News
Missoulian Op-Ed: Renewable energy works for Montana
Complaints about the supposedly high costs of renewable energy by political pundits and candidates around the state are vastly misleading and need correction. In an Oct. 11 Missoulian story, Public Service Commission candidate Bill Gallagher is quoted as saying that renewable energy in Montana has raised electricity rates “without generating any real benefits.” Meanwhile, PSC candidate Travis Kavulla claims that renewable energy requirements for our utilities are “going to add costs to the consumer without adding any real value for them.” Let’s set the record straight…
Read the full Op-Ed online at The Missoulian.
First solar projects approved for public land
The Interior Department approved the first solar projects on public land Tuesday, a move aimed at shifting the type of energy development on federal property in the years to come.
The two ventures greenlighted in the California desert — the Imperial Valley and Chevron Lucerne Valley solar projects — could provide energy for hundreds of thousands of homes, though neither would start generating electricity for more than a year, at the earliest…
Northwest groups urge members of congress to say "no" to mega-industrial transportation corridor
On September 22, forty-two conservation, fishing, clean energy and outdoor organizations from across the Pacific Northwest delivered letters to the members of congress in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana.
The organizations express grave concerns about the potential impacts and risks to our communities, businesses, and environment if Exxon’s is successful in establishing a brand-new “high and wide” mega-industrial transportation corridor through the heart of the Pacific Northwest.
The Olympian: Clean energy groups protest Centralia TransAlta coal plant
A campaign by clean energy groups (including the NW Energy Coalition) to shut down the Centralia coal-fired power plant by 2015 staged five events statewide Tuesday…
Economic boost awaits transmission upgrades in Idaho
From the Times-News comes this article about how Idaho and other western states may need to invest millions of dollars in transmission lines to continue producing and selling renewable energy.
Oregon's Bill Bradbury appointed to Northwest Power and Conservation Council
Former Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury has been appointed by Governor Kulongoski to the position being vacated by Melinda Eden on the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
You can read the full story online at The Oregonian.
Seattle City Light's new video contest targets "Energy Vampires"
Halloween is just around the corner and Seattle City Light is holding a “Slay Your Energy Vampires” video contest to celebrate…
Isolated green buildings won't save the planet
From CNN: Architect Joshua Prince Ramus talks about how new buildings should be energy efficient but that alone won’t save environment.
US energy use is dropping and shifting to renewables
A new report shows that the US energy economy has shifted away from coal over the last year at a pace faster than the declining economy would predict.
The Transformer – August 18, 2010
How green is my electron? Overcoming the smart grid’s color blindness
Energy journals and, increasingly, the popular media now teem with updates and predictions on developing “smart grid” technologies … how they will help smooth power demand, greatly improve efficiency and outage/service response, and reward consumers with lower bills.
This issue of The Transformer tackles the question of why the smart grid isn’t necessarily a green grid and, in fact, could actually foster greater demand for power from coal-fueled or nuclear baseload plants. It also presents one proposed means of dealing with the problem: buying green electrons…