dam Breaching Advocates
http://www.idahostatesman.com/editorial/story/902713.html

Gregoire, Obama Administration Ink $40.5M Salmon Deal - Oregon, which is suing over federal dam plan, left out in the cold (Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://www.columbian.com/article/20090917/NEWS02/709179949/Gregoire++Obama+administration+ink+$40.5M+salmon+deal

News Release - Washington State Signs Agreement with Federal Action Agencies - Improvements promote Columbia River estuary, a key nursery for fish (Bonneville Power Administration)
http://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1582/326582/

Fishery: It's Only a Test - Research project explores ways to catch more hatchery fish & fewer wild salmon & steelhead (Daily Astorian, OR)
http://www.dailyastorian.com/Main.asp?SectionID=2&ArticleID=64115

Pink Fishing Winding Down, But Coho Picking Up Slack (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/outdoors/story/973526.html

That’s my Tribe - Salmon People Feast: Cowlitz Tribal Gatherings Offer Traditional as well as Multi-Cultural Foods (Chronicle, Centralia, WA)
http://www.chronline.com/articles/2009/09/16/life/doc4ab12c62b4836236057640.txt

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Scientist Won’t ID Beaches That Tested Positive for Bacteria (Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)
http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2009/09/16/local_news/doc4ab124990d31b460543084.txt

Toxic Soup Danger in Green River Flood Threat (KIRO Radio, Seattle)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=213382

Puget Sound-Area Organizations Join to Fight Water Pollution (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/973458.html

Shellfish Gathering Closed In Bellingham Harbor (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009880753_apwabellinghamshellfish.html?syndication=rss

Obama's Ocean Task Force to Recommend New Policy (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-2222404~Obama_s_ocean_task_force_to_recommend_new_policy.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines

Weevils get to work in Capitol Lake - Milfoil: Aquatic bug used in fight against invasive plant (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/973440.html

Comments Favor Name Proposal for ‘Salish Sea’ (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/882628.html

RENEWABLE & ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Peninsula Gateway Editorial - Harvest Wind an Impressive Energy Project (Gig Harbor)
http://www.gateline.com/opinion/story/5112.html

State Could Shine As Solar Hub (Columbian, Vancouver, WA)
http://columbian.com/article/20090917/BIZ01/709179983/-1/BIZ

United Kingdom - Caithness Man Killed In Accident at Wind Farm (The Press & Journal, UK)
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1400260?UserKey=

Michigan - New Program Pays Biomass Plant Suppliers (Associated Press)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i4kkYcH25RUuxdNcEsfar8GN3_VgD9AOLAN00

Tucson Electric Power Plans Vast Solar Power Plants (Arizona Daily Star)
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/biz-topheadlines/309323.php

New York - Residential Windmill Gives Man Independence from Electric Bills (Star Gazette, Elmira, NY)
http://www.stargazette.com/article/20090916/NEWS01/909160398/Residential+windmill+gives+man+independence+from+electric+bills

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Obama Administration Pushes Climate Talks into 2010 (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2009/09/17/17climatewire-obama-administration-pushes-climate-talks-in-22433.html

Climate Bill Drifts Into a Potomac Fog (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2009/09/17/17climatewire-climate-bill-drifts-into-a-potomac-fog-96749.html

Another Health-Care Casualty: The Cap-&-Trade Bill (Time Magazine)
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1924295,00.html

Cap-&-Trade Memos Fire up the Skeptics (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/16/AR2009091603524.html?wprss=rss_business

A Few Western Glaciers Growing; What's Up With That? (Oregon Public Radio)
http://news.opb.org/article/5822-few-western-glaciers-growing-whats/

World’s Oceans Were Warmest on Record in June through August (Bloomberg)
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601124&sid=abvAze6O9_d0

Dong Energy: 'Clean' Denmark's Dirty Secret - State-owned Dong Energy trades on its green image at home while outsourcing the dirty end of its energy portfolio with coal-fired power stations elsewhere in Europe (The Guardian, UK)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2009/sep/17/greenwash-dong-energy

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Wall Street Journal Op/Ed - Energy 'Sprawl' & the Green Economy: We're about to destroy the environment in the name of saving it
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203440104574404762971139026.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Carbon Footprint - Will Eugene Green Its Sooty Foot? (Eugene Weekly, OR)
http://www.eugeneweekly.com/2009/09/17/coverstory.html

College Students Protest Coal Use on Campuses (Associated Press)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gVCVG4hH1GoEOQI8lf3shK-JgOVAD9AOO4P81

I.B.M. Sets Out to Make a City in Iowa ‘Smarter’ (NY Times)
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/17/the-smartest-us-city-is-dubuque/

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Cable Beating Telcos in Phone Service - According to latest study by J.D. Power & Associates (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Cable-Beating-Telcos-In-Phone-Service-104505

Florida - Comcast, Springfield Cable Disagreement Leads to Arrest (News Herald, Panama City, FL)
http://www.newsherald.com/news/springfield-77508-arrest-cable.html

Google Updates Browser, Plans to Gain Share (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE58E5KJ20090915?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology

GENERAL NEWS

School Bus Hit In Belfair, Driver & Kids Unhurt (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/breakingnews/story/973375.html

Judge Accused of Assuming Clerk's ID to Attack Opponent (KING-TV, Seattle)
http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_091609WAB-AP-municipal-judge-investigated-TP.1873ddc93.html?rss

Venture Bank Stock Likely Has No Value - Letter to shareholders says all value believed gone (Olympian, WA)
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/973439.html

DIVERSIONS

Mary Travers of Peter, Paul & Mary Dies
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/16/mary-travers-of-peter-paul-and-mary-dies/?partner=rss&emc=rss

'Laugh-In' actor Henry Gibson dies at 73
http://www.examiner.com/a-2220875~_Laugh_In__actor_Henry_Gibson_dies_at_73.html?cid=rss-California_Headlines

Snuggie among New Styles at Fashion Week
http://www.kirotv.com/money/20927124/detail.html

Australian Cat Strays 2,400 Miles, Returns Home
http://www.kirotv.com/family/20941067/detail.html

Pool Ball Lays Out Would-Be Robber
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/882624.html

SONGS OF THE DAY

Peter Paul & Mary - Day Is Done (Mary Travers, R.I.P.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U9bKhXyNGg&feature=related

Phoebe Snow - Poetry Man (Henry Gibson, R.I.P.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OxTVxGhHFM