Montana

Great Falls Tribune: Wind at Spion Kop wind farm 'phenomenal'

Wind at NorthWestern Energy’s new 40-megawatt wind farm, called Spion Kop, is “phenomenal,” said John Hines, the regulated utility’s vice president of supply.

Officials with NorthWestern, turbine manufacturer General Electric, developer CompassEnergies and Judith Basin County gathered near a substation to celebrate the completion of the wind farm, which has been operating since December. It’s located 50 miles east of Great Falls.

Read the full article online at the Great Falls Tribune

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Coalition congratulates Flathead Electric Cooperative and Snohomish County PUD for energy efficiency awards

The NW Energy Coalition would like to congratulate Flathead Electric Cooperative and Snohomish County PUD for receiving a well-deserved Excellence in Energy Efficiency Award from the Bonneville Power Administration. We applaud and appreciate their regional leadership in energy efficiency and a low carbon future!

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Montana conservationists say water quality near coal mines needs protection

Two conservation groups representing citizens and landowners in southeastern Montana filed a lawsuit Tuesday alleging that the state Department of Environmental Quality is not doing enough to protect streams from coal mining.

Attorneys for Coalition Members Montana Environmental Information Center and the Sierra Club sued in U.S. District Court in Helena over Colorado-based Westmoreland Coal Co. plans to expand the Rosebud mine near Colstrip…

Read the full article at GreatFallsTribune.com

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Columbia River salmon plans: The judge is not amused

The Seattle Times Editorial page weighs in on Judge Redden’s ruling. U.S. District Court Judge James Redden issued a 24-page ruling Tuesday that slapped down another federal plan for operating the economic interests of the Columbia and Snake rivers, while working to save endangered fish.

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Federal Judge Rules for Columbia and Snake River Salmon

U.S. District Court Judge James Redden ruled today that the NOAA Fisheries Service again failed to produce a legal and scientific plan to protect imperiled Columbia-Snake River salmon from harm caused by the operation of federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers. Today’s court action – which has been ongoing for almost a decade – is a landmark decision for fishing and conservation groups, the state of Oregon and the Nez Perce and Spokane tribes, all of which have opposed the federal biological opinion, or BiOp, in court.

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The Missoulian: Measure looks to deter tiered energy rates for conservation efforts

Coalition staffer Diego Rivas is quoted in this article on a new bill in the Montana legislature that looks to specify that tiered or “inverted block” utility rates meant to promote energy conservation should only be allowed if they reflect the utility’s actual costs.

Read the full article online.

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