Energy News Digest for September 30, 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)

• Cowlitz PUD Officials Approve Rate Increase
• Lock At the Dalles Dam On Columbia River Shut Down
• Avista Reaches Settlement in Oregon Natural Gas Rate Request
• Farmers Protest Idaho Falls Power’s Planned Transmission Line
• Op/Ed - Dialogue Key to Idaho Power Boardman to Hemingway Transmission Project
• Liquefied Natural Gas Opponents Make Their Case for Recall of Clatsop Commissioners
• China Orders Crackdown On Industrial Overcapacity
• Mississippi Steel Offered Low-Cost New York Hydro-Power Deal
• Big Utilities Pull Back on Coal Plant Plans
• Deal Would Remove Klamath River Dams to Aid Salmon
• Utility Agrees To Terms for Removing Klamath Dams
• Utility Agrees To Removal of 4 Klamath River Dams
• Landmark Agreement to Remove 4 Klamath River Dams
• Could Klamath Dam Removal Deal Set Future Precedent?
• Strong Fish Returns Allow Six Eastern Washington Rivers to Open for Hatchery Steelhead
• Elwha River Turns Red for Pre-Dam Removal Test
• Fed Stimulus Money Helping Prep Lower Elwha for Dam Removal
• Shovelnose Sturgeon Proposed For Listing
• House Dust in Washing Machines Might Be Chemically Polluting Puget Sound
• Colorado Governor Says Western Water Policies Must Change
• Canadian Ferries To Stop Dumping Sewage Into Ocean
• Editorial - Cities on Right Path to Deal with Water Issues
• Alternative Energy Projects Stumble on a Need for Water
• Clallam County PUD Sets Annual Solar Tour
• Clean Energy on Display at Saturday's Kitsap Solar Tour
• Chinese company takes over Hoku Scientific
• San Francisco tilts toward wind power
• As Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb Sales Fall, More Incentives Urged
• Contest for Brightest Idea in Light-Bulb Makeover
• Oregon Rep. Wu Introduces Bills to Encourage Energy Efficient Buildings
• Climate Control Debate Heats Up In Senate
• U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Faces Revolt over Its Opposition to Global Warming Legislation
• What Ever Happened to the Ozone Layer? Is there still a hole in it?
• Snohomish County Fleet To Burn Cleaner Fuel
• From Turbines & Straw, Danish Self-Sufficiency
• Some Coffee Shops Crack Down On Free Wi-Fi
• Borders Books to Offer Free WiFi Starting Next Month
• FCC’s Broadband Plan: A Need for (Actual) Speed
• FCC: We're halfway Done with National Broadband Plan
• Verizon: Metered Broadband Is Coming
• Traffic during Belfair Sewer Construction Will Be Horrible
• Driver in Belfair Crash Jailed, Passengers Released from Hospital
• El Niño Should Mean Drier Seattle Winter, But Maybe Not
• Strange Twists in Capture of Alleged Metal Thief
• Alexander to Step Down as WA Chief Justice

WORD OF THE DAY

Pabulum • \PAB-yuh-lum\ • noun – 1: food; especially: a suspension or solution of nutrients in a state suitable for absorption *2: intellectual sustenance 3: something (as writing or speech) that is insipid, simplistic, or bland

As far as literary content is concerned, the scrawling writing efforts of the kindergarten student were considered mere pabulum by her adult relatives. Her parents, on the other hand, custom-framed the alphabetic efforts of the tot and hung the creation next to their Franklin Mint replica of the Declaration of Independence.

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

Cowlitz PUD Officials Approve Rate Increase (The Daily News, Longview, WA)
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/09/30/area_news/doc4ac2ae28952f5543394061.txt

Lock At the Dalles Dam On Columbia River Shut Down (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/987598.html

Avista Reaches Settlement in Oregon Natural Gas Rate Request (Yahoo! Finance)
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Avista-Reaches-Settlement-in-prnews-141626221.html?x=0&.v=1

Farmers Protest Idaho Falls Power’s Planned Transmission Line (Associated Press)
http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/986926.html

East Oregonian Op/Ed - Dialogue Key to Idaho Power Boardman to Hemingway Transmission Project
http://eastoregonian.com/main.asp?SectionID=14&SubSectionID=50&ArticleID=98441

Liquefied Natural Gas Opponents Make Their Case For Recall Of Clatsop Commissioners (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/09/lng_opponents_make_their_case.html

China Orders Crackdown On Industrial Overcapacity - new aluminum production projects are banned for three years (Associated Press)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iL02QM067VXDWSLRj1mWOPVeS5LwD9B1JCTO0

Mississippi Steel Offered Low-Cost New York Hydro-Power Deal (Business First of Buffalo)
http://buffalo.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2009/09/28/daily20.html?ana=from_rss

Big Utilities Pull Back on Coal Plant Plans (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/29/big-utilities-pull-back-on-coal-plant-plans/

FISH & WILDLIFE

Deal Would Remove Klamath River Dams to Aid Salmon (Oregonian)
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/09/deal_would_remove_klamath_rive.html

Utility Agrees To Terms for Removing Klamath Dams (KOMO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/62868162.html

Utility Agrees To Removal of 4 Klamath River Dams (Los Angeles Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-klamath30-2009sep30,0,3525101.story

Landmark Agreement to Remove 4 Klamath River Dams (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/09/30/30greenwire-landmark-agreement-to-remove-4-klamath-river-d-72992.html

Could Klamath Dam Removal Deal Set Future Precedent? (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/5931-could-klamath-dam-removal-deal-set-future-precedent/

Strong Fish Returns Allow Six Eastern Washington Rivers to Open for Hatchery Steelhead (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/reeltimenorthwest/2009967645_strong_fish_returns_allow_six.html?syndication=rss

Elwha River Turns Red for Pre-Dam Removal Test (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20090930/news/309309990

Fed Stimulus Money Helping Prep Lower Elwha for Dam Removal (KONP Radio, Port Angeles, WA)
http://www.konp.com/local/5133

Shovelnose Sturgeon Proposed For Listing (Associated Press)
http://www.examiner.com/a-2241895~Shovelnose_sturgeon_proposed_for_listing.html?cid=rss-Montana_Headlines

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

House Dust in Washing Machines Might Be Chemically Polluting Puget Sound (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/410626_badchemicals29.html?source=rss

Colorado Governor Says Western Water Policies Must Change (Associated Press)
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/sep/29/colo-gov-western-water-policies-must-change/

Canadian Ferries To Stop Dumping Sewage Into Ocean – now, if you can just get Victoria to stop it… (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)
http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/Ferries+stop+dumping+sewage+into+ocean/2046993/story.html

Olympian Editorial - Cities on Right Path to Deal with Water Issues
http://www.theolympian.com/opinion/story/987556.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Alternative Energy Projects Stumble on a Need for Water (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/business/energy-environment/30water.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Clallam County PUD Sets Annual Solar Tour (Sequim Gazette, WA)
http://www.sequimgazette.com/gazettetop/articleDetail.exm/Index/article/2009-09-30_Clallam_County_PUD_sets_annual_solar_tour/

Clean Energy on Display at Saturday's Kitsap Solar Tour (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/29/clean-energy-on-display-at-saturdays-kitsap-tour/?partner=RSS

Chinese company takes over Hoku Scientific - Takeover gives Hoku money to finish building plant in Pocatello, Idaho (Pacific Business News)
http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2009/09/28/daily21.html?ana=from_rss

San Francisco tilts toward wind power (SF Chronicle)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/29/MNAO19U159.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

As Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb Sales Fall, More Incentives Urged (NY Times)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/28/as-cfl-sales-fall-more-incentives-urged/

Contest for Brightest Idea in Light-Bulb Makeover (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009968878_lightbulbprize30.html

Oregon Rep. Wu Introduces Bills to Encourage Energy Efficient Buildings (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
http://news.opb.org/article/5920-rep-wu-introduces-bills-encourage-energy-efficient-buildings/

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Climate Control Debate Heats Up In Senate (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE58S5X320090930?feedType=nl&feedName=ustopnewsearly

U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Faces Revolt over Its Opposition to Global Warming Legislation (San Jose Mercury News, CA)
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_13447658

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

What Ever Happened to the Ozone Layer? Is there still a hole in it? (Slate Magazine)
http://www.slate.com/id/2229859/?from=rss

Snohomish County Fleet To Burn Cleaner Fuel - Vehicles will rely more on biodiesel, ethanol & electricity, & electric-vehicle charging stations (Everett Herald, WA)
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090929/NEWS01/709299872/-1/RSS02

From Turbines & Straw, Danish Self-Sufficiency (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/world/europe/30samso.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Some Coffee Shops Crack Down On Free Wi-Fi (Nat’l Public Radio)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113134753&ft=1&f=2

Borders Books to Offer Free WiFi Starting Next Month (Associated Press)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009967745_apusborderswifi.html?syndication=rss

FCC’s Broadband Plan: A Need for (Actual) Speed (GigaOM)
http://gigaom.com/2009/09/29/fccs-broadband-plan-a-need-for-actual-speed/

FCC: We're halfway Done with National Broadband Plan - It could cost between $20 & $350 billion to get job done (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/FCC-Were-Halfway-Done-With-National-Broadband-Plan-104715

Verizon: Metered Broadband Is Coming - As long as consumers are stupid enough to allow it (Broadband Reports)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Verizon-Metered-Broadband-Is-Coming-104713

GENERAL NEWS

Traffic during Belfair Sewer Construction Will Be Horrible (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)
http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=276:traffic-during-belfair-sewer-construction-will-be-horrible&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50

Driver in Belfair Crash Jailed, Passengers Released from Hospital (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)
http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/29/driver-in-belfair-crash-jailed-passengers-from/?partner=RSS

El Niño Should Mean Drier Seattle Winter, But Maybe Not (Seattle Times)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009969444_elnino30m.html

Strange Twists in Capture of Alleged Metal Thief (KIRO-TV, Seattle)
http://www.kirotv.com/news/21153900/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_7am&tmi=sea_7am_1_09000109302009&ts=H

Alexander to Step Down as WA Chief Justice (Associated Press)
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=218688

ALLIGATORS IN THE SEWER - DIVERSIONS

'First Clown in Space' Has Serious Goals
http://www.kirotv.com/entertainment/20688549/detail.html?treets=sea&tid=2653595907813&tml=sea_7am&tmi=sea_7am_1_09000109302009&ts=H

Police: Teen Uses Fork to Brand Friend
http://www.kirotv.com/news/21151688/detail.html

Elephants Find Recession Work Washing Cars - Car Wash Promises Not To Get Cars Clean
http://www.kirotv.com/travelgetaways/21156464/detail.html

Ailing Chicken Leaves Behind Giant Egg
http://www.kirotv.com/news/21136512/detail.html

SONG OF THE DAY

Melanie Safka - Brand New Key
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vr9rtQbijR8&feature=related