Friday, April 3, 2015

Energy News Digest for April 3, 2015

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS

Weather Forecast for April 3, 2015

Small Craft Advisory for Puget Sound & Hood Canal

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HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Follow Up File: Five Bonneville Power Officials Lost Their Positions over Veteran-Hiring Scandal (Washington Post)

Schweitzer Labs Puts ‘Game-Changing’ Battery Power to Test in Pullman (Spokesman Review, Spokane, WA)

Video: No Mountain Snow in the Pacific Northwest Could Hurt Fish, Shipping, Recreation (KGW-TV, Portland, OR)

More Bad News for British Columbia’s Wild Sockeye – Pink salmon populations augmented by hatchery programs hurt sockeye returns, study finds (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)

The Northwest Struggles with Coal-Generated Power from Out of State (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)
  1. Follow Up File: Five Bonneville Power Officials Lost Their Positions over Veteran-Hiring Scandal
  2. Whistleblowers Who Exposed Hiring Offenses at Bonneville Power Administration Win Relief
  3. The Northwest Struggles with Coal-Generated Power from Out of State
  4. Bonneville Power Administration Selects Final Path for Its Hooper Springs Transmission Project
  5. Seattle Residents May Get Money after City Power Surge
  6. White House Releases Clean Energy Fact Sheet Ahead of President Obama’s Speech in Utah
  7. More Bad News for British Columbia’s Wild Sockeye
  8. California: Non-Native Fish in San Joaquin River Newest Invasive Species
  9. Taking Action on Climate Change Helps Birds Now
  10. Video: No Mountain Snow in the Pacific Northwest Could Hurt Fish, Shipping, Recreation
  11. Klamath Basin Water Users Brace for another Dry Year
  12. Washington State to Lease Water to Bolster Summer Stream Flow
  13. California Drought: Who Might Feel New Water Restrictions the Most?
  14. NASA Scientist to the World: California has One Year of Water Left
  15. Schweitzer Labs Puts ‘Game-Changing’ Battery Power to Test in Pullman
  16. Why It Can Take So Long to Get Rooftop Solar Connected to the Grid
  17. This Affordable Housing Complex Has a Solar Farm on Its Roof
  18. Obama Pushes to Train Veterans for Solar Power
  19. New Interactive Map Shows Big Potential for America’s Wind Energy Future
  20. Corporate America's Position on the EPA's Clean Power Act
  21. Oregon Could Soon Pay You $3,000 to Buy an Electric Vehicle
  22. California Could Rein in Tesla Rebates That Mostly Go to Wealthy
  23. Represented: Data Centers and Taxation in Central Oregon
  24. Frontier Boosts Broadband Speeds in Washington State, Offering Customers Up to 150 Mbps
  25. Verizon Latest to Bury 'Broadcast TV Fee' Below the Line
  26. Another Casualty in Yemen: Internet Stability
  27. Monkeys 'Hinder India Internet Drive' – They’re Trying to Get More Fiber in Their Diet
  28. How Facebook Knows Who All Your Friends Are, Even Better Than You Do
  29. This Bank Found a Way for Men to Browse Pinterest without Feeling Ashamed
  30. Utilities Embrace Social Media, Surging Self-Generation of Power
  31. Ted Cruz Has a Swag Problem – A Few Tchotchkes Can Go a Long Way
  32. Washington State House Passes Budget
  33. Inslee Laments Demise of $12 Minimum Wage Bill, Hints at Ballot Measure
  34. Oregon Denies Money for Former First Lady's Email Release Fight
  35. Olympia Tire Shop Employees Thwart Man's Attack
  36. Lightning Strikes Two Jets on Approach to Sea-Tac Airport
  37. Tulalip Tribal Member Accused of Clubbing Eagles to Death, Trying to Sell Them
  38. Too Many Amber Alert Notifications Worry Cell Phone Owners
  39. Autonomous Car Drives from San Francisco to New York
WORD OF THE DAY

Whirling Dervish • \WHIR-ling DERR-vish\ • noun – A member of a Turkish order of dervishes, or Sufis, whose ritual consists in part of a highly stylized whirling dance.

Spritual Bliss
Dance you Whirling Dervishes
Dance for peace and love

A fraternity of Sufis (Muslim mystics) founded in Konya (Qonya), Anatolia, by the Persian Sufi poet Rumi (d. 1273), whose popular title mawlana (Arabic: "our master") gave the order its name. The order, propagated throughout Anatolia, controlled Konya and environs by the 15th century and in the 17th century appeared in Constantinople (Istanbul). European travelers identified the Mawlawiyah as dancing (or whirling) dervishes, based on their observations of the order's ritual prayer (dhikr), performed spinning on the right foot to the accompaniment of musical instruments.

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Follow Up File: Five Bonneville Power Officials Lost Their Positions over Veteran-Hiring Scandal (Washington Post)

Whistleblowers Who Exposed Hiring Offenses at Bonneville Power Administration Win Relief (Government Executive)

The Northwest Struggles with Coal-Generated Power from Out of State (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Bonneville Power Administration Selects Final Path for Its Hooper Springs Transmission Project (Bonneville Power Administration)

Seattle Residents May Get Money after City Power Surge (KIRO Broadcasting, Seattle, WA)

White House Releases Clean Energy Fact Sheet Ahead of President Obama’s Speech in Utah (KSTU-TV, Salt Lake City, UT)

FISH & WILDLIFE

More Bad News for British Columbia’s Wild Sockeye – Pink salmon populations augmented by hatchery programs hurt sockeye returns, study finds (Victoria Times Colonist, BC)

California: Non-Native Fish in San Joaquin River Newest Invasive Species (Sacramento Bee, CA)

Taking Action on Climate Change Helps Birds Now (Audubon Society)

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Video: No Mountain Snow in the Pacific Northwest Could Hurt Fish, Shipping, Recreation (KGW-TV, Portland, OR)

Klamath Basin Water Users Brace for another Dry Year (Oregonian, Portland)

Washington State to Lease Water to Bolster Summer Stream Flow (Yakima Herald-Republic, WA)

California Drought: Who Might Feel New Water Restrictions the Most? (Christian Science Monitor)

NASA Scientist to the World: California has One Year of Water Left (Breaking Energy)

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Schweitzer Labs Puts ‘Game-Changing’ Battery Power to Test in Pullman (Spokesman Review, Spokane, WA)

Why It Can Take So Long to Get Rooftop Solar Connected to the Grid (Utility Dive)

This Affordable Housing Complex Has a Solar Farm on Its Roof (Grist Online)

Obama Pushes to Train Veterans for Solar Power (The Hill, Washington, DC)
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/237811-obama-pushes-to-train-veterans-for-solar-power

New Interactive Map Shows Big Potential for America’s Wind Energy Future (U-S Energy Information Administration)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Corporate America's Position on the EPA's Clean Power Act (The Guardian, UK)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Oregon Could Soon Pay You $3,000 to Buy an Electric Vehicle (Portland Business Journal, OR)

California Could Rein in Tesla Rebates That Mostly Go to Wealthy (San Jose Mercury News, CA)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Represented: Data Centers and Taxation in Central Oregon (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Frontier Boosts Broadband Speeds in Washington State, Offering Customers Up to 150 Mbps (Geekwire)

Verizon Latest to Bury 'Broadcast TV Fee' Below the Line (Broadband Reports)

Another Casualty in Yemen: Internet Stability (Washington Post)

Monkeys 'Hinder India Internet Drive' – They’re Trying to Get More Fiber in Their Diet (British Broadcasting Corporation)

MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA

How Facebook Knows Who All Your Friends Are, Even Better Than You Do (Washington Post)

This Bank Found a Way for Men to Browse Pinterest without Feeling Ashamed (AdWeek)

Utilities Embrace Social Media, Surging Self-Generation of Power (Transmission & Distribution World – BGE has a 3.6% Facebook like to customer ratio)

Ted Cruz Has a Swag Problem – A Few Tchotchkes Can Go a Long Way (NY Times)

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

Washington State House Passes Budget (KXRO Radio, Aberdeen, WA)

Inslee Laments Demise of $12 Minimum Wage Bill, Hints at Ballot Measure (Northwest Public Radio)

Oregon Denies Money for Former First Lady's Email Release Fight (Reuters)

GENERAL NEWS

Olympia Tire Shop Employees Thwart Man's Attack (KIRO Broadcasting, Seattle, WA)

Lightning Strikes Two Jets on Approach to Sea-Tac Airport (KATU-TV, Portland, OR)

Tulalip Tribal Member Accused of Clubbing Eagles to Death, Trying to Sell Them (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

Too Many Amber Alert Notifications Worry Cell Phone Owners (KOMO-TV, Seattle, WA)

Autonomous Car Drives from San Francisco to New York (San Jose Mercury News, CA)

DIVERSIONS

This TRON Motorbike Is Totally Functional, And Yes, You Can Buy It

Utah Man Returns 75-Pound Bag of Cash Found on Highway

Tiny Songbird Tracked across 1,700 Miles of Open Ocean

Lucille Ball Fans Want ‘Frightening’ Statue in Star’s Hometown Removed

SONG OF THE DAY

The Mambo Kings - Beautiful Maria of My Soul (English)

The Mambo Kings - Beautiful Maria of My Soul (Spanish)

LINKS & PAYWALL ADVISORY

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.

Note that as some newspapers migrate to a “paywall” system of access, some articles may not be available without forking over some cold hard credit card cash. However, some sites will allow a certain number of story accesses per month before holding out their hand. Sorry if this is an inconvenience.