Week of 2/24/2012

The Buzz’s EDITOR’S PICKS OF THE WEEK…

‘Very ugly,’ says analyst about plummeting natural gas prices due to oversupply

In New York, worries that state might have missed hydraulic fracturing boom

Natural gas production forces coal consumption by power plants to 20-year low

Massachusetts deal involves approving merger in exchange for clean energy

The Buzz’s FEATURE OF THE WEEK...

Iranian brinkmanship could lead to $5 gasoline and wreck economic recovery

Gasoline prices highest ever for this time of year, could hurt consumer spending

Obama on defense over rising gas prices, says U.S. must develop alternative energy

The Buzz’s CLIMATE-ENERGY POLITICS & RELATED Links…

Obama and DOE’s Chu took ‘extraordinary measures’ to keep Solyndra afloat

Ex-White House economic advisor had concerns about Solyndra in early 2010

House committee suspicious about $1.4 billion DOE loan to giant real estate company

Related: DOE denies Solyndra and Prologis deal shows favoritism

Chrysler CEO loses patience, pulls applications for DOE fuel efficiency loans

The Buzz’s CLIMATE SCIENCE & SCANDAL Links…

First it was Climategate, then Son of Climategate… Now it’s “Fakegate’

Related: Climate change advocates all lose because of the ‘Heartland Affair’

More: Heartland Institute responds to stolen and faked documents (video)

Even more: Heartland scandal should be a lesson to journalists of all stripes

Finally: Fakegate shows increasingly desperate tactics warming alarmists willing to use

Scientists: Time for world to rethink its frenzied pursuit of de-carbonization

‘Voodoo environomics:’ Bad science, fear-mongering and faulty research

Scientists feel they are under attack for work on climate change and GMOs

Related: Anti-science attitudes can be found among liberals and conservatives

The Buzz’s OHIO Links…

PUCO hits ‘reset’ button on AEP’s commercial class rate adjustment

Related: Shares of AEP fall as much as five percent after regulators’ decision

More: Schools send PUCO warning about financial impact of AEP rate increase

PUCO embarrassed, trying to handle damage control from AEP rate hike controversy

AEP points to original rate filing and how it changed due to ‘interested parties’

Ballot issue campaign for clean energy amendment has ‘strange quirks,’ says Dispatch

Steelmakers to use blast furnace waste gas as fuel, seek renewable energy designation

New steel mill in Southern Ohio will supply burgeoning energy industries

Cleveland’s proposed $180-million, trash-to-electricity plant may not be dead after all

OARDC and energy group partner on hybrid biogas generation system

AEP gets ‘A’ and FirstEnergy ‘D-minus‘ in latest clean energy report card

Ohioans part of Midwest poll that shows support for clean energy and efficiency

Natural gas fueled eight percent of state’s generation for first nine months of 2011

Could Cincinnati, population 296,000, be supplied with 100-percent clean energy?

Related: Cincinnati to explore combining aggregation with renewable energy sources

Duke Energy-Progress Energy merger still has regulatory obstacles to clear

Sandusky County commissioners vote to create ‘clean energy zone’ offering tax breaks

AMP-Ohio’s Fremont Energy Center capitalizing on low-cost natural gas

Energy boom said to be ‘only starting’ in Carroll County and eastern Ohio

ODNR plans to release report on Youngstown earthquakes ‘within weeks’

The Buzz’s NATIONAL Links…

U.S. and Mexico to cooperate, share revenues on Gulf oil and gas drilling

University of Texas study casts dubious light on fracking groundwater pollution

PG&E reports over 4,000 customers have resorted to smart meter opt-out

Alaska lawmakers consider increasing amount of state energy help for rural areas

Duke and Progress Energy hope third time’s a charm with new merger plan

State judge in New York upholds right of towns to permit hydraulic fracturing

Man’s death after power disconnect shows need for more education, says lawmaker

The Buzz’s INTERNATIONAL Links…

Egyptian decision to clamp down on fuel smuggling precipitates crisis in Gaza

British government’s energy watchdog could order utilities to cap rates

Germany ahead of target on solar energy, plans to cut subsidies 20 to 29 percent

Dealing with its own financial crisis, Spain eyes even more cuts to solar industry

The Buzz’s RENEWABLES, ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY, FUELS Links…

Apple developing large solar array to power massive North Carolina data center

Colorado Springs nixes wind power purchase, saying: ‘We can’t do this to ratepayers’

Wind turbine catches fire in Mongolia; one person reported dead, another missing

Buzz’s ENERGY EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION Links …

New, art-deco refrigerators hearken back to days of vintage home appliances

Wireless providers complain 900-Mhz smart meters interfering with service

The Buzz’s ELECTRIC CARS, HYBRIDS, TRANSPORTATION Links…

GE won’t reimburse mileage to employees who don’t use company’s fleet EVs

New technology (like electric cars) for ‘early adopters,’ not the masses

Tesla: Continued losses but electric automaker hopes for profit in 2013

Related: Tesla’s models suffer from terminal battery discharge vulnerability

Read the owner’s manual for warnings about what can damage your electric car

Electric vehicle constructed in Chinese poultry shed draws attention of local police

Fort Shafter, Hawaii hosting first fleet of hydrogen fuel-cell cars rolled out by DOD

The Buzz’s OPINION AND ENERGY POLITICS-REGULATION Links…

Is solar the future of renewable energy at wind’s expense?

Groups wonder if classrooms soon will be teaching both sides of climate debate

Is life a box of chocolates in your gas tank? Obama’s ‘Forest Gump’ oil logic

The Buzz’s WEEKLY STINGERS...

How ‘bout them electric car rednecks, Newt? Owner mounts gun rack in Volt

Error produces electric bill of over $100,000 for shocked Illinois family

Letter signed by 223 lawmakers urges White House to halt climate change regulations

Delaware bankruptcy court allows $370,000 in bonuses for Solyndra employees

More than 100,000 customers of Austin Energy receive incorrect utility bills

‘Right-to-dry’ movement winning clothesline battles in several states

The Buzz’s HALL OF SHAME…

Greenpeace aims to force Duke to become ‘clean energy company U.S. deserves’

Thieves steal over $460,000 worth of copper wire from city’s streetlights

Editor’s Note – Here’s the sanitized report appearing in a local newspaper:

Judge reduces prison sentence for metal thief disfigured when urinating on transformer

The Buzz’s WEIRD, SAD, FUNNY, UPLIFTING AND UNBELIEVABLE Links…

So, how much and how long would it take to build a real Star Wars ‘Death Star?’

Popcorn Sutton’s moonshine legacy lives on, but this time it’s completely legal

Mustached Americans, claiming to be more handsome, want $250 per year tax break

Russian scientists regenerate 30,000-year-old flower from tissue found in permafrost

Late uncle’s old comic book collected yields $3.5 million at auction