Current Stories
Editor's Top Picks
Despite tax credits, wind-energy firms aren't hiring
Seattle Times
02/09/2010
Despite the Obama administration's efforts to create jobs making wind turbines in America, some companies say that sluggish demand for wind energy is holding them back.
Go to article.
Biodiesel tax credit ends
Salem Statesman Journal
02/09/2010
Salem-based SeQuential Biodiesel, like most businesses in the industry, is reeling from the loss of a federal biodiesel tax credit.
Go to article.
Toyota recalls 437,000 Priuses, hybrids globally
Seattle Times
02/09/2010
Toyota says it is recalling about 437,000 Prius and other hybrid vehicles worldwide to fix brake problems - the latest in a string of embarrassing safety lapses at the world's largest automaker.
Go to article.
Controversial bailout for 'green' wind farm in BC
Vancouver Sun
02/09/2010
BC Hydro signed an energy purchase agreement with the private developer of the proposed wind farm at Dokie Ridge as part of a call for "green energy" projects back in 2006.
But work on the 144-megawatt first phase was halted during the global financial meltdown in the fall of 2008, amid rising construction costs and a consultant's report that questioned the reliability of the site as a source of wind power.
Go to article.
Oregon House votes to ban off-shore drilling
Oregonian
02/08/2010
Oregon's coastal waters -- at least the 3-mile-wide strip that the state controls -- would remain off-limits to oil and gas drilling for the next decade under a bill that passed the House on Monday.
Go to article.
Views: Balance OR budget with energy taxes, cuts
Oregonian
02/09/2010
Lawmakers should close the $183 million gap without dipping into reserves and fix their attention on kicker reform and positioning Oregon for the future.
Go to article.
Oregon's Steens Mountain could soon have wind farms
Oregonian
02/07/2010
Harney County has cleared Columbia Energy Partners of Vancouver to build a wind farm on the mountain's north slope. By year's end, 415-foot turbines could start rising from the juniper and sagebrush, among thousands of towers that developers are stampeding to build across eastern Oregon.
Go to article.
Bill would classify burning garbage as renewable power
Salem Statesman Journal
02/06/2010
Garbage - it's generated day after day, in ever increasing amounts, and Marion County wants it considered a renewable resource.
Go to article.
Pacific Gas to attempt harnessing power of Pacific Ocean
Daily Democrat
02/08/2010
The Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is weeks away from submitting an application to the federal government for a first-of-its kind project to test wave energy devices off the Humboldt County coast.
Go to article.
Poor snowpack could shrink NW hydropower
Oregonian
02/06/2010
A thin snowpack and predictions of low runoff this summer have the Bonneville Power Administration forecasting a financial loss for the year, and Northwest water watchers hoping for more snowy weather before the winter's through.
Go to article.
Toyota expected to extend recall to 2010 Prius models
New York Times
02/08/2010
Toyota plans to recall at least 311,000 of its 2010 Prius hybrid models after receiving a flurry of complaints about the vehicle's brakes, a person briefed on the decision said late Sunday.
Go to article.
Small stimulus energy grants making big difference in rural OR
Oregonian
02/07/2010
The worst recession in 70 years is turning into an energy-saving boon for tiny and remote rural schools in Oregon, as well as the state's poorest people.
Go to article.
Oregon Field Guide: Wind and bats
The url www.opb.org doesn't have a corresponding news source
02/08/2010
If you've taken a drive through the gorge lately, you've seen that turbines seem to be sprouting up faster than grass. Wind energy is big business now. Unfortunately, those turbines are taking an unexpected toll on migrating bats.
Go to article.
Natural gas plant gets first US carbon cap
San Francisco Chronicle
02/05/2010
California's Bay Area will soon be home to the first US power plant to have its greenhouse gas emissions capped by a federal government permit. Owners of the natural gas plant volunteered for the CO2 limit.
Go to article.
Renewable energy requirement would add jobs
Business Journal
02/04/2010
A new report says that a renewable energy standard enacted across the US requiring every state to get 25 percent of required electric power from renewable energy sources would create new jobs in every state.
Go to article.
Plan would put wood waste to work
Olympian
02/05/2010
An energy company hopes to break ground by late this year on a power plant in the town of Shelton, near Olympia, that would convert wood waste from logging operations into electricity. The company needs 600,000 tons of wood debris yearly to fuel its $250 million biomass plant.
Go to article.
Millions flowing to Cash for Caulkers
Portland Tribune
02/04/2010
President Obama says people can be put to work weatherizing homes and installing energy-efficiency upgrades, such as newer furnaces and hot water heaters. He has proposed "Cash for Caulkers," a program intended to refurbish 130 million US homes.
Go to article.
Gregoire gives green light to wind farm
Yakima Herald-Republic
02/03/2010
Gov. Chris Gregoire has approved the Desert Claim wind project in Kittitas County, eight miles north of Ellensburg. Desert Claim, which becomes the fourth wind farm approved in the county, will have a capacity of 95 turbines across 5,200 acres.
Go to article.
Obama boosts biofuels, "clean coal"
KPLU
02/04/2010
The Obama administration announced new plans to boost biofuels and to look for climate-friendly ways to use coal as part of an overall "green energy" strategy. Industry folks in the Northwest are enthusiastic, but environmentalists are a bit more cautious.
Go to article.
Views: A smarter, cleaner way to create jobs
Seattle Times
02/03/2010
For the first time, the US government has embraced the principles of smart growth. The Obama administration recognizes that making urban, suburban, and rural communities more livable is essential to our nation's shared economic future.
Go to article.
President calls for support of alternative fuels
New York Times
02/03/2010
President Obama moved on Wednesday to bolster the nation's production of corn-based ethanol and other alternative liquid fuels and ordered the rapid development of technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of coal.
Go to article.
Views: To get clean energy, upgrade to Electricity 2.0
San Francisco Chronicle
02/03/2010
Only by upgrading from Electricity 1.0 -- the closed, highly regulated energy network created a century ago -- to Electricity 2.0 -- an open, distributed network -- can America unlock the potential of clean technology and experience a renewable energy revolution.
Go to article.
Oregon leaders to cut green energy support
Oregonian
02/03/2010
Big wind energy projects no longer need state incentives, Gov. Ted Kulongoski said Wednesday, as lawmakers explored a plan to rein in the soaring costs of Oregon's tax breaks for green energy.
Go to article.
Wash. gov says nuclear energy must be considered
Seattle Times
02/03/2010
Gov. Chris Gregoire is applauding President Barack Obama's recent push for nuclear power -- a stance that could cause political headaches in her state. Gregoire met with Obama and 10 other governors Wednesday to talk abut energy.
Go to article.
Portland neighborhood taps hot energy plan
Portland Tribune
02/04/2010
Get it while it' hot: a sweet deal on solar panel installations if you live in Northeast Portland. Neighborhood activists formally launched the Solarize Northeast project this week, modeled after last year's surprisingly successful program in Southeast Portland.
Go to article.
