Energy News Digest for January 19, 2010

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)

•  BPA, Corps Table Request to Fluctuate the Level of Lake Pend Oreille This Winter

•  TransAlta Tax Break Targeted by Dems

•  Portland General Electric Mulls Biomass if Boardman Closes

•  BPA Hopes to Build New Eastern Washington Transmission Line

•  Hearing Set for Proposed Maine Transmission Line

•  An Idaho County Moves Closer to Allowing a Nuclear Plant

•  A Nuclear Critic Draws a Lesson from France’s Success

•  Montana's Bruce Measure Named New NPCC Chair, Washington's Wallace Vice-Chair

•  Recession To Blame For Drop In Electric Output

•  Florida - Battle over What Power Companies Can Charge

•  Funding Suspended for $10-Billion in Florida Electric Projects

•  Canada - Shocker: We Don't Pay Enough for Electricity

•  University of Tennessee to Ask Tennessee Valley Authority for Lower Rates

•  Monday's Wind Knocks Out Power to About 1,000

•  Grays Harbor - Howler of a Storm KOs Power in Some Areas

•  Windy Weather Leaves Some in the Dark - At Least for a Few Hours

•  High Winds Rake Snohomish County, Cut Power

•  Cowlitz PUD Restores Power To 7,200 After High Winds Hit Region

•  Wild Weather Leaves Thousands without Power Overnight

•  Wind Leaves Kitsap Homes in the Dark

•  High Winds Knock Out Power in Western Washington

•  'This Is What You Get When You Have a Beach'

•  Northwest Power & Conservation Council Endorses BPA Funding for $28 Million in Tribal 'Fish Accord' Projects

•  Leavenworth Fish Hatchery Loses Most Fed Funding

•  Idaho Set to Move Forward on Hatchery Plan to Increase Snake River Sockeye Smolt Production

•  Winter Steelhead Having a Strong Run

•  Salmon Fishery Fails in Alaska, Tied to Climate

•  Saving Delta Is at Core of New California Water Policy

•  Oregon Deals With One of Worst Wild Goose Problems in Nation

•  Justices Won't Close Great Lakes Shipping Locks to Keep Out Carp

•  Work on Belfair Sewers Begins

•  PUD 1 Holding Water Use Efficiency Workshop Wednesday

•  Seattle's Sewers Are Getting Clogged With Grease

•  Idaho - Minidoka Dam repairs could cost $50 million, take three years

•  Columbian Editorial - The Power of ‘Bio’

•  Montana Landowners, Developers Laying Groundwork for Community Wind Farm

•  Texas Judge Orders Halt to Work on Wind Transmission Project

•  Dallas Morning News Editorial: Wind Energy's Future Still Strong in Texas

•  Muskegon Chronicle Editorial - Lessons from the Wind

•  Editorial - Renewable Energy: Wisconsin Pays More if the State Fails to Act

•  Solar subsidy cuts in Germany

•  Arizona - Amid State's Push for Solar Power, Water-Supply Worries Arise

•  Breaking the Planet? Geothermal Drilling Safeguards Imposed

•  Seattle Company Promising Portable Power Plants

•  A Boost for LED Lighting Development

•  Boston Globe Editorial - Why Wait? Save Energy Now

•  U.N. Panel’s Glacier Warning Is Criticized as Exaggerated

•  As Climate Warms, What Will Our Rivers Do?

•  Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels' Green Agenda Wasn't Enough

•  Pastors in Pacific Northwest Find Focus in ‘Green’

•  Found: Missing Broadband Stimulus Funds!

•  What the Net Neutrality Filings Say

•  Broadband Traffic in a Jam on Wireless Expressway

•  Skype Steals Even More Minutes from Phone Companies

•  Google Probing Possible Inside Help on Attack

•  Google Denies Leaving China, Seeks Negotiations

•  FCC Orders Wireless Mike Modifications

•  Judge Ben Settle’s Ruling - Supreme Court to Hear Case on Disclosure of Names on a Petition

•  Congressman Hastings Seeks Fairness in USFS Lease Fees for Cabins

•  Bill Would Make Boeing Say It Cares About Washington

•  Investigators: Local College (Evergreen) Pays for Home to Sit Empty & Unused

•  Cyberbullying Leads to Suspension of 28 Middle-Schoolers at McClure

•  Plug Being Pulled on Decades-Old Marine Navigation System

•  Will Snow Be An Olympic No-Show in Vancouver?

•  Get Ready to Pay for Your NYT Fix

WORD OF THE DAY

Noetic • \noh-ET-ik\ • adjective - of, relating to, or based on the intellect

As far as the noetic capabilities of the common toad, the horned toad is considered the Einstein of the amphibian kingdom.

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

BPA, Corps Table Request to Fluctuate the Level of Lake Pend Oreille This Winter (Bonner County Daily Bee, Sandpoint, ID)

http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com/articles/2010/01/16/news/doc4b51662dd11a3104753295.txt

TransAlta Tax Break Targeted by Dems - Senate Bill Would Strip Coal Plant of Millions of Dollars in Exemptions (The Chronicle, Centralia, WA)

http://www.chronline.com/articles/2010/01/16/news//doc4b515e81851d8398412892.txt

Portland General Electric Mulls Biomass if Boardman Closes (Portland Business Journal)

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2010/01/11/daily52.html

BPA Hopes to Build New Eastern Washington Transmission Line (Tri-City Herald, WA)

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/yahoonews/story/868322.html

Hearing Set for Proposed Maine Transmission Line (Associated Press)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/01/19/financial/f081049S43.DTL

An Idaho County Moves Closer to Allowing a Nuclear Plant (NW Public Radio)

http://www.nwpr.org/07/HomepageArticles/Article.aspx?n=6688

A Nuclear Critic Draws a Lesson from France’s Success (NY Times)

http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/a-nuclear-critic-draws-a-lesson-from-frances-success/

Montana's Bruce Measure Named New NPCC Chair, Washington's Wallace Vice-Chair (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

http://www.cbbulletin.com/372973.aspx

Recession To Blame For Drop In Electric Output (Power Engineer)

http://pepei.pennnet.com/Articles/Article_Display.cfm?Section=ONART&PUBLICATION_ID=6&ARTICLE_ID=372492&C=INDUS&dcmp=rss

Florida - Battle over What Power Companies Can Charge Doesn't End With Recent Rate Denials (St Petersburg Times, FL)

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/energy/battle-over-what-power-companies-can-charge-doesnt-end-with-recent-rate/1065230

Funding Suspended for $10-Billion in Florida Electric Projects (Clean Skies)

http://www.cleanskies.com/articles/funding-suspended-florida-electric-projects

Canada - Shocker: We Don't Pay Enough for Electricity (Globe & Mail, Canada)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/shocker-we-dont-pay-enough-for-electricity/article1434557/

University of Tennessee to Ask Tennessee Valley Authority for Lower Rates to Deal With Increased Energy Costs (WHNT-TV, Huntsville, AL)

http://www.whnt.com/news/sns-ap-tn--ut-energycosts,0,5323509.story

MLK DAY STORM NEWS

Monday's Wind Knocks Out Power to About 1,000 (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1125:mondays-wind-knocks-out-power-to-about-1000&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50

Grays Harbor - Howler of a Storm KOs Power in Some Areas (The Daily World, Aberdeen, WA)

http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2010/01/18/local_news/doc4b54ade243ac7980546928.txt

Windy Weather Leaves Some in the Dark - At Least for a Few Hours (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20100119/news/301199993

High Winds Rake Snohomish County, Cut Power (Everett Herald, WA)

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100119/NEWS01/701199909/-1/rss02

Cowlitz PUD Restores Power To 7,200 after High Winds Hit Region (The Daily News, Longview, WA)

http://www.tdn.com/news/local/article_93952d48-044a-11df-82ff-001cc4c002e0.html

Wild Weather Leaves Thousands without Power Overnight (KELA Radio, Centralia, WA)

http://www.kelaam.com/pages/localnews?Wild-Weather-Leaves-Thousands-Without-Po=1&blockID=124314&feedID=410

Wind Leaves Kitsap Homes in the Dark (Kitsap Sun, Bremerton, WA)

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/jan/18/wind-storm-leaves-kitsap-in-the-dark/?partner=RSS

High Winds Knock Out Power in Western Washington (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010825555_apwawinds2ndldwritethru.html

'This Is What You Get When You Have a Beach' (KOMO-TV, Seattle)

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/82025187.html

FISH & WILDLIFE

Northwest Power & Conservation Council Endorses BPA Funding for $28 Million in Tribal 'Fish Accord' Projects (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

http://www.cbbulletin.com/372983.aspx

Leavenworth Fish Hatchery Loses Most Fed Funding (Associated Press)

http://www.king5.com/news/local/81792162.html

Idaho Set to Move Forward on Hatchery Plan to Increase Snake River Sockeye Smolt Production (Columbia Basin Bulletin)

http://www.cbbulletin.com/372976.aspx

Winter Steelhead Having a Strong Run - State officials want anglers to catch as many as possible (Salem Statesman Journal, OR)

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20100117/GREEN/1170329/-1/green

Salmon Fishery Fails in Alaska, Tied to Climate (Courthouse News Service)

http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/01/18/23799.htm

Saving Delta Is at Core of New California Water Policy (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2010829795_apuscaliforniawaterdeltadecline.html

Oregon Deals With One of Worst Wild Goose Problems in Nation (Associated Press)

http://www.king5.com/news/local/Oregon-deals-with-one-of-worst-wild-goose-problems-in-nation-81927552.html

Justices Won't Close Great Lakes Shipping Locks to Keep Out Carp (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2010831560_apussupremecourtasiancarp.html

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Work on Belfair Sewers Begins (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1104:work-on-belfair-sewers-begins-monday&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50

PUD 1 Holding Water Use Efficiency Workshop Wednesday (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1119:pud-1-holding-water-use-efficiency-workshop-wednesday&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50

Seattle's Sewers Are Getting Clogged With Grease (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/414191_grease18.html

Idaho - Minidoka Dam repairs could cost $50 million, take three years (Magic Valley Times-News, Twin Falls, ID)

http://www.magicvalley.com/news/local/article_a8cffaa1-af29-5785-bcf9-5116b9615737.html

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Columbian Editorial - The Power of ‘Bio’: Pacific Northwest is showing the way for cutting-edge technologies

http://www.columbian.com/news/2010/jan/19/the-power-of-bio/

Montana Landowners, Developers Laying Groundwork for Community Wind Farm (Billings Gazette, MT)

http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/article_8e390e86-0266-11df-8bc2-001cc4c002e0.html

Texas Judge Orders Halt to Work on Wind Transmission Project (Houston Chronicle, TX)

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/energy/6818579.html

Dallas Morning News Editorial: Wind Energy's Future Still Strong in Texas

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-boone_18edi.State.Edition1.225c139.html

Muskegon Chronicle Editorial - Lessons from the Wind

http://www.mlive.com/opinion/muskegon/index.ssf/2010/01/editorial_lessons_from_the_win.html

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Editorial - Renewable Energy: Wisconsin Pays More if the State Fails to Act

http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/81790272.html

Solar subsidy cuts in Germany (Biofuels Watch)

http://www.biofuelswatch.com/solar-subsidy-cuts-in-germany/

Arizona - Amid State's Push for Solar Power, Water-Supply Worries Arise (Arizona Republic, Phoenix)

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2010/01/17/20100117water-solar0117.html

Breaking the Planet? Geothermal Drilling Safeguards Imposed (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/science/earth/16alta.html

Seattle Company Promising Portable Power Plants (KING-TV, Seattle)

http://www.king5.com/news/local/Seattle-company-promising-portable-power-plants-82007337.html

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

A Boost for LED Lighting Development (NY Times)

http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/a-boost-for-led-lighting-development/

Boston Globe Editorial - Why Wait? Save Energy Now

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2010/01/18/why_wait_save_energy_now/

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

U.N. Panel’s Glacier Warning Is Criticized as Exaggerated (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/science/earth/19climate.html

As Climate Warms, What Will Our Rivers Do? (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/414357_rivers19.html

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels' Green Agenda Wasn't Enough (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/pacificnw/2010724154_pacificpgonickels17.html

Pastors in Pacific Northwest Find Focus in ‘Green’ (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/us/16church.html

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Found: Missing Broadband Stimulus Funds! (GigaOM)

http://gigaom.com/2010/01/15/found-missing-broadband-stimulus-funds/

What the Net Neutrality Filings Say (GigaOM)

http://gigaom.com/2010/01/15/what-the-net-neutrality-filings-say/

Broadband Traffic in a Jam on Wireless Expressway (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/1032169.html

Skype Steals Even More Minutes from Phone Companies (GigaOM)

http://gigaom.com/2010/01/19/skype-still-snatching-minutes-from-international-carriers/

Google Probing Possible Inside Help on Attack (Reuters)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60H1J620100118

Google Denies Leaving China, Seeks Negotiations (Reuters)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60E0BC20100117

FCC Orders Wireless Mike Modifications (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/technology/16wireless.html

GENERAL NEWS

Judge Ben Settle’s Ruling - Supreme Court to Hear Case on Disclosure of Names on a Petition (Washington Post)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/15/AR2010011503764.html?wprss=rss_politics

Congressman Hastings Seeks Fairness in USFS Lease Fees for Cabins (Yakima Herald Republic, WA)

http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2010/01/15/01-16-10-cabins

Bill Would Make Boeing Say It Cares About Washington (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010807161_sundaybuzz17.html

Investigators: Local College (Evergreen) Pays for Home to Sit Empty & Unused (NW Cable News)

http://www.nwcn.com/news/Investigators-Local-college-pays-for-home-to-sit-empty-and-unused-81992452.html

Cyberbullying Leads to Suspension of 28 Middle-Schoolers at McClure (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010807798_mcclure16m.html

Plug Being Pulled on Decades-Old Marine Navigation System (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2010818829_apusnavigationsystemshelved.html

Will Snow Be An Olympic No-Show in Vancouver? (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/olympics/2010822477_snow17m.html

Get Ready to Pay for Your NYT Fix (Consumerist)

http://consumerist.com/2010/01/get-ready-to-pay-for-your-nyt-fix.html

DIVERSIONS

Santa Cruz Developer Arrested after Allegedly Felling Neighbors' Trees to Get Clearer View of the Coast

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_14216281

Nevermore? Mystery Visitor Misses Poe's Birthday

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2010829935_apuspoemysteryvisitor.html

Men Get Financial Boost from Marriage, Data Show

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/jan/19/men-get-financial-boost-from-marriage-data-show/

US Faith Group Sends Hundreds of Solar-Powered Bibles to Haiti

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2010/01/us-faith-group-sends-hundreds-of-solar-powered-bibles-to-haiti/1

SONG OF THE DAY

Handel - Water Music, Air

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0bHwyK0zfs