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Bright Future in the news
Bright Future news items from around the Northwest
The Transformer – November 28, 2007
Volume 4, Number 8 Decoupling 101: Breaking the link between energy sales and utility revenue Background Who doesn’t love conservation? We all know that more efficient energy use is the cheapest and cleanest resource going. The recognition that “the cheapest kilowatt is the one we don’t use” hardly qualifies as a “Eureka!” moment any more.…
The Transformer: Update – November 19, 2007
Volume 4, Number 7.5 – Special Update OPUC staff follows Coalition advice, gives resounding ‘No’ to new coal plants Background A recent Transformer (“PacifiCorp’s Dilemma,” Oct. 29, 2007) described multi-state utility PacifiCorp’s proposed integrated resource plan (IRP) and detailed clean-energy advocates’ critique of the plan’s call for two new coal-fired power plants. Now, Oregon Public…
Energy Activist – Winter 2007
NW Energy Coalition’s 25th Anniversary
Fresh off some of its greatest victories, the NW Energy Coalition charges into its second quarter century.
Coalition stalwarts recall the personalities, the battles, the joys and accomplishments in 25 years of fighting for a clean energy future.
The Transformer – October 29, 2007
Volume 4, Number 7 PacifiCorp’s dilemma Background PacifiCorp is a large investor-owned utility serving portions of six states: Oregon, Utah, Wyoming, California, Washington and Idaho. In the not-to-distant past, NW Energy Coalition and other clean-energy advocacy groups commended PacifiCorp’s foresight in assessing the cost of carbon emissions while compiling its 2004 integrated resource plan (IRP)…
The Transformer – August 20, 2007
Volume 4, Number 6 Clean energy forces win a lot, lose a little in BPA’s power allocation scheme Table of Contents Background Double, double, toil and trouble – The basic problem Renewed interest – Renewables commitment Tracks of my tiers – Meeting load growth How high’s the water, momma? – Power allocations Fish keep the…
Doug Still Obituary
A giant of the Northwest’s clean-energy and social-justice movements is gone. Doug Still organized and served the needs of migrant farm workers in the 1950s, marched for civil rights in Chicago and Selma in the ’60s, fought for equal opportunity in education as head of United Ministries in Public Education, which he helped found in…
The Transformer – June 25, 2007
Volume 4, Number 5 Power Council-BPA study shows feasibility of integrating wind in the Northwest Background In December 2004, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council – the regional power-planning agency representing the governors of Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Washington – released its 5th Northwest Power Plan. The 5th Plan was groundbreaking. Not only did it…
The Transformer – June 19, 2007
Volume 4, Number 4 Study shows region outpacing conservation goal Power Council seeks advice on hiking 5th Plan target Background In December 2004, energy efficiency advocates cheered the release of a new power plan that called for meeting half the predicted increase in Northwest energy demand with conservation. The Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s 5th…
The Transformer – May 24, 2007
Volume 4, Number 3 Replacing the power from the Lower Snake dams Background On Nov. 15, 2006, salmon recovery advocates released Revenue Stream, a compilation of earlier reports on the costs and benefits of removing the four Lower Snake River dams in southeastern Washington to restore Columbia Basin salmon species now on threatened or endangered…
The Transformer – January 22, 2007
Vol.4, No.1 Shedding some light on solar costs Background As a renewable energy source, solar panels — or photovoltaics (PVs) — are still not widely utilized or generally seen as cost effective in this region. Two factors are combining to change that conclusion, however. First, skyrocketing demand has dramatically driven down PV costs. Second, utilities…
Tellus Report
A report from the Tellus Institute shows the Northwest can meet its growing need for electricity by increasing energy efficiency and investing in new sources of renewable power generation. Thanks to recent innovations, clean energy technologies are primed to compete with gas plants, the economic benchmark for new power generation. The results of the Tellus study cast doubt on the need for additional fossil fuel generation in the Northwest.