A decade under Initiative 937 yields new jobs, new industries, and affordable electricity

Good energy and environmental policy is also good economic policy.  That’s the message of a new video collection produced by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Renewable Northwest, and the NW Energy Coalition. The lead five-minute video explores how Washington’s clean energy landscape has blossomed since Initiative 937 was enacted in 2007.  With sections devoted…

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Rocky Barker: Snake River dams expendable?

An informed counterpoint to the flawed EarthFix “Dams or Salmon?” video Idaho Statesman reporter, Rocky Barker, a speaker at the NW Energy Coalition’s spring conference last April in Boise, has published the second piece in his series on the question of whether Columbia River salmon will ultimately survive.  This installment offers hope based on the fact that, as grid…

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EarthFix/OPB video, “Dams or Salmon?”, never gives fish a chance

“Explainer” video doesn’t explain, it distorts. We love short, animated explainer videos. They entertainingly and quickly reduce complex issues to their simplest possible terms. The problem is they sometimes overshoot the mark and, instead of the simplest possible terms, they instead present issues in ways that are something less than simple. That’s what we get…

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BPA reduces Montana Intertie rate, but more action is needed

NW Energy Coalition welcomes BPA recognition of barriers to development of renewable energy in Montana SEATTLE, Washington — Yesterday the Bonneville Power Administration announced that its 2018-19 rates will include a fifteen percent reduction in the Montana Intertie rate – a $2 per MWh charge that applies to a 90-mile section of power lines between…

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Montana: New financing option available for solar and energy efficiency

Financing of solar and energy efficiency in Montana: Credit Union Partnership — The NW Energy Coalition is partnering with Puget Sound Cooperative Credit Union (PSCCU) to expand solar financing in the Northwest. Since 1934, PSCCU has been empowering members to do more than they thought they could with their banking relationship. The credit union maintains a…

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New bill threatens salmon, would weaken Endangered Species Act

(Today, the NW Energy Coalition issued the following press release in conjunction with Save our Wild Salmon, the Sierra Club, and Earthjustice.) Northwest business and conservation leaders oppose legislation to overturn 2016 federal court decision and push imperiled wild salmon populations closer to extinction.  House bill would weaken the Endangered Species Act and increase costs…

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Ask your Oregon legislator to support home energy efficiency tax credits

OREGON NEEDS ENERGY EFFICIENCY.  CALL OR EMAIL YOUR LEGISLATORS TODAY!  Key House bill includes Home Solar incentives, but Energy Efficiency still needs to be added We have a new and perhaps final chance in this legislative session to assure that Oregon will continue to offer home energy efficiency tax credits to go along with home solar incentives.…

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NW Energy Coalition hopes BPA will reverse intertie rate recommendation

Montana intertie rate is a barrier to renewable energy, growth, and jobs Seattle, Washington — Yesterday, as part of its 2018 rate recommendation, the Bonneville Power Administration announced its desire to retain the Montana Intertie transmission rate. The $2 per MWh charge, which applies to a 90-mile section of power lines between Townsend and Garrison, Montana,…

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NW Energy Coalition regrets US withdrawal from Paris Agreement

Today, the NW Energy Coalition released the following statement on President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. Benefits of leaving are illusory, costs of climate change are already being felt. Seattle, Wa. —  President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement is regrettable because climate change matters in the…

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