Thursday, October 7, 2010

Energy News Digest for October 7, 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

Follow the news digest on Twitter for breaking news and notices: https://twitter.com/energydigest

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Bonneville Power Administration to Extend Intalco Power Deal One Year (Bellingham Herald)

Hungary: Toxic Red Sludge from Alumina Plant Has Reached the Danube River (Associated Press)

Biomass Power Plant Delay Sought - “Crowd” of 27 gathers again at Olympic Region Clean Air Agency to oppose projects (Olympian, WA)

Cle Elum - Proposed Solar Farm in Central WA Gets County Permit (Northwest Public Radio)

Environmental Protection Agency Says Oregon Coal-Power Plant in Violation

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

  • Bonneville Power Administration to Extend Intalco Power Deal One Year
  • Regulatory Staff Takes Dim View Pacific Power Rate Hike
  • Environmental Protection Agency Says Oregon Coal-Power Plant in Violation
  • Natural Gas Stocks Grow More than Expected
  • Natural Gas Pipeline Crisis Plans Kept from Public
  • Natural Gas Power Plant Order Booked By Wartsila in New Mexico
  • New York - Hydroelectricity Fight is Over Cash
  • New York - Dam Operator Says Alarms Sounded Twice Before Deadly Water Rose in Oswego
  • Mason PUD 3 Financial Reporting Wins Accolades
  • Just How "Natural" is Your Natural Gas?
  • Partnership Aims to Increase Fall Chinook in Coos Bay
  • Why Do Fish Near Coal Plants Have Lower Levels of Mercury?
  • Scientists and Soldiers Solve a Bee Mystery
  • Hungary: Toxic Red Sludge from Alumina Plant Has Reached the Danube River
  • Forest near Mount Rushmore Suffers Beetle Attack
  • Biomass Power Plant Delay Sought
  • Coalition Appeals Challenges Nippon Biomass Approvals
  • Cle Elum - Proposed Solar Farm in Central WA Gets County Permit
  • Solar Power Plants to Rise on US Land
  • Massachusetts - Federal Interior Secretary Salazar Approves Cape Wind Lease
  • Central Illinois May Gain 2,000 Wind Turbines in Five Years
  • Oregon Tries To Drum Up Demand for Appliance Rebates
  • LEED and the Future of Green Building
  • Editorial - False Light? Efficiency Claims for New Bulbs Might be Illusion
  • Montana – US Senator Baucus Opposes EPA Climate Regs
  • Sun's Impact on Climate Change Overestimated?
  • US Cities Increasingly Ban or Tax Plastic Shopping Bags
  • Agency Seeks to Tighten Rules for ‘Green’ Labeling
  • Could You Be Allergic to Barbecue? Or Could the Smoke “Kill With a Single Exposure?”
  • Grant PUD Not Among Fiber Recipients in Federal Broadband Push
  • Internet Keeps Growing! Traffic up 62% in 2010
  • FCC Chief on Defensive over Stalled Broadband Plan
  • Apple's Data Needs Mean $1.7 Million, for North Carolina Couple
  • Microsoft to Android Phone Makers: “Pay Up or Get Sued”
  • Washington State High Court: E-Mail Metadata is Public Record
  • Washington Becomes Soda Pop Battleground
  • High Court: Does Father's Pain Trump Free Speech?

WORD OF THE DAY

Kismet • \KIZZ-mitt\ • noun - Fate

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS


ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES


Regulatory Staff Takes Dim View Pacific Power Rate Hike - Pacific Power wants a 21 percent increase (Walla Walla Union Bulletin, WA)

Environmental Protection Agency Says Oregon Coal-Power Plant in Violation (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Natural Gas Stocks Grow More than Expected (Associated Press)

Natural Gas Pipeline Crisis Plans Kept from Public (Wenatchee World, WA)

Natural Gas Power Plant Order Booked By Wartsila in New Mexico (Power-Gen Worldwide)

New York - Hydroelectricity Fight is Over Cash (Albany Times-Union, NY)

New York - Dam Operator Says Alarms Sounded Twice Before Deadly Water Rose in Oswego (Post Standard, Syracuse, NY)

Mason PUD 3 Financial Reporting Wins Accolades (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

Just How "Natural" is Your Natural Gas? (KIRO-TV, Seattle)

FISH & WILDLIFE

Partnership Aims to Increase Fall Chinook in Coos Bay (Indian Country Today)

Why Do Fish Near Coal Plants Have Lower Levels of Mercury? (Tree Hugger)

Scientists and Soldiers Solve a Bee Mystery (NY Times)

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Hungary: Toxic Red Sludge from Alumina Plant Has Reached the Danube River (Associated Press)

Forest near Mount Rushmore Suffers Beetle Attack (Nat’l Public Radio)

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Biomass Power Plant Delay Sought - “Crowd” of 27 gathers again at Olympic Region Clean Air Agency to oppose projects (Olympian, WA)

Coalition Appeals Challenges Nippon Biomass Approvals (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

Cle Elum - Proposed Solar Farm in Central WA Gets County Permit (Northwest Public Radio)

Solar Power Plants to Rise on US Land (NY Times)

Massachusetts - Federal Interior Secretary Salazar Approves Cape Wind Lease (Boston Herald, MA)

Central Illinois May Gain 2,000 Wind Turbines in Five Years (Trading Markets)

CONSERVATION & EFFICIENCY

Oregon Tries To Drum Up Demand for Appliance Rebates (Oregonian, Portland)

LEED and the Future of Green Building (Reuters)

Editorial - False Light? Efficiency Claims for New Bulbs Might be Illusion (Wenatchee World, WA)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Montana – US Senator Baucus Opposes EPA Climate Regs (The Hill)

Sun's Impact on Climate Change Overestimated? "Not good news for skeptics" of human-caused warming, one expert says (National Geographic)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

US Cities Increasingly Ban or Tax Plastic Shopping Bags (USA Today)

Agency Seeks to Tighten Rules for ‘Green’ Labeling (NY Times)

Could You Be Allergic to Barbecue? Or Could the Smoke “Kill With a Single Exposure?” (Dallas Observer, TX)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Grant PUD Not Among Fiber Recipients in Federal Broadband Push (Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, WA)

Internet Keeps Growing! Traffic up 62% in 2010 (GigaOM)

FCC Chief on Defensive over Stalled Broadband Plan (National Public Radio)

Apple's Data Needs Mean $1.7 Million, for North Carolina Couple (San Jose Mercury News, CA)

Microsoft to Android Phone Makers: “Pay Up or Get Sued” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

Washington State High Court: E-Mail Metadata is Public Record (Olympian, WA)

Washington Becomes Soda Pop Battleground (Associated Press)

High Court: Does Father's Pain Trump Free Speech? (Associated Press)

DIVERSIONS

Distillers Recreating George Washington's Recipe for Peach Brandy

ACLU Sues North Carolina School in Pierced Nose Suspension

Who Wants a Santa-Free Christmas?

For Costco, Apocalypse Preparedness is Big Business

SONG OF THE DAY

Johann Strauss II - The Blue Danube Waltz

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Energy News Digest for October 6, 2010


To subscribe, email jmyer@masonpud3.org

Follow the news digest on Twitter for breaking news and notices: https://twitter.com/energydigest

HOT SHOTS – TODAY’S TOP FIVE STORIES

Oregon - Four Men Sentenced for Shooting down High Voltage BPA Power Lines near Lebanon (Lebanon Express, OR)

Reward Offered in Theft of Scrap Metal from Bonneville Power Substation in Pierce County (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

Port Townsend Biomass Energy Project Elicits 200 Comments - more to come after second comment period ends Friday (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy (NY Times)

House Fire Shuts Down Highway 3 Near Belfair (KING-TV, Seattle)

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS (Details Below)

·         Oregon - Four Men Sentenced for Shooting down High Voltage BPA Power Lines near Lebanon
·         Reward Offered in Theft of Scrap Metal from Bonneville Power Substation in Pierce County
·         Cash-Strapped Chelan County PUD Considers Rate Increase
·         A World of Opportunity - Hydro is high on the global agenda
·         Colorado - Xcel's Clean Air Plan Hits Snag
·         What's the Best Way to Promote Safer, Cleaner Energy?
·         Iran Denies Malware Connection to Nuclear Power Plant Delay
·         Five Tribes, Including Cowlitz & Makah Get NOAA Money for Imperiled Species
·         Editorial - It's a Bad Idea to Cut Back on Salmon Hatchery Production
·         US Department of Interior Denies Protection for California Fish Species
·         Study to Focus on Skokomish River Flooding
·         Flood Concerns Rise as Water Storage is Lowered Behind Willamette Valley Dams
·         Drought Means No Vegetable Garden for Klamath Basin Food Bank
·         Smart Water Meters Catch On in Iowa
·         Port Townsend Biomass Energy Project Elicits 200 Comments
·         Editorial - Forest Debris as 'Gold' - Unless the US Says No
·         Central Oregon - Benefits Flow from Canal Hydro Project
·         Tacoma Students Captivated By Solar Power Display
·         For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy
·         US Military Champions Green Energy
·         Expert Says Texas Is Getting Hotter Due to Global Warming
·         California Initiative A Test For National Climate Law
·         Toyota Shows Smart-Grid Technology for Its Plug-In Hybrid
·         An Electric Car Charging Station in Every Everett Garage?
·         Chelan County PUD - Faster Fiber Speeds and Rates Approved
·         Yahoo's Data Center Chief Draws Lessons from Century-Old Tech
·         Facebook Outage Hits Many Users - Twitter Use Skyrockets Amid Outage
·         Apple Challenges $625.5 Million Patent-Infringement Award
·         Internet Explorer Dips Back Below 60% Market Share
·         Port of Shelton Discontinues Workshop Meetings
·         Credit Cards Authorized for Thurston County Property Taxes
·         House Fire Shuts Down Highway 3 Near Belfair
·         Olympic National Forest to Begin Prescribed Burns
·         Community Colleges Learn Lessons in Doing More with Less
·         Loud Workplaces May Increase Heart Problems (Associated Press)

WORD OF THE DAY

Amok • \uh-MUCK\ • adverb - 1: in a murderously frenzied state 2a: in a violently raging manner b: in an undisciplined, uncontrolled, or faulty manner

Copy paper flew every direction, as the newly-minted copier repair technician ran amok in the cramped, dark and musty workroom. Every electrical outlet had been claimed by a cheap power strip, pigtailed to at least two others, jury-rigged to run a copier, fax machine, phone base station, microwave, coffee maker and (inexplicably) a rechargeable electric toothbrush.

SHELTON FORECAST & WEATHER ALERTS


ENERGY & UTILITY ISSUES

Oregon - Four Men Sentenced for Shooting down High Voltage BPA Power Lines near Lebanon (Lebanon Express, OR)

Reward Offered in Theft of Scrap Metal from Bonneville Power Substation in Pierce County (News Tribune, Tacoma, WA)

Cash-Strapped Chelan County PUD Considers Rate Increase (Lake Chelan Mirror, WA)

A World of Opportunity - Hydro is high on the global agenda as nations look to energize their economies, bring power to remote regions, and move toward clean, renewable generation. HRW looks at hydropower on each continent (Renewable Energy World)

Colorado - Xcel's Clean Air Plan Hits Snag (Denver Business Journal)

What's the Best Way to Promote Safer, Cleaner Energy? (Christian Science Monitor)

Iran Denies Malware Connection to Nuclear Power Plant Delay (NY Times)

FISH & WILDLIFE

Five Tribes, Including Cowlitz & Makah Get NOAA Money for Imperiled Species (Associated Press)

Editorial - It's a Bad Idea to Cut Back on Salmon Hatchery Production (Chinook Observer, Long Beach, WA)

US Department of Interior Denies Protection for California Fish Species (Associated Press)

WATER & THE ENVIRONMENT

Study to Focus on Skokomish River Flooding - Sediment has been building for decades (Olympian, WA)

Flood Concerns Rise as Water Storage is Lowered Behind Willamette Valley Dams (Salem Statesman-Journal, OR)

Drought Means No Vegetable Garden for Klamath Basin Food Bank (Associated Press)

Smart Water Meters Catch On in Iowa (NY Times)

RENEWABLE/ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Port Townsend Biomass Energy Project Elicits 200 Comments - more to come after second comment period ends Friday (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

Editorial - Forest Debris as 'Gold' - Unless the US Says No (Oregonian, Portland)

Central Oregon - Benefits Flow from Canal Hydro Project: Engineering Feat Propels Water Conservation & Green Power Cause (Cascade Business News, OR)

Tacoma Students Captivated By Solar Power Display (KING-TV, Seattle)

For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy (NY Times)

US Military Champions Green Energy (NY Times)

CLIMATE CHANGE SEQUESTRATION VAULT

Expert Says Texas Is Getting Hotter Due to Global Warming (USA Today)

California Initiative A Test For National Climate Law (SF Chronicle)

BARREL O’ GREEN POTPOURRI

Toyota Shows Smart-Grid Technology for Its Plug-In Hybrid (USA Today)

An Electric Car Charging Station in Every Everett Garage? (Everett Herald, WA)

TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Chelan County PUD - Faster Fiber Speeds and Rates Approved (Wenatchee World, WA)

Yahoo's Data Center Chief Draws Lessons from Century-Old Tech (SF Chronicle)

Facebook Outage Hits Many Users - Twitter Use Skyrockets Amid Outage (KIRO-TV, Seattle)

Apple Challenges $625.5 Million Patent-Infringement Award (Associated Press)

Internet Explorer Dips Back Below 60% Market Share (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

POLITICS & GOVERNANCE

Port of Shelton Discontinues Workshop Meetings (KMAS Radio, Shelton, WA)

Credit Cards Authorized for Thurston County Property Taxes (Olympian, WA)

GENERAL NEWS

House Fire Shuts Down Highway 3 Near Belfair (KING-TV, Seattle)

Olympic National Forest to Begin Prescribed Burns (Peninsula Daily News, Port Angeles, WA)

Community Colleges Learn Lessons in Doing More with Less (KING-TV, Seattle)

Loud Workplaces May Increase Heart Problems (Associated Press)

DIVERSIONS

Perfume Protest: Teens Storm 'Toxic' Abercrombie & Fitch

Florida Man Denies Cocaine Found In Buttocks Is His

Disoriented 'Superhero' Arrested in Centralia

Getting Fired Is Bad; Setting Fire to Your Boss' Car Is, Well, Illegal For Starts

SONG OF THE DAY

The Silhouettes - Get a Job