EC September 2013

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Jim Hightower article: Colorado’s Fracking Disaster
by Paul Wilson 28 Sep '13

28 Sep '13

Colorado’s Fracking Disaster In Colorado's flood-struck areas, a tsunami of floodwater and destructive debris swamped fracking infrastructure. By Jim Hightower <http://otherwords.org/author/jim-hightower/> [image: Jim Hightower] <http://otherwords.org/author/jim-hightower/> As the people of Colorado are presently learning, it’s horrendous enough to suffer the ravages of a natural disaster, but it’s doubly horrific to then be faced with a more devastating unnatural disaster. First came the epic floods<http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/20/20606351-colorado-town-unlivable…> that recently ripped through the front range, tearing up towns, roads, waterways, mountain homes and businesses, farms, and lives. Just awful. But now comes the added horror of unknown levels of poisonous contaminants pouring out of many of the thousands of fracking sites that pock this area. Big Oil frackers were already notorious in Boulder and Weld Counties for the environmental, health, and economic damage being done by this ravaging method of forcing gas out of the rock deep under Earth’s surface. Now, though, the corporate wells, tanks, ponds, and other fracking infrastructure<http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/09/19/did-floods-cause-a-frackin…> have been swamped by a tsunami of floodwater and destructive debris. [image: Hightower-Fracking-East Boulder County United] East Boulder County United/Facebook Even in the chaos of people scrambling to get out of the flood’s way and to secure their property, many residents were so alarmed by seeing this mess of flooded wells, overturned tanks of highly toxic chemicals and wastewater, and ruptured lines that they paused to take pictures and videos<http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/first-colorado-was-on-fire-then-it-flooded…> . They then posted these on websites and Facebook pages to document this unexpected threat of widespread, long-term damage from fracking contaminants and to alert neighbors to the dangers. After all, the frackers themselves weren’t telling the public about this unfolding disaster, the big media outlets were curiously incurious about it, and regulators were also silent. So, like the pamphleteers of old, the people formed their own network of communication — and they’ve now turned it into a citizens’ action network. To see some of their photos, videos, and actions, go to www.facebook.com/EastBoulderCountyUnited. OtherWords <http://otherwords.org/> columnist Jim Hightower<http://www.jimhightower.com/> is a radio commentator, writer, and public speaker. He’s also editor of the populist newsletter, The Hightower Lowdown<http://www.hightowerlowdown.org/> . OtherWords.org -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Op/Ed on EPA Carbon rules
by James Kotcon 22 Sep '13

22 Sep '13

As you should know by now, EPA announced new rules for carbon emissions from power plants yesterday, and the response by politicians in West Virginia was pretty pro-coal. Here is an Op/Ed I put together in response to yesterday's carbon rule. Please send me any feedback, as I would like to get a response out soon. Jim Kotcon

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FW: DAILY UPDATE 22 September 2013. News of interest to Mon river watershed denizens.
by James Kotcon 22 Sep '13

22 Sep '13

Near the bottom of this article, it says PJM has agreed that closing Hatfields Ferry, et al. will not harm reliability. Anyone have a copy of that PJM letter? Jim Kotcon ________________________________ Trio of FirstEnergy plant closings in region should make lawsuit moot, utility says Stephanie Strasburg | Tribune-Review The coal-fired Mitchell Power Station in Union, which is planned for closure due to decreasing demand for power and an inability to keep up with new EPA regulations. About Brian Bowling Brian Bowling<mailto:bbowling@tribweb.com?subject=RE:%20Trio%20of%20FirstEnergy%20plant%20closings%20in%20region%20should%20make%20lawsuit%20moot,%20utility%20says%20story%20on%20TribLIVE.com> 412-325-4301 Staff Reporter Pittsburgh Tribune-Review<http://triblive.com/home/> Contact Us<http://triblive.com/home/contactus/> | Video<http://triblive.com/home/video/> | Photo Reprints<http://photos.triblive.com/mycapture/> By Brian Bowling<mailto:bbowling@tribweb.com?subject=RE:%20Trio%20of%20FirstEnergy%20plant%20closings%20in%20region%20should%20make%20lawsuit%20moot,%20utility%20says%20story%20on%20TribLIVE.com> Published: Saturday, September 21, 2013 9:00 p.m. Updated 6 hours ago An eight-year legal effort by Pennsylvania and four other states to force three power plants to meet modern pollution limits could end without a court decision. FirstEnergy, which acquired the coal-fired power plants in Armstrong, Greene and Washington counties when it bought Allegheny Energy Inc. in 2011, contends that U.S. District Judge Joy Flowers Conti should dismiss the 2005 lawsuit because the company closed the Armstrong plant and will close the others on Oct. 9. Company spokeswoman Stephanie Thornton said they are not closing the plants because of the lawsuit, but the closings should end the dispute. Company officials are “hopeful that the court will decide ... that we have no Clean Air Act liability,” she said. Regulators in the five states believe the judge should allow them to pursue their claim that the utility ignored state and federal pollution laws for more than two decades. ‘Not interrelated' John Poister, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, said the agency doesn't comment on pending lawsuits. But he noted, “The two issues are not interrelated. The suit is not affected by FirstEnergy's decisions regarding the future of the two plants.” When Congress amended the Clean Air Act in the 1970s, it established national air pollution limits but exempted older power plants from meeting them. The rationale was that companies should not be forced to install expensive pollution controls on plants nearing the ends of their lives and, if they took steps to extend operations of the plants, companies could install the controls with the upgrades. The states contend that many utilities, including Allegheny Energy, made upgrades but ignored the requirement to install pollution controls. FirstEnergy contends the work done at the plants — Armstrong Power Station in Armstrong County, Mitchell Power Station in Washington County and Hatfield's Ferry Power Station in Greene County — between 1993 and 1999 wasn't enough to trigger the requirement. The lawsuit seeks fines for the violations and an injunction to keep the company from operating the plants without installing controls. In asking Conti to dismiss the case, FirstEnergy contends that appellate court decisions have established that regulators had to seek civil penalties within five years of a violation. Since the last plant modification was in 1999 and the states didn't file the lawsuit until 2005, they missed that deadline, FirstEnergy claims. PJM request denied Lawyers for the states disagree and argue that similar state law violations alleged in the lawsuit have that statute of limitations. An injunction, FirstEnergy claims, would be moot because it will close the plants. The company has partially disassembled the Armstrong plant. The states contend that a request by PJM Interconnection that FirstEnergy keep Hatfield and Mitchell open shows they could continue operating. Valley Forge-based PJM oversees stability of the region's power grid. By filing a maintenance plan with the state, the utility could keep operating permits active until they expire in 2017, the states claim. FirstEnergy could decide “to reactivate the plants by reinstalling equipment, rehiring staff and entering into new coal contracts,” the states argue. Thornton said that First-Energy rejected PJM's request and hasn't changed its plan to close the plants. “We are confident there are no reliability issues that would require us to keep the plants in operation,” she said. PJM sent a letter to FirstEnergy on Thursday saying that it agrees the plants can be retired without hurting the grid's reliability FirstEnergy suggested Conti could dismiss the lawsuit but stipulate that it could reopen if the company attempts to reactivate the plants. Brian Bowling is a Trib Total Media staff writer. Don Strimbeck, Sec/Treas Upper Mon River Assoc UpperMon.org MonRiverSummit.org WVU t-shirts & prints - FindHarri.com 109 Broad Street, P. O. Box 519 Granville WV 26534-0519 304-599-7585 (fax 4131) dcsoinks(a)comcast.net<mailto:dcsoinks@comcast.net>

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FW: [wvec-board] Unplugging from the Power Grid- A jolt to utilities
by James Kotcon 20 Sep '13

20 Sep '13

Perhaps this is the next battle ground. We need to prepare comprehensive plans to engage the PSC so that utilities do not suppress renewables and EE in a vain effort to prolong their monopoly. JBK ________________________________ From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com <wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com> on behalf of Patience Wait <pwaitster(a)gmail.com> Sent: Friday, September 20, 2013 7:24 AM To: James Kotcon; wvec-board Subject: Re: [wvec-board] Unplugging from the Power Grid- A jolt to utilities Yes. The utility industry is very concerned. The Edison Electric Institute report mentioned is here: http://www.eei.org/ourissues/finance/Documents/disruptivechallenges.pdf As a result, the industry is trying to figure out ways to make it punitively expensive for consumers to switch to renewables, through such approaches as a monthly "surcharge" to homes with solar panels, to "pay for" using the distribution part of the grid. Dominion Power in Virginia is trying to get this in place. And when I say punitive, I mean a monthly charge of as much as $100 - so $1200 a year! Patience On Thu, Sep 19, 2013 at 8:58 PM, Frank Young <fyoung(a)mountain.net<mailto:fyoung@mountain.net>> wrote: This article can be read online here: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/companies-unplug-electric-grid-delivering-030… ________________________________ From: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com<mailto:WVHCBOARD@yahoogroups.com> [mailto:WVHCBOARD@yahoogroups.com<mailto:WVHCBOARD@yahoogroups.com>] On Behalf Of cindy rank Sent: Thursday, September 19, 2013 8:51 AM To: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com<mailto:WVHCBOARD@yahoogroups.com> Cc: Bill Howley; Cathy Kunkel; Mary Ellen Cassidy Subject: [WVHCBOARD] Unplugging from the Power Grid WALL STREET JOURNAL September 17, 2013, 11:05 p.m. ET Companies Unplug From the Electric Grid, Delivering a Jolt to Utilities By REBECCA SMITH<http://topics.wsj.com/person/A/biography/7476> and CASSANDRA SWEET<http://topics.wsj.com/person/A/biography/7459> At Kroger's food-distribution center in Compton, Calif., a tank system converts organic waste into biogas to produce electricity used by the facility. On a hill overlooking the Susquehanna River, two big wind turbines crank out electricity for Kroger<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=KR> Co.'s Turkey Hill Dairy in rural Lancaster County, Pa., allowing it to save 25% on its power bill for the past two years. Across the country, at a big food-distribution center Kroger also owns in Compton, Calif., a tank system installed this year uses bacteria to convert 150 tons a day of damaged produce, bread and other organic waste into a biogas that is burned on site to produce 20% of the electricity the facility uses. These two projects, plus the electric output of solar panels at four Kroger grocery stores, and some energy-conservation efforts are saving the Cincinnati-based grocery chain $160 million a year on electricity, said Denis George, its energy manager. That is a lot of money that isn't going into the pockets of utilities. >From big-box retailers to high-tech manufacturers, more companies across the country are producing their own power. Since 2006, the number of electricity-generation units at commercial and industrial sites has more than quadrupled to roughly 40,000 from about 10,000, according to federal statistics. Experts say the trend is gaining momentum, spurred by falling prices for solar panels and natural gas, as well as a fear that power outages caused by major storms will become more common. "The battle cry is Hurricane Sandy," said Rick Fioravanti, vice president of energy-storage technology at DNV Kema, a Netherlands-based consulting company. The growing number of companies that are at least partly energy self-sufficient is sending a shudder through the utility industry, threatening its revenues and growth prospects, according to a report earlier this year by the Edison Electric Institute, a trade association for investor-owned electric companies. State and federal regulators say they are worried that utilities could end up with fewer customers to pay for costly transmission lines and power plants. Utility executives, meanwhile, are asking themselves a disquieting question: "Am I going to just sit here and take it and ultimately be a caretaker of a museum, or am I going to be part of that business" that's emerging, said Nick Akins, chief executive of American Electric Power<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=AEP> Co., a big Ohio-based utility. AEP is considering helping its customers install their own generating facilities. On-site generation still accounts for less than 5% of U.S. electricity production. But it is peeling off some of the bulk sales that utilities find especially profitable. And some of the companies getting into the business think it is approaching a tipping point called "grid parity," at which point power would be as cheap to make as to buy from a utility. Since 2007, when the first solar arrays went up on its store roofs in California, the installed costs of Wal-Mart Stores<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=WMT> Inc.'s solar systems have dropped from $6 or $8 per watt of capacity to about $3.50 per watt, said David Ozment, the company's senior director of energy management. He said he expects the retailer to be paying as little for solar power as utility power "in less than three years," opening the floodgates to solar expansion. Wal-Mart produces about 4% of the electricity it uses but intends to make 20% by 2020, taking advantage of idle acreage on thousands of store rooftops. On-site generation isn't a new idea. It existed before the electric grid—the interconnected system of power plants, substations and transmission lines that ferry power thousands of miles—was stitched together beginning in the 1920s. But for most of the past 50 years, the practice was associated mostly with remote locations like Alaska fish canneries or industrial facilities like oil refineries that generated lots of waste heat that could be harnessed for power production. Almost overnight, that niche market has gone decidedly mainstream. Six years ago, Google<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=GOOG> Inc. attracted attention by installing big solar arrays atop its Silicon Valley complex in California. Other tech companies followed suit, worried about ensuring power supplies for energy-hungry server farms and achieving sustainability objectives. Apple<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=AAPL> Inc. now gets 16% of its electricity from solar panels and fuel cells that run on biogas. Apple's data center in Maiden, N.C., makes all the power it consumes, a company spokeswoman said. BMW<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=BMW.XE> AG's assembly plant in South Carolina, which made 300,000 vehicles last year, gets half its electricity from an on-site energy center that burns methane piped to it from a nearby garbage dump. Drugstore chain Walgreen<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=WAG>Co., which has solar panels at 155 stores, plans to install them at 200 more. Falling equipment prices make on-site generation increasingly attractive. From 2002 to 2012, the cost of installed solar systems fell by half, according to an August report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. Companies also have the option of leasing big solar systems, rather than incurring the capital cost of buying them. Many "clean energy" projects also qualify for federal and state subsidies. In the case of solar installations, there is a 30% federal tax credit, which is set to drop to 10% in 2017. Government officials say a shift to greener energy resources is good since it reduces the output from coal-fueled power plants, which produce about 40% of the nation's electricity and are the most polluting. But analysts say the importance of subsidies has been waning, overshadowed by steep declines in the cost of power-generating equipment. For example, the cost of solar modules—the biggest single component in a rooftop solar system—has dropped about 80% in the past four years, to about 65 cents a watt from about $4 a watt, said Galen Barbose, a senior researcher at the lab. Companies also are turning to wind turbines and technologies like fuel cells, batteries, small natural-gas turbines and reciprocating engines, which are natural-gas-fueled cousins of the auto's internal combustion engine. Engineering and technology company SAIC<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=SAI> Inc. is installing enough generating capacity at a data center outside New York to meet the center's core needs, with batteries for backup power. The system uses reciprocating engines burning natural gas, an option considered reliable in storms because gas pipelines are buried. A report released by the White House in August estimated that power outages caused by bad weather cost the U.S. economy $18 billion to $52 billion a year in lost productivity from 2003 to 2012. Demand for fuel cells in the U.S. is coming primarily from telecom companies, hotels and universities, said David Wright<http://topics.wsj.com/person/W/David-Wright/5739>, CEO of ClearEdge Power Inc., a manufacturer in Hillsboro, Ore. Many buyers want reliable on-site generation as a hedge against storm-related outages. By next year, Verizon Communications<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=VZ> Inc. plans to install $100 million worth of fuel cells from ClearEdge and Bloom Energy, as well as solar panels, at 19 data centers and other facilities in seven states, including New York and New Jersey. Some traditional utility companies are edging into the on-site generation business. Edison International<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=EIX>, which owns big utility Southern California Edison, recently bought a Chicago-based developer of rooftop solar projects, SoCore Energy LLC, and it is an investor in solar-finance company Clean Power Finance. As power production becomes more decentralized, "I want to make sure the company is deeply involved," said Edison CEO Ted Craver. Write to Rebecca Smith at rebecca.smith(a)wsj.com<mailto:rebecca.smith@wsj.com> and Cassandra Sweet at cassandra.sweet(a)dowjones.com<mailto:cassandra.sweet@dowjones.com> __._,_.___ Reply via web post<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxdGo3a2VtBF9TAzk3…> Reply to sender <mailto:pwaitster@gmail.com?subject=Re%3A%20%5Bwvec-board%5D%20Unplugging%20from%20the%20Power%20Grid-%20A%20jolt%20to%20utilities> Reply to group <mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=Re%3A%20%5Bwvec-board%5D%20Unplugging%20from%20the%20Power%20Grid-%20A%20jolt%20to%20utilities> Start a New Topic<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmZ2xsdG10BF9TAzk3…> Messages in this topic<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/3700;_ylc=X3oDMTM1NHRkMmV2…> (2) Recent Activity: Visit Your Group<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmMGMxdXNoBF9TAzk3MzU5N…> [Yahoo! Groups]<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJldDdrOWp2BF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzIxN…> Switch to: Text-Only<mailto:wvec-board-traditional@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change%20Delivery%20Format:%20Traditional>, Daily Digest<mailto:wvec-board-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email%20Delivery:%20Digest> • Unsubscribe<mailto:wvec-board-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe> • Terms of Use<http://info.yahoo.com/legal/us/yahoo/utos/terms/> • Send us Feedback <mailto:ygroupsnotifications@yahoogroups.com?subject=Feedback%20on%20the%20redesigned%20individual%20mail%20v1> . __,_._,___

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Re: [EC] from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Clean energy least costly to power America's electricity needs
by John Christensen 20 Sep '13

20 Sep '13

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Clean energy least costly to power America's electricity needs
by Paul Wilson 19 Sep '13

19 Sep '13

Clean energy least costly to power America's electricity needs<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/zfP…> Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:48 AM PDT Findings show carbon pollution from power plants can be cut cost-effectively by using wind, solar and natural gas. It’s less costly to get electricity from wind turbines and solar panels than coal-fired power plants when climate change costs and other health impacts are factored in, according to a new study. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Unplugging from the Power Grid- A jolt to utilities
by Frank Young 19 Sep '13

19 Sep '13

This article can be read online here: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/companies-unplug-electric-grid-delivering-0305 00879.html _____ From: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:WVHCBOARD@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of cindy rank Sent: Thursday, September 19, 2013 8:51 AM To: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com Cc: Bill Howley; Cathy Kunkel; Mary Ellen Cassidy Subject: [WVHCBOARD] Unplugging from the Power Grid WALL STREET JOURNAL September 17, 2013, 11:05 p.m. ET Companies Unplug From the Electric Grid, Delivering a Jolt to Utilities By <http://topics.wsj.com/person/A/biography/7476> REBECCA SMITH and <http://topics.wsj.com/person/A/biography/7459> CASSANDRA SWEET At Kroger's food-distribution center in Compton, Calif., a tank system converts organic waste into biogas to produce electricity used by the facility. On a hill overlooking the Susquehanna River, two big wind turbines crank out electricity for <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=KR> Kroger Co.'s Turkey Hill Dairy in rural Lancaster County, Pa., allowing it to save 25% on its power bill for the past two years. Across the country, at a big food-distribution center Kroger also owns in Compton, Calif., a tank system installed this year uses bacteria to convert 150 tons a day of damaged produce, bread and other organic waste into a biogas that is burned on site to produce 20% of the electricity the facility uses. These two projects, plus the electric output of solar panels at four Kroger grocery stores, and some energy-conservation efforts are saving the Cincinnati-based grocery chain $160 million a year on electricity, said Denis George, its energy manager. That is a lot of money that isn't going into the pockets of utilities. >From big-box retailers to high-tech manufacturers, more companies across the country are producing their own power. Since 2006, the number of electricity-generation units at commercial and industrial sites has more than quadrupled to roughly 40,000 from about 10,000, according to federal statistics. Experts say the trend is gaining momentum, spurred by falling prices for solar panels and natural gas, as well as a fear that power outages caused by major storms will become more common. "The battle cry is Hurricane Sandy," said Rick Fioravanti, vice president of energy-storage technology at DNV Kema, a Netherlands-based consulting company. The growing number of companies that are at least partly energy self-sufficient is sending a shudder through the utility industry, threatening its revenues and growth prospects, according to a report earlier this year by the Edison Electric Institute, a trade association for investor-owned electric companies. State and federal regulators say they are worried that utilities could end up with fewer customers to pay for costly transmission lines and power plants. Utility executives, meanwhile, are asking themselves a disquieting question: "Am I going to just sit here and take it and ultimately be a caretaker of a museum, or am I going to be part of that business" that's emerging, said Nick Akins, chief executive of <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=AEP> American Electric Power Co., a big Ohio-based utility. AEP is considering helping its customers install their own generating facilities. On-site generation still accounts for less than 5% of U.S. electricity production. But it is peeling off some of the bulk sales that utilities find especially profitable. And some of the companies getting into the business think it is approaching a tipping point called "grid parity," at which point power would be as cheap to make as to buy from a utility. Since 2007, when the first solar arrays went up on its store roofs in California, the installed costs of <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=WMT> Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s solar systems have dropped from $6 or $8 per watt of capacity to about $3.50 per watt, said David Ozment, the company's senior director of energy management. He said he expects the retailer to be paying as little for solar power as utility power "in less than three years," opening the floodgates to solar expansion. Wal-Mart produces about 4% of the electricity it uses but intends to make 20% by 2020, taking advantage of idle acreage on thousands of store rooftops. On-site generation isn't a new idea. It existed before the electric grid-the interconnected system of power plants, substations and transmission lines that ferry power thousands of miles-was stitched together beginning in the 1920s. But for most of the past 50 years, the practice was associated mostly with remote locations like Alaska fish canneries or industrial facilities like oil refineries that generated lots of waste heat that could be harnessed for power production. Almost overnight, that niche market has gone decidedly mainstream. Six years ago, <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=GOOG> Google Inc. attracted attention by installing big solar arrays atop its Silicon Valley complex in California. Other tech companies followed suit, worried about ensuring power supplies for energy-hungry server farms and achieving sustainability objectives. <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=AAPL> Apple Inc. now gets 16% of its electricity from solar panels and fuel cells that run on biogas. Apple's data center in Maiden, N.C., makes all the power it consumes, a company spokeswoman said. <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=BMW.XE> BMW AG's assembly plant in South Carolina, which made 300,000 vehicles last year, gets half its electricity from an on-site energy center that burns methane piped to it from a nearby garbage dump. Drugstore chain <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=WAG> WalgreenCo., which has solar panels at 155 stores, plans to install them at 200 more. Falling equipment prices make on-site generation increasingly attractive. >From 2002 to 2012, the cost of installed solar systems fell by half, according to an August report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. Companies also have the option of leasing big solar systems, rather than incurring the capital cost of buying them. Many "clean energy" projects also qualify for federal and state subsidies. In the case of solar installations, there is a 30% federal tax credit, which is set to drop to 10% in 2017. Government officials say a shift to greener energy resources is good since it reduces the output from coal-fueled power plants, which produce about 40% of the nation's electricity and are the most polluting. But analysts say the importance of subsidies has been waning, overshadowed by steep declines in the cost of power-generating equipment. For example, the cost of solar modules-the biggest single component in a rooftop solar system-has dropped about 80% in the past four years, to about 65 cents a watt from about $4 a watt, said Galen Barbose, a senior researcher at the lab. Companies also are turning to wind turbines and technologies like fuel cells, batteries, small natural-gas turbines and reciprocating engines, which are natural-gas-fueled cousins of the auto's internal combustion engine. Engineering and technology company <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=SAI> SAIC Inc. is installing enough generating capacity at a data center outside New York to meet the center's core needs, with batteries for backup power. The system uses reciprocating engines burning natural gas, an option considered reliable in storms because gas pipelines are buried. A report released by the White House in August estimated that power outages caused by bad weather cost the U.S. economy $18 billion to $52 billion a year in lost productivity from 2003 to 2012. Demand for fuel cells in the U.S. is coming primarily from telecom companies, hotels and universities, said <http://topics.wsj.com/person/W/David-Wright/5739> David Wright, CEO of ClearEdge Power Inc., a manufacturer in Hillsboro, Ore. Many buyers want reliable on-site generation as a hedge against storm-related outages. By next year, <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=VZ> Verizon Communications Inc. plans to install $100 million worth of fuel cells from ClearEdge and Bloom Energy, as well as solar panels, at 19 data centers and other facilities in seven states, including New York and New Jersey. Some traditional utility companies are edging into the on-site generation business. <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=EIX> Edison International, which owns big utility Southern California Edison, recently bought a Chicago-based developer of rooftop solar projects, SoCore Energy LLC, and it is an investor in solar-finance company Clean Power Finance. As power production becomes more decentralized, "I want to make sure the company is deeply involved," said Edison CEO Ted Craver. 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FW: America's Dirtiest Power Plants report
by James Kotcon 18 Sep '13

18 Sep '13

The attached report identifies the top 100 largest emitters of greenhouse gases in the utility sector. I suspect that there may be a few large oil refineries or aluminum mills that would also make a top 100 list, but coal-fired power plants are, by far, the largest emitters as a group. What is interesting is that, of the five plants in WV that made the top 100 list, three (John Amos, Harrison and Mitchell) are the ones that AEP and FE want to transfer from deregulated states to WV. Thanks to Dan Heyman for uncovering this one, and be on the lookout for the news story he is producing. Enjoy. JBK ________________________________ From: West Virginia News Service (WVNS) <wvns(a)publicnewsservice.org> Sent: Friday, September 13, 2013 8:40 PM To: James Kotcon Subject: report should be attached. Dan -- [http://www.publicnewsservice.org/images/signature_attachments/wvns_logo.png]<http://wvns.publicnewsservice.org> West Virginia News Service Toll-free: 1-800-317-6705 Email: wvns(a)publicnewsservice.org<mailto:wvns@publicnewsservice.org> Fax: 1-208-247-1830 www.publicnewsservice.org<http://www.publicnewsservice.org> [http://www.publicnewsservice.org/images/signature_attachments/twitter_icon.…]<http://www.twitter.com/PNS_WV> [http://www.publicnewsservice.org/images/signature_attachments/facebook_icon…] <http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService>

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FW: {GT} October 5th & 6th Free Energy Efficiency Workshops
by James Kotcon 17 Sep '13

17 Sep '13

This may be worth checking out. I am out of town that weekend, can anyone make it? Jim Kotcon ________________________________ From: morgantowngreenteam(a)googlegroups.com <morgantowngreenteam(a)googlegroups.com> on behalf of Aaron Sutch <asutch(a)mountain.org> Sent: Tuesday, September 17, 2013 2:37 PM To: morgantowngreenteam; James Kotcon Subject: {GT} October 5th & 6th Free Energy Efficiency Workshops Hello All, Here is a great opportunity to attend two energy efficiency workshops. Both are free. On October 5th there is a hands-on home energy efficiency workshop from 9am-4pm at the Glenmark Lowes outside of Morgantown. On October 6th there is a 'saving money with energy efficiency' workshop at WVU.1pm-5pm (Allen Hall Rm 406, Evansdale campus). See attached for more information and registration instructions. Best, -- Aaron Sutch Energy Program Manager 505 730 3943 [The Mountain Institute]<http://www.mountain.org/> www.mountain.org<http://www.mountain.org> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MorgantownGreenTeam" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to morgantowngreenteam+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to morgantowngreenteam(a)googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/morgantowngreenteam. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.

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PA's Suite Codes, Can it happen here? (Was: DAILY UPDATE 12 September 2013.
by James Kotcon 17 Sep '13

17 Sep '13

I ran into some PA residents discussing this on Saturday, but was not familiar with the issue till i saw Don Strimbeck's News post (below). Is WV-DEP doing this too? JBK ________________________________ From: dsborowiec(a)aol.com<mailto:dsborowiec@aol.com> To: dsborowiec(a)aol.com<mailto:dsborowiec@aol.com> Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2013 2:41 AM Subject: Auditor General’s Investigation of DEP Important for Southwest PA excerpt: People are entitled to the truth about what is in water they drink. Is that a debate we even need to be having? Aren’t some things so obvious they should go without saying? What possible reason is there for the DEP, under the direction of Governor Corbett, to withhold information from residents about something this important? http://canon-mcmillan.patch.com/groups/jesse-white-state-representative-46t… Auditor General’s Investigation of DEP Important for Southwest PA It’s great to say we should all work together on every issue all the time, but there comes a point when you have to realize the other side has no intention of doing so under any circumstances whatsoever. Posted by Jesse White<http://canon-mcmillan.patch.com/users/jesse-white-state-representative-46th…> , September 11, 2013 at 08:36 AM <http://canon-mcmillan.patch.com/groups/jesse-white-state-representative-46t…> Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene Depasquale gave an interview to the Scranton Times-Tribune last week in which he was asked about the ongoing audit of the PA Department of Environmental Protection’s handling of water quality issues related to Marcellus Shale drilling. His response to the question was “The only thing I could say is, it’s a good thing we’re doing the audit.” Eugene Depasquale and I were both elected to the State House in 2006 and our offices were across the hall from one another in the Capitol for several years. I believe Eugene is an honest public servant and a good person, and I consider him a friend. I have no doubt that his audit of DEP will be objective and accurate, even though the Corbett administration has recently slashed budgets for investigators, limiting manpower and resources. To refresh everyone’s memory, the basis of the audit is the DEP’s use of “Suite Codes” to limit the amount of information given to people about what DEP found in their water. This scheme was uncovered through the sworn testimony of DEP lab chief Taru Upadhyay in a deposition taken last year. Based on that testimony, here’s what was apparently happening. You have concerns about your water because you live near drilling operations, so you call DEP to check it out. The DEP inspector comes to your house, takes a sample, marks it with a “Suite Code” and sends it off to the lab for testing. The lab tests over thirty different chemicals and substances as required by federal law, the results of which are stored in the DEP lab computer. So far so good, right? But when it’s time to generate the report based on the test results, that “Suite Code” tells the computer to only give back results for a handful of the things DEP tested for, not all of them. So the DEP inspector gets a report out of the computer that is purposely incomplete, but you don’t know that because you’d have no way to know. And when the inspector shows up with that report, they can be technically correct when they say, “According to the report I received from the lab, there is no evidence of any contamination.” But what they know, and you don’t, is that they purposely told the computer to leave out results of dozens of chemicals known to be found in frac water and flowback water. Many of them are known or suspected carcinogens, which means they can cause cancer. The results are sitting in the DEP computers, but you had no way of knowing you got less than the complete results. The DEP has not denied this practice, but they haven’t explained it either. We also learned that they developed a “Suite Code” specifically designed to provide proper results for drilling-related water quality concerns; unfortunately (but not surprisingly) it has never been used by DEP. Furthermore, you would think the Marcellus Shale Coalition would be with us on this. If they don’t believe drilling operations impact the water, wouldn’t they want all the facts out there to help prove their point? The facts should be allowed to speak for themselves, plain and simple. I have provided the Auditor General and his staff information about many problems occurring here in the 46th District, and will continue to do what I can to shed light on these inexcusable practices by the DEP. People are entitled to the truth about what is in water they drink. Is that a debate we even need to be having? Aren’t some things so obvious they should go without saying? What possible reason is there for the DEP, under the direction of Governor Corbett, to withhold information from residents about something this important? The DEP is clearly taking their marching orders from the Corbett Administration to stonewall anyone who asks the tough questions. It’s great to say we should all work together on every issue all the time, but there comes a point when you have to realize the other side has no intention of doing so under any circumstances whatsoever. On an issue as important as letting parents and grandparents know whether their drinking water could put their children or grandchildren at risk of cancer, I decided that standing up for what’s right and demanding accountability is more important than pandering for the sake of politics.

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