The Energy News Digest: Energy News Digest for February 23, 2011

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Energy News Digest for February 23, 2011

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

Follow the news digest on Twitter for breaking news & notices: http://twitter.com/energydigest

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Snow Wednesday, Freeze Thursday Across Washington (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2011/02/23/1553694/snow-wednesday-freeze-thursday.html

Starving Bald Eagles So Weak They Fall from Sky - Poor Chum Salmon Runs Leave Birds without Any Food (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)

http://www.timescolonist.com/Starving+bald+eagles+weak+they+fall+from/4329392/story.html

Idaho - Wind Farm Denied in Bingham County (KIDK-TV, Idaho Falls, ID)

http://www.localnews8.com/news/26960884/detail.html

Portland General Electric Worker Burned in Parking-Garage Explosion in Downtown Portland (Oregonian, Portland)

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/02/pge_worker_burned_in_parking-g.html

Coal Plans Raise Questions for Bellingham (Crosscut Seattle)

http://crosscut.com/2011/02/23/bellingham/20662/Coal-plans-raise-questions-for-Bellingham--/

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

· Coal Plans Raise Questions for Bellingham

· Coal Exports & Carbon Consequences

· ‘Dirty’ Energy Dwarfs Clean in China & India

· Fracking for Gas - in Europe, the Promise & Fears of a New Fuel

· Portland General Electric Worker Burned in Parking-Garage Explosion in Downtown Portland

· Montana - Bills Address Great Falls’ Electric City Power’s Future

· Smart Grid + Bill Prepay Explored as Home Energy Efficiency Strategy

· Alcoa Chief’s Compensation Rose 10 Percent in 2010

· Starving Bald Eagles So Weak They Fall from Sky

· Upper Columbia River - Salmon in the Similkameen

· West Coast Salmon-Catch System ‘Broken,’ Commercial Fisherman Say

· Jefferson County Mulls Net Pen Aquaculture Rules

· Shellfish Patron Justin Taylor Dies - Modest Shellfish Mogul, Environmental Pioneer

· Audubon Scientist to Head People for Puget Sound

· EPA Says It Cuts Cost of Pollution Controls for Industrial Boilers

· Idaho - Wind Farm Denied in Bingham County

· Big Massachusetts Utility Signs Deals, Bypasses Cape Wind

· Washington State House OKs Testing of Forest Biomass as Jet Fuel

· Editorial - California: Renewable Energy ‘On’ Switch

· Hydro’s Untapped Potential

· ‘Windfall’ Film Examines Effect of Wind Turbines on Rural, Residential Areas

· Tacoma Challenges Installation of Vinyl Windows on Historic North Slope Home

· Duct Cleaning Comes with High Pressure Sales Pitch

· How Climate Change Models Could Get Better, Thanks to NASA

· A Climate Skeptic with a Bully Pulpit in Virginia Finds an Ear in Congress

· Climate Emails Spurred TV Meteorologist’s Global Warming Doubts

· Climate Change Affecting Owl Color in Finland

· Electric Car Charging Study with Local Volunteers

· North Carolina Votes Today to Cripple Community Broadband Broad

· West Africa Rising: Google Sees ‘Ocean of Possibilities’ South of the Sahara

· $1.8 Million Financial Scandal Hits Seattle Public Schools

· Washington State Bill Would End State’s ‘Retire-Rehire’ Policy

· What Might Happen if Federal Government Shuts Down Again

· Snow Wednesday, Freeze Thursday Across Washington

· Congressional Sources: Tanker Decision Coming Thursday

· New Zealand Earthquake Has Parallels with Seattle

· Former Washington State Ferries Skagit, Kalama Get New Lives in Tanzania

· Cellphone Use Affects Brain Activity

WORD OF THE DAY

Cartographer• \car-TAH-gruh-fer \ • Noun - One that makes maps

The 14^th century artist backed away from his world map…pleased with the colors, shapes of the continents, & the symmetrical arrangement of the land masses. “It’s a good thing we won’t be using this for navigation,” mused the Genoan sailor to his first mate. “That big land mass painted by this ‘so-called’ cartographer between us & Indies would keep our hands off the spice trade for years.”

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

Coal Plans Raise Questions for Bellingham (Crosscut Seattle)

http://crosscut.com/2011/02/23/bellingham/20662/Coal-plans-raise-questions-for-Bellingham--/

Coal Exports & Carbon Consequences (Sightline)

http://daily.sightline.org/daily_score/archive/2011/02/22/coal-exports-and-carbon-consequences

‘Dirty’ Energy Dwarfs Clean in China & India (NY Times)

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/dirty-energy-dwarfs-clean-in-china-and-india/

Fracking for Gas - in Europe, the Promise & Fears of a New Fuel (NY Times)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/business/energy-environment/21iht-renoshale21.html

Portland General Electric Worker Burned in Parking-Garage Explosion in Downtown Portland (Oregonian, Portland)

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/02/pge_worker_burned_in_parking-g.html

Montana - Bills Address Great Falls’ Electric City Power’s Future (Grand Falls Tribune, MT)

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20110222/NEWS01/102220309/1002/NEWS01/Bills-address-Electric-City-Power-s-future

Smart Grid + Bill Prepay Explored as Home Energy Efficiency Strategy (ZD Net News)

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/green/smart-grid-bill-prepay-explored-as-home-energy-efficiency-strategy/16149

Alcoa Chief’s Compensation Rose 10 Percent in 2010 (Associated Press)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/02/22/financial/f155922S12.DTL

FISH & WILDLIFE

Starving Bald Eagles So Weak They Fall from Sky - Poor Chum Salmon Runs Leave Birds without Any Food (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)

http://www.timescolonist.com/Starving+bald+eagles+weak+they+fall+from/4329392/story.html

Upper Columbia River - Salmon in the Similkameen (Similkameen Spotlight, BC)

http://www.bclocalnews.com/lifestyles/116669574.html

West Coast Salmon-Catch System ‘Broken,’ Commercial Fisherman Say (Globe & Mail, Canada)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/salmon-catch-system-broken-commercial-fisherman-say/article1916659/

Jefferson County Mulls Net Pen Aquaculture Rules (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20110223/NEWS/302239994/jefferson-county-mulls-net-pen-aquaculture-rules

Shellfish Patron Justin Taylor Dies - Modest Shellfish Mogul, Environmental Pioneer (Seattle Times)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2014303050_taylor24m.html?syndication=rss

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Audubon Scientist to Head People for Puget Sound (Olympian, WA)

http://www.theolympian.com/2011/02/22/1552767/audubon-scientist-to-head-people.html

EPA Says It Cuts Cost of Pollution Controls for Industrial Boilers (USA Today)

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/environment/2011-02-23-epa-industrial-boilers-pollution_N.htm?csp=34money

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Idaho - Wind Farm Denied in Bingham County (KIDK-TV, Idaho Falls, ID)

http://www.localnews8.com/news/26960884/detail.html

Big Massachusetts Utility Signs Deals, Bypasses Cape Wind (Associated Press)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2014301255_apuscapewind.html

Washington State House OKs Testing of Forest Biomass as Jet Fuel (Associated Press)

http://www.theolympian.com/2011/02/22/1552981/house-oks-testing-of-forest-biomass.html

Editorial - California: Renewable Energy ‘On’ Switch…California still doesn’t have a renewable energy standard even though a sensible bill to establish one has been taken up annually since 2007 (Los Angeles Times, CA)

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-renewable-20110223,0,7081433.story

Hydro’s Untapped Potential - Ambitions for a better economy & a need for more clean energy in the U.S. are driving Canada’s efforts to monetize its hydro resources (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/02/hydro-untapped-potential?cmpid=rss

‘Windfall’ Film Examines Effect of Wind Turbines on Rural, Residential Areas (Penasee Globe, MI)

http://www.mlive.com/penaseeglobe/index.ssf/2011/02/windfall_film_examines_affect.html

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Tacoma Challenges Installation of Vinyl Windows on Historic North Slope Home (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/02/23/1555714/city-challenges-vinyl-windows.html

Duct Cleaning Comes with High Pressure Sales Pitch (KIRO-TV, Seattle)

http://www.kirotv.com/money/26943711/detail.html

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

How Climate Change Models Could Get Better, Thanks to NASA (Christian Science Monitor)

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2011/0222/How-climate-change-models-could-get-better-thanks-to-NASA

A Climate Skeptic with a Bully Pulpit in Virginia Finds an Ear in Congress (NY Times)