Energy Activist Online

The greatest future challenges for low-income and other energy consumers are readily apparent today. These include the fundamental affordability of electricity, climate change, energy efficiency costs and benefits, integrating new renewables such as wind, and the promises and dangers of the “smart grid…”

Set for Friday and Saturday, Dec. 2-3, in Seattle, the Conference will tackle some of the most pressing issues and fascinating developments in the campaign for a clean energy future. Utility regulation, salmon recovery, clean energy for buildings, transmission/ecosystem issues will be on the agenda…

The Coalition’s diverse and active membership makes it one of the Northwest’s most influential public-interest voices on energy policy. We must continue our long history of reaching out and bringing new partners into our work…

The NW Energy Coalition should be incredibly proud of the recent deals to shutter the Boardman and Centralia coal plants. The Coalition’s work – the long legacy of achievement in energy efficiency, renewable resources and energy system planning – is what made this transition thinkable, then doable, then done.

King Coal, however, is not taking our progress lying down…

Recently I had occasion to spout off on the fallacy of the conventional energy wisdom from 30 plus years ago … the very conventional wisdom that the Coalition was born to challenge…

Two hundred billion is a really big number. According to a new Western Grid Group report, that’s how many dollars will be spent on Western states’ power systems over the next 20 years, regardless of how we choose to replace aging power plants and meet estimated growth in energy demand…

It was a privilege to be part of the amazingly thoughtful effort in the 1980s to make energy efficiency a practical, effective resource here in the Northwest. The NW Energy Coalition’s 30th anniversary reminds us of those fruitful, exciting times…

Each month, we post the updates from the state and provincial caucus reports…