Monday, December 13, 2021

The Energy News Digest for December 13, 2021

The Energy News Digest is sponsored by the Northwest Public Power Association. 

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LINKS & PAYWALL ADVISORY

Links in The Energy News Digest lead to current stories. Media organizations update their websites regularly, which may result in broken links. Media attribution includes information about possible paywall restrictions.

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Kentucky: Thousands without Heat, Water after U.S. Tornadoes Kill Dozens (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/tornado-us-kentucky-storm-dec13-2021-1.6283500?cmp=rss

FERC Urged to Reject Southern California Edison Plan to Profit on Power Line Expenses (Utility Dive)

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/ferc-southern-california-edison-PGE-profit-power-line-transmission-roe-puc/611386/

Washington State’s Natural Gas Usage Increased in 2020 (Washington State Wire, Olympia, WA)

https://washingtonstatewire.com/washingtons-natural-gas-usage-increased-in-2020/

California May Cut Rooftop Solar Incentives as Market Booms (Associated Press)

https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2021-12-13/california-may-cut-rooftop-solar-incentives-as-market-booms

Conservation Group Sues Army Corps Over Columbia River Pollution (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

https://www.opb.org/article/2021/12/10/conservation-group-sues-army-corps-over-columbia-pollution/

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (See Stories Below)

1.      FERC Urged to Reject Southern California Edison Plan to Profit on Power Line Expenses

2.      Washington State’s Natural Gas Usage Increased in 2020

3.      11th Round of the Columbia River Treaty Negotiations Announced

4.      New Mexico: PNM, Avangrid Look at Next Steps after Merger’s Failure

5.      Portland-Based Nuclear Power Company NuScale Wants to Go Public in SPAC Deal, Its Financial Advisor Says

6.      British Columbia: Peace River Dam Turbines Ready to Move

7.      British Columbia: Holidays Likely to Bring Surge in Energy Use, BC Hydro Says

8.      U.S. Electricity-Price Inflation Shows No Sign of Cooling Off

9.      ISO New England Can Meet Winter Power Demand ‘If the Weather Is Mild,’ Grid Operator Warns

10.   Georgia: Vogtle Monitors See More Delays, Extra $1 Billion for Nuclear Plant

11.   Hydropower Burnishes Climate Credentials in Push for Tax Credit

12.   Partnership Extends Powerlines to Navajo Nation Homes

13.   Guest Essay: Chris Cargill & Todd Myers: Washington Needs Leaders to Protect Clean-Power Dams

14.   Opinion: Elon Musk’s Diatribe Against Subsidies Ignores the History of the Tech Industry

15.   California May Cut Rooftop Solar Incentives as Market Booms

16.   Montana’s Slice of $555 Billion in Clean Energy Plan Could Expand Green Projects

17.   Wyoming: Albany County Tables Decision on 32,000-Acre Rock Creek Wind Farm

18.   Utah: Solar Farm Set to Provide 80% of Energy Used by City of Salt Lake

19.   Seeking Space for Solar Farms, Cities Find Room at Their Airports

20.   How Pacific Northwest Salmon Could Benefit from President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan

21.   Washington State: Coho Have Banner Year

22.   Steadier River Flows Brought by Hydro Dams Benefiting Fish, University of Northern BC Professor Says

23.   Yakama Nation Citizen Aja DeCoteau Takes Helm as Director of Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission

24.   When Dams Fell, Salmon Returned

25.   Conservation Group Sues Army Corps Over Columbia River Pollution

26.   Oregon: Portland Awarded $12 Million Clean Energy Contract to Executive with Long History of Financial Misdeeds, Unpaid Taxes

27.   U.S. Energy Firms Push States for Carbon Markets to Spur Renewable Fuel Growth

28.   Pacific Northwest Scientists Find Ruin & Resilience after Summer Heat Wave

29.   Ookla: Average Speeds of Smaller ISPs Often Top the Major National Providers

30.   Barbed Wire Telephone Lines Connected the Old Frontier

31.   ‘The Internet’s on Fire’ as Techs Race to Fix Software Flaw

32.   Laying The Electric Vehicle Highway Will Require 100,000 Recharging Stations by 2030

33.   A Road Trip to Nevada on the Rapidly Evolving Electric Car Charging Network

34.   Iridescent Periwinkle? Pantone’s Color of the Year Is Y2K All Over Again

35.   Kentucky: Thousands without Heat, Water after U.S. Tornadoes Kill Dozens

36.   Rain, Snow Fall as California Braces for Brunt of Storm

37.   Two Artists Charged with Faking Native American Heritage

WORD OF THE DAY

Hypnagogic • \hipp-nuh-GAW-jick\ • Adjective - Of, relating to, or occurring in the period of drowsiness immediately preceding sleep

Jim Barrie was stuck. As an author of books for children, he wanted to be grammatically correct, but he didn’t want to write over his readers’ heads. For some reason, the penultimate sentence in his masterwork just didn’t feel right: “You know that hypnagogic place between sleep and awake, the place where you can still remember dreaming? That’s where I’ll always love you, Peter Pan. That’s where I’ll be waiting.”

ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

1.      FERC Urged to Reject Southern California Edison Plan to Profit on Power Line Expenses (Utility Dive)

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/ferc-southern-california-edison-PGE-profit-power-line-transmission-roe-puc/611386/

2.      Washington State’s Natural Gas Usage Increased in 2020 (Washington State Wire, Olympia, WA)

https://washingtonstatewire.com/washingtons-natural-gas-usage-increased-in-2020/

3.      11th Round of the Columbia River Treaty Negotiations Announced (Bonneville Power Administration)

https://www.bpa.gov/news/newsroom/Pages/11th-round-of-the-Columbia-River-Treaty-negotiations-announced.aspx

4.      New Mexico: PNM, Avangrid Look at Next Steps after Merger’s Failure (Santa Fe New Mexican, NM)

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/after-merger-s-rejection-pnm-avangrid-look-at-next-steps/article_9139619c-59c2-11ec-9985-b7bd05985ec5.html

5.      Portland-Based Nuclear Power Company NuScale Wants to Go Public in SPAC Deal, It's Financial Advisor Says (Oregonian, Portland, OR)

https://www.oregonlive.com/business/2021/12/portland-based-nuclear-power-company-nuscale-seeks-to-go-public-in-spac-deal-its-financial-advisor-says.html

6.      British Columbia: Peace River Dam Turbines Ready to Move (Alaska Highway News, BC)

https://www.alaskahighwaynews.ca/regional-news/site-c/site-c-turbines-ready-to-move-4849004

7.      British Columbia: Holidays Likely to Bring Surge in Energy Use, BC Hydro Says (CTV News)

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/holidays-likely-to-bring-surge-in-energy-use-bc-hydro-says-1.5704063

8.      U.S. Electricity-Price Inflation Shows No Sign of Cooling Off (Bloomberg News)

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-10/u-s-electricity-price-inflation-shows-no-sign-of-cooling-off

9.      ISO New England Can Meet Winter Power Demand ‘If the Weather Is Mild,’ Grid Operator Warns (Utility Dive)

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/iso-new-england-can-meet-winter-power-demand-if-the-weather-is-mild-grid/611385/

10.   Georgia: Vogtle Monitors See More Delays, Extra $1 Billion for Nuclear Plant (Associated Press)

https://www.news4jax.com/news/georgia/2021/12/04/vogtle-monitors-see-more-delays-extra-1b-for-nuclear-plant/

11.   Hydropower Burnishes Climate Credentials in Push for Tax Credit (Bloomberg News)

https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/hydropower-burnishes-climate-credentials-in-push-for-tax-credit

12.   Partnership Extends Powerlines to Navajo Nation Homes (Associated Press)

https://apnews.com/article/business-44affb0a9b1382ab15fa251be733316f

SOAPBOX SERENADE – VOX POPULI

13.   Guest Essay: Chris Cargill & Todd Myers: Washington Needs Leaders to Protect Clean-Power Dams (Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2021/dec/10/chris-cargill-and-todd-myers-washington-needs-lead/

14.   Opinion: Elon Musk’s Diatribe Against Subsidies Ignores the History of the Tech Industry (Washington Post – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/09/elon-musks-diatribe-against-subsidies-ignores-history-tech-industry/

RENEWABLE ENERGY & SELF STORAGE

15.   California May Cut Rooftop Solar Incentives as Market Booms (Associated Press)

https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2021-12-13/california-may-cut-rooftop-solar-incentives-as-market-booms

16.   Montana’s Slice of $555 Billion in Clean Energy Plan Could Expand Green Projects (Billings Gazette, MT – Paywall Advisory)

https://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/montanas-slice-of-555b-in-clean-energy-plan-could-expand-green-projects/article_ae7fa136-2a61-5cf3-bf55-7ba130223aac.html

17.   Wyoming: Albany County Tables Decision on 32,000-Acre Rock Creek Wind Farm (Wyoming Public Media)

https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-resources-energy/2021-12-09/albany-county-tables-decision-on-32-000-acre-rock-creek-wind-farm

18.   Utah: Solar Farm Set to Provide 80% of Energy Used by City of Salt Lake (Salt Lake Tribune, UT)

https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2021/12/10/solar-farm-set-generate/

19.   Seeking Space for Solar Farms, Cities Find Room at Their Airports (Seattle Times, WA – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.seattletimes.com/business/seeking-space-for-solar-farms-cities-find-room-at-their-airports/

FISH & WILDLIFE

20.   How Pacific Northwest Salmon Could Benefit from President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan (Crosscut Seattle)

https://crosscut.com/environment/2021/12/how-pnw-salmon-could-benefit-bidens-infrastructure-plan

21.   Washington State: Coho Have Banner Year (Methow Valley News, Twisp, WA)

https://methowvalleynews.com/2021/12/08/coho-have-banner-year/

22.   Steadier River Flows Brought by Hydro Dams Benefiting Fish, University of Northern BC Professor Says (Prince George Citizen, BC)

https://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/highlights/steadier-river-flows-brought-by-hydro-dams-benefiting-fish-unbc-professor-says-4847914

23.   Yakama Nation Citizen Aja DeCoteau Takes Helm as Director of Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (Yakima Herald-Republic, WA – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/yakama-nation-citizen-aja-decoteau-takes-helm-as-director-of-columbia-river-inter-tribal-fish/article_6b4b36c9-985f-5a89-84b9-2bf082023228.html

24.   When Dams Fell, Salmon Returned (Yahoo! News)

https://news.yahoo.com/dams-fell-salmon-returned-172900316.html

ENVIRONMENTAL AFFLATUS – CLEAN UP ON AISLE THREE

25.   Conservation Group Sues Army Corps Over Columbia River Pollution (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

https://www.opb.org/article/2021/12/10/conservation-group-sues-army-corps-over-columbia-pollution/

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

26.   Oregon: Portland Awarded $12 Million Clean Energy Contract to Executive with Long History of Financial Misdeeds, Unpaid Taxes (Oregonian, Portland, OR – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2021/12/portland-awarded-12m-clean-energy-contract-to-executive-with-long-history-of-financial-misdeeds-unpaid-taxes.html

27.   U.S. Energy Firms Push States for Carbon Markets to Spur Renewable Fuel Growth (Reuters)

https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/us-energy-firms-push-states-carbon-markets-spur-renewable-fuel-growth-2021-12-13/

28.   Pacific Northwest Scientists Find Ruin & Resilience after Summer Heat Wave (Crosscut Seattle)

https://crosscut.com/environment/2021/12/pnw-scientists-find-ruin-and-resilience-after-summer-heat-wave

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

29.   Ookla: Average Speeds of Smaller ISPs Often Top the Major National Providers (Telecompetitor)

https://www.telecompetitor.com/ookla-average-speeds-of-smaller-isps-often-top-the-major-national-providers/

30.   Barbed Wire Telephone Lines Connected the Old Frontier (Successful Farming)

https://www.agriculture.com/podcast/successful-farming-podcast/barbed-wire-telephones-connected-the-old-frontier

THE WIZARDING WORLD OF TECHNOLOGY

31.   ‘The Internet’s on Fire’ as Techs Race to Fix Software Flaw (Associated Press)

https://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Global-race-to-patch-critical-computer-bug-16691818.php

I SING THE CAR ELECTRIC

32.   Laying The Electric Vehicle Highway Will Require 100,000 Recharging Stations by 2030 (Yahoo! News)

https://news.yahoo.com/laying-electric-vehicle-highway-require-112400968.html

33.   A Road Trip to Nevada on the Rapidly Evolving Electric Car Charging Network (Seattle Times, WA – Paywall Advisory)

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/a-road-trip-to-nevada-on-the-rapidly-evolving-electric-car-charging-network/

PUBLIC RELATIONS, MARKETING & MEDIA

34.   Iridescent Periwinkle? Pantone’s Color of the Year Is Y2K All Over Again (Fast Company)

https://www.fastcompany.com/90703524/pantones-color-of-the-year-is-y2k-all-over-again

OTHER THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT TODAY

35.   Kentucky: Thousands without Heat, Water after U.S. Tornadoes Kill Dozens (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/tornado-us-kentucky-storm-dec13-2021-1.6283500?cmp=rss

36.   Rain, Snow Fall as California Braces for Brunt of Storm (Yahoo! News)

https://news.yahoo.com/major-multi-day-storm-headed-054035715.html

37.   Two Artists Charged with Faking Native American Heritage (KCPQ-TV, Seattle, WA)

https://www.q13fox.com/news/2-artists-charged-with-faking-native-american-heritage

WHEN OTTERS ATTACK – DIVERSIONS

Man Thought Death Was Near as Otter Pack Overpowered Him in Singapore Park

https://news.yahoo.com/man-thought-death-near-otter-175743994.html

150 Tubas Converge in Downtown Portland for 30th Annual Tuba Christmas

https://www.oregonlive.com/entertainment/2021/12/150-tubas-converge-in-downtown-portland-for-30th-annual-tuba-christmas.html

Foul-Mouthed Talking Crow Befriends Entire Oregon Elementary School

https://apnews.com/article/oregon-education-birds-grants-pass-9d5c3bba3853449eaafe7dc268f2fa8f

Wright Brothers Vs. Smithsonian: The Bitter Feud Over Who Invented the Airplane

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2021/12/11/wright-brothers-smithsonian-airplane/

SONG OF THE DAY

Alicia Keys – Blackbird

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrTbf_ws9Is