Editor's Take: July 30, 2008
franco folini, flickr
Protecting the Pacific
Regional agreements top the news today. California, Oregon, and Washington governors have released a plan to protect the Pacific Ocean from pollution. Meanwhile, states and provinces are still talking about the Western Climate Initiative and the best way to craft a cap-and-trade system. And whether it be wind, electric cars, or other sources, green jobs are popping up throughout Cascadia.
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Western Governors' Plan to Protect the Pacific
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
07/29/2008
West Coast governors Tuesday released an action plan for improving ocean health by curbing pollution, preventing oil spills and reducing the harm of shoreline development. The strategy also calls for a coordinated look at ecologically-sound offshore energy development, including "opposing all new offshore oil and gas leasing, development and production" and investigating renewable wind, wave, current and tidal energy.
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Climate-Change Allies Chart Bold Course
Victoria Times Colonist
07/30/2008
British Columbians are going to become very familiar with three initials that represent an entirely new and unfamiliar order of quasi-government. If the plans now being laid at a furious pace work out, WCI -- the Western Climate Initiative -- will have a significant impact on life in B.C. starting in January 2012.
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PGE Reveals Electric Charging Stations
Business Journal
07/29/2008
Portland General Electric Co. on Tuesday unveiled the first of a dozen new electric charging stations for what it expects will be a future onslaught of plug-in hybrid autos. The Portland-based electric utility provided a demonstration of the new charging stations outside its downtown headquarters, where a prototype of a new plug-in version of the Toyota gas and electric-fueled Prius was plugged in.
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Winds of Change Fill New Career
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
07/29/2008
With wind turbine towers popping up on the U.S. landscape at a rate of almost 10 per day, the need for people to maintain and repair them is reaching the critical point. Community colleges in North Dakota and other states are jumping at the chance to help fill that need and develop a niche for themselves at the same time through wind tech programs
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Un-Dammed Oregon River Successfully Reinvents Itself
Oregonian
07/30/2008
As dams go, Marmot Dam on the Sandy River wasn't huge. But now that it's gone, its impact is turning out to be enormous. The removal of the nearly 50-foot-high dam by Portland General Electric in October gave scientists perhaps their best chance to watch as a river digested a vast amount of rocks, sand and gravel collected over many decades in a reservoir.
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Poll: Oregonians Favor Green Cars and Fuels
Portland Oregonian
07/29/2008
Nine of every 10 Oregonians say that even if gas prices drop, leaders must act now to avoid a future crisis, and eight of every 10 say car manufacturers should be required to make more efficient cars that pollute less and use less gasoline.
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US Reports Drop in Homeless Population
New York Times
07/29/2008
The number of chronically homeless people living in the nation's streets and shelters has dropped by about 30 percent -- to 123,833 from 175,914 -- between 2005 and 2007, Bush administration officials said Tuesday.
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Retiring in Stages: Boomers Get More Options
San Francisco Chronicle
07/30/2008
Not ready to retire just yet? Consider asking your boss if you can work part-time or telecommute. A study released Wednesday by Hewitt Associates found 61 percent of U.S. companies have or will develop programs that let workers retire in stages. The programs are intended to hold onto the experience of baby boomers, and ease the difficulty of replacing their skills.
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Bush Pushes Congress on Oil Drilling
Fortune
07/30/2008
President Bush on Wednesday called for Congress to allow offshore oil drilling, citing an "urgent" need to reduce pressure on crude and gas prices.
The comments come as lawmakers are debating legislation to expand domestic oil drilling.
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Views: Digging Out of the Energy Hole
The Tyee
07/30/2008
The first step in getting out of a hole is to stop digging. But in the face of global warming and skyrocketing oil prices, some people just want to dig deeper. U.S. President George Bush's response to record-high oil prices over the past few months was to lift a ban on oil and gas drilling in U.S. coastal waters that his dad, George Bush Sr., issued in 1990, and to call for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
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