Energy News Digest for June 22, 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

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Goldmark Takes DNR Fight with McKenna to Supremes (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA)

http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/spincontrol/2010/jun/21/goldmark-takes-fight-mckenna-supremes/

Chelan PUD to withdraw from Washington PUD Association (Wenatchee World, WA)

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2010/jun/22/chelan-pud-to-withdraw-from-state-lobby-group/

Washington State & TransAlta Reach Deal on Mercury, Haze (Associated Press)

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/96858819.html

Uh-Oh - Obama’s Carbon Plans May be Scaled Back to Focus on Electricity Sector (Bloomberg BusinessWeek)

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-21/obama-s-carbon-plans-may-be-scaled-back-to-electricity-sector.html

Quincy: Tax Breaks for Data Centers Could Mean More High-Tech Growth (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/06/21/1279830/tax-breaks-could-mean-more-high.html

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

·         Goldmark Takes DNR Fight with McKenna to Supremes

·         DNR Commissioner Tries to Force AG’s Help in Court

·         KUOW Podcast - Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna

·         Chelan PUD to withdraw from Washington PUD Association

·         Washington State & TransAlta Reach Deal on Mercury, Haze

·         High River Flows Put Electric Grid to Test

·         Idaho - Avista to Open Post Falls Dam Gates

·         San Francisco Public Power Plan Hits Snag

·         Montana - Open Meetings: Billings Gazette sues Southern Montana Electric Cooperative

·         Ohio Nuclear Plant to Replace Cracked Reactor Head

·         Up the Pole: Daughter Follows in Lineman Father’s Footsteps

·         Arrival of Summer Prompts Safety Reminder from Puget Sound Energy

·         State Agency Can be Sued as a “Person” in Endangered Salmon Species Case

·         California - 16.5 Million Baby Salmon Released into San Pablo Bay

·         Everett’s Mayor Still Promoting City Water

·         Is Requiring In-State Renewable Energy Generation Unconstitutional?

·         California Deal Brings $100 Million for Home Solar Financing

·         Europe Sees Solar Power Imported from Sahara in Five Years

·         Alaska Emerges as Unlikely Renewable Energy Pioneer

·         Op/Ed - Renewables Alone Cannot Power Vermont

·         Massachusetts Study Recognizes Significant Benefits of Biomass Thermal Energy

·         Gearing Up for an Industrial Biomass Boom

·         Missouri University Power Plant Nationally Recognized as Environmentally Friendly Facility

·         What Will Rising Electricity Rates Mean to Clean Energy?

·         Turbines Start Spinning at Iberdrola Renovables Largest Wind Farm in the World

·         Editorial - Referendum 52: Judge’s Ruling Corrects Lawmakers’ Faulty Wording on Title for School Energy Bond Measure

·         Uh-Oh - Obama’s Carbon Plans May be Scaled Back to Focus on Electricity Sector

·         Columnist - A Utilities-Only Cap-&-Trade

·         Op/Ed - Global Warming Strategist Scores New York Times Coup over Poll Questions

·         Ocean ‘Conveyor Belt’ Isn’t as Simple as It Sounds

·         News Release - New Study Reaffirms Scientific Consensus on Climate Change

·         Quincy: Tax Breaks for Data Centers Could Mean More High-Tech Growth

·         The Green Gold Rush over Iceland’s Data Centers

·         States to Investigate Google Data Collection

·         Verizon Readies Home Energy & Security Services

·         The Big Shift: The Rise of Cloud Computing

·         US Supreme Court Decision on R-71 Signatures Could Come Thursday or Monday

·         Utah Supreme Court: Online Petition Signatures OK

·         Two Arrested After High-Speed Chase Through Shelton Monday

·         Shelton Store Employee Jailed in State Lottery Sting

·         Mason County: Fire Destroys Timberlakes Home

·         Boys Burning Ants Start Tri-Cities Wildfire

·         Benton County Roads Will Stay Unpainted Indefinitely

WORD OF THE DAY

Desuetude • \DESS-wih-tood\ • noun - Discontinuance from use or exercise

While most of his colleagues’ typewriters had fallen into desuetude, other than to fill in an occasional multi-part form, Montgomery used his every day. He called it his “instant print-out word processor.”

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

Goldmark Takes DNR Fight with McKenna to Supremes (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA)

http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/spincontrol/2010/jun/21/goldmark-takes-fight-mckenna-supremes/

DNR Commissioner Tries to Force AG’s Help in Court (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012174536_apwagoldmarkmckennadispute.html

KUOW Podcast - Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna (KUOW Radio, Seattle – links to MP3 file - Program aired at 9:00 AM)

http://www.kuow.org/podcast/WeekdayA20100622.mp3

Chelan PUD to withdraw from Washington PUD Association (Wenatchee World, WA)

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2010/jun/22/chelan-pud-to-withdraw-from-state-lobby-group/

Washington State & TransAlta Reach Deal on Mercury, Haze (Associated Press)

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/96858819.html

High River Flows Put Electric Grid to Test (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

http://news.opb.org/article/7634-high-riverflows-put-electric-grid-test/

Idaho - Avista to Open Post Falls Dam Gates (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA)

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/jun/21/avista-open-post-falls-dam-gates/

San Francisco Public Power Plan Hits Snag (SF Chronicle)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/06/22/BU4U1E2OA6.DTL

Montana - Open Meetings: Billings Gazette sues Southern Montana Electric Cooperative (Billings Gazette, MT)

http://billingsgazette.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_efd9d7b4-7dbe-11df-bd28-001cc4c002e0.html

Ohio Nuclear Plant to Replace Cracked Reactor Head (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2012178033_apusreactorrepairs.html

Up the Pole: Daughter Follows in Lineman Father’s Footsteps - Hundreds turn out for annual lineman rodeo competition (Wenatchee World, WA)

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2010/jun/21/up-the-pole-daughter-follows-in-fathers-footsteps/

Arrival of Summer Prompts Safety Reminder from Puget Sound Energy (Electric Energy Online)

http://www.electricenergyonline.com/?page=show_news&rss=1&id=136533

FISH & WILDLIFE

State Agency Can be Sued as a “Person” in Endangered Salmon Species Case (Courthouse News Service)

http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/06/21/28253.htm

California - 16.5 Million Baby Salmon Released into San Pablo Bay (San Jose Mercury News, CA)

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_15344214

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Everett’s Mayor Still Promoting City Water - A deal with a bottler fell through, but the idea has surfaced again online (Everett Herald, WA)

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100621/NEWS01/706219979/0/SPORTS07

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Is Requiring In-State Renewable Energy Generation Unconstitutional? (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2010/06/is-in-state-generation-unconstitutional

California Deal Brings $100 Million for Home Solar Financing (CNET News)

http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20008277-54.html

Europe Sees Solar Power Imported from Sahara in Five Years (Reuters)

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE65K02F20100621

Alaska Emerges as Unlikely Renewable Energy Pioneer (Business Green)

http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2265145/alaska-emerges-unlikely

Op/Ed - Renewables Alone Cannot Power Vermont (Montpelier Times-Argus, VT – Biomass provides 83% of the current 70 MW of qualifying renewable energy in Vermont)

http://www.timesargus.com/article/20100622/OPINION04/6220304

Massachusetts Study Recognizes Significant Benefits of Biomass Thermal Energy (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/partner/biomass-thermal-energy-council-btec/news/article/2010/06/massachusetts-study-recognizes-significant-benefits-of-biomass-thermal-energy

Gearing Up for an Industrial Biomass Boom (GreenTech Media)

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/gearing-up-for-a-biomass-boom/

Missouri University Power Plant Nationally Recognized as Environmentally Friendly Facility “…plant uses coal, gas, tire-derived fuel & biomass to produce both steam & electricity…” (Columbia Missourian, MO)

http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/06/21/mu-power-plant-recognized-nationally/

What Will Rising Electricity Rates Mean to Clean Energy? (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2010/06/what-will-rising-electricity-rates-mean-to-cllean-energy

Turbines Start Spinning at Iberdrola Renovables Largest Wind Farm in the World (Renewable Energy Magazine)

http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=9&Cod=5634&Tipo=&Nombre=Wind%20Power%20News

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Editorial - Referendum 52: Judge’s Ruling Corrects Lawmakers’ Faulty Wording on Title for School Energy Bond Measure (Olympian, WA)

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/06/21/1279155/judges-ruling-corrects-lawmakers.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Uh-Oh - Obama’s Carbon Plans May be Scaled Back to Focus on Electricity Sector (Bloomberg BusinessWeek)

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-21/obama-s-carbon-plans-may-be-scaled-back-to-electricity-sector.html

Columnist - A Utilities-Only Cap-&-Trade (Washington Post)

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2010/06/a_utilities-only_cap-and-trade.html

Op/Ed - Global Warming Strategist Scores New York Times Coup over Poll Questions (Financial Post, Canada)

http://opinion.financialpost.com/2010/06/21/lawrence-solomon-global-warming-strategist-scores-new-york-times-coup/

Ocean ‘Conveyor Belt’ Isn’t as Simple as It Sounds (Christian Science Monitor)

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2010/0621/Ocean-conveyor-belt-isn-t-as-simple-as-it-sounds

News Release - New Study Reaffirms Scientific Consensus on Climate Change (Union of Concerned Scientists)

http://www.ucsusa.org/news/press_release/study-scientific-consensus-climate-change-411.html

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Quincy: Tax Breaks for Data Centers Could Mean More High-Tech Growth (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/06/21/1279830/tax-breaks-could-mean-more-high.html

The Green Gold Rush over Iceland’s Data Centers “…abundant hydropower & geothermal power, Iceland can offer data center services powered by 100 percent clean power…” (Earth2Tech)

http://earth2tech.com/2010/06/21/the-green-gold-rush-over-icelands-data-centers/

States to Investigate Google Data Collection (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/22/technology/22google.html

Verizon Readies Home Energy & Security Services (CNET News)

http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20008354-54.html

The Big Shift: The Rise of Cloud Computing (GigaOM)

http://gigaom.com/2010/06/22/cloud-computing/

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

US Supreme Court Decision on R-71 Signatures Could Come Thursday or Monday (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/archives/211891.asp

Utah Supreme Court: Online Petition Signatures OK (Associated Press)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100622/ap_on_hi_te/us_online_signatures

GENERAL NEWS

Two Arrested After High-Speed Chase Through Shelton Monday (Olympian, WA)

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/06/22/1280617/2-arrested-after-high-speed-chase.html

Shelton Store Employee Jailed in State Lottery Sting (Olympian, WA)

http://www.theolympian.com/2010/06/22/1280224/shelton-store-employee-jailed.html

Mason County: Fire Destroys Timberlakes Home (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

http://masoncountydailynews.net/news/2490-fire-destroys-timberlakes-home

Boys Burning Ants Start Tri-Cities Wildfire (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012177889_apwaburningants.html

Benton County Roads Will Stay Unpainted Indefinitely (Tri-City Herald, WA)

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2010/06/21/1063265/traffic-roads-unpainted.html

DIVERSIONS

Food Fight - Sister Attacks Brother over Butter vs. Margarine

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2010/06/21/1063458/odd-sister-attacks-brother-over.html

Did Michelangelo Draw a Brain in God’s Neck?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127990450&ft=1&f=2

Painter Misspells Wisconsin Town’s Name on Tower

http://www.kirotv.com/money/23961243/detail.html

Leonard Nimoy Honored by the Town of Vulcan

http://www.csmonitor.com/From-the-news-wires/2010/0621/Leonard-Nimoy-honored-by-the-town-of-Vulcan

SONG OF THE DAY

Emerson Lake & Palmer – Jerusalem (From the album “Brain Salad Surgery”)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN11bI1_sZo

Greg Lake – Still You Turn Me On (From the album “Brain Salad Surgery”)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoxHGxQw9ws