News
Oregon PUC rulings support renewables development
On Tuesday, the Oregon Public Utility Commission issued a pair of orders preserving a longstanding program to develop small solar and wind projects under the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act of 1978 (PURPA). “These PUC decisions will help continue clean energy resource development for Oregonians,” said NW Energy Coalition senior policy analyst Fred Heutte.
Centralia coal transition grant to fund weatherization efforts
The first grant from the Centralia, Wash, coal-plant transition effort was awarded Tuesday. The Community Action Council of Lewis, Mason & Thurston Counties will receive $727,433 over the next two years to support its weatherization efforts in Lewis County and south Thurston county.
Puget Sound Energy makes move to transition off of coal power
Today, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission approved a petition filed by Puget Sound Energy, Sierra Club and the NW Energy Coalition asking to delay the pending April 1, 2016, rate case with the commitment that PSE include a retirement and cleanup plan for the older coal-fired units Colstrip units 1 and 2. The new rate case must be filed no later than January 17, 2017.
Join us for an Energy Efficiency Brown Bag – March 28!
What does it mean to bring energy efficiency to scale? How can we collaborate with labor and industry to make more energy efficiency happen? Our lunch discussion will explore these key questions, informed by insights from Stan Price of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Council and Jeff Johnson from the Washington State Labor Council.
Gov. Brown signs Oregon’s historic clean electricity, coal transition bill into law
The Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Act was developed by a unique alliance including the NW Energy Coalition and many of its members and allies: the Citizens’ Utility Board of Oregon, Climate Solutions, Oregon Environmental Council, Oregon League of Conservation Voters, Natural Resources Defense Council, Pacific Power, Portland General Electric, Renewable Northwest and Sierra Club. Tested and improved through legislative review and input from the state’s Public Utility Commission, the bill won Senate approval on March 2 on the heels of a bipartisan House vote the week before.
Oregon Votes to Plug its Cars into Renewable Energy
Oregon’s legislature has just adopted a bill to get the state off coal and onto renewables, and to use that renewable electricity to power the state’s cars, trucks, and buses. Focusing here on the provisions of the bill designed to increase access to charging stations for electric vehicles, the bill instructs Oregon’s Public Utilities Commission to order electric utilities to propose programs and investments to “accelerate transportation electrification” by the end of this year.
Oregon Legislature Passes Historic Coal Transition Bill
The Oregon Legislative Assembly today approved a landmark bill that will commit the state to eliminate its use of coal power by 2035 and double the amount of clean, renewable energy serving Oregonians to 50 percent by 2040. Otherwise known as the Clean Electricity and Coal Transition plan, Senate Bill 1547-B received final approval on the Senate floor today after the Oregon House approved the bill in a 38-20 bipartisan vote on Tuesday.
Member spotlight: YMCA Earth Service Corps
To prepare the next generation of environmental leaders, the YMCA Earth Service Corps (YESC) helps young people from diverse backgrounds get outside, engage with their local community and gain tools to enhance the natural world. YESC empowers youth to create a healthier environment through education, service learning and leadership activities.
Roger Hamilton OpEd: "Weaning state off coal is what Oregonians want"
Just over five years ago, Oregon regulators approved a proposal to shut down the state’s only coal-burning power plant. For more than three decades, the Boardman plant was a workhorse providing electricity to Oregon families and businesses. But in the end, with overwhelming public support, it became clear the benefits of closing the doors on Boardman, by far the state’s biggest air polluter, outweighed the costs.
7th Northwest Power and Conservation Plan another stride toward clean energy future
In approving its seventh 20-year power plan on Wednesday, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council refilled the prescription to meet the region’s new electricity needs primarily with bill-shaving, emissions-avoiding, job-creating energy efficiency. The Council finds that acquiring 1,400 average megawatts of cost-effective energy efficiency in the plan’s five-year “action plan” period and 4,300 aMW by 2035 is the lowest cost and lowest risk strategy for meeting growth in electricity demand.