Week of 3/16/2012

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

Shell announces option on Pennsylvania site for huge ethane cracker project

U.S. Senate kills green energy tax break extension after Stabenow amendment fails

Evergreen Solar seeks permission from bankruptcy judge to abandon Delaware plant

Natural gas market hasn’t bottomed out yet, but record low prices can’t be sustained

The Buzz’s Feature of the Week…

Sources claim U.S. and Britain have agreed to release strategic oil stockpiles

President Obama’s approval rating declines as gasoline prices spiral upward

Related: Blogosphere superheats with commentary over high cost of fuels

Chu has to walk back 2008 comments about U.S. needing European fuel prices

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

Pickens Plan for conversion of trucks to natural gas shot down in Senate vote

New report asserts DOE is failing in oversight of $34 billion green loan program

DOE chief under fire for awarding $10 million efficiency prize for $50 light bulb

Sen. Lindsey Graham wants Yucca Mountain fees rebated to electric customers

The Buzz’s CLIMATE SCIENCE & SCANDAL Links…

American Baptist congregations conflicted on question of climate change

Royal Society abandoned guiding principles by taking side in climate science debate

UConn: Climate change skepticism linked to economic factors? Well, duh

The Buzz’s OHIO Links…

$900-million pipeline project announced to transport and process natural gas

Corkscrew-shaped wind turbine to be erected at Progressive Field in Cleveland

FirstEnergy may turn to natural gas combustion turbines at old coal-fired power plant

Treasure in oil and gas leases provides lure for thousands of Ohio landowners

Oil and natural gas boom creates demand for young mining and drilling engineers

‘Help wanted’ sign is out in eastern Ohio as companies mobilize in Utica shale region

Ohio State to collaborate with Southern Co. on synthetic gas-to-hydrogen looping

After series of Youngstown earthquakes, state DNR announces new injection rules

Related: Injecting brine into well probably lubricated fault and produced tremors

Gov. Kasich eyes hike in state drilling tax of four percent or more

Report on re-use of DOE’s Piketon site reveals appetite for nuclear power plant

PUCO grants American Electric Power’s request for much higher capacity charge

Smaller and cheaper modular nuclear reactors draw interest of FirstEnergy

The Buzz’s NATIONAL Links…

Constellation Energy agrees to $245 million settlement over market manipulation

Colorado regulators rap Xcel executives for using private jets while seeking rate hike

Coal’s share of electricity falls to 35-year low: impact of mild winter and natural gas

Nebraska nuclear plant fire last year more serious than first thought, regulators reveal

The Buzz’s INTERNATIONAL Links…

United States and China appear headed toward harmful solar trade war

United Kingdom’s secret memo backtracks on EU renewable energy target

Singapore disputes World Wildlife Fund’s claims about Asian carbon footprint

EU apparently not worried about impact of Iranian oil embargo, can replace supply

IAEA worries about safety among global fleet of aging nuclear power plants

More Brits in fuel poverty than first thought, and problem worsens by 2016

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

Power cells implanted in snails produce electricity from glucose and oxygen in blood

Coalition of 90 environmental groups attack wind power industry over bird mortality

Very good year for solar power growth, 2011 sees a doubling of capacity

Buzz’s ENERGY EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION Links …

Efficiency retrofits could save U.S. $1 trillion over next 10 years, according to report

Less than half of Americans surveyed are implementing energy efficiency measures

Now even pressing garments can be energy efficient: Eco Intelligence iron introduced

The Washington Post slammed for coverage of $50 LED bulb and story slant

Landlord promotes energy efficiency measures among tenants and saves $1.7 million

‘Warning… warning! Temperatures are going up. Prepare to flush the toilets!’

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

Are electric car sales faltering because of something called ‘premature innovation?’

Instead of sizzling, Volt’s disappointing sales lead to five-week production halt

If this generation of electric cars fails, it could be 20 years before another try is made

Coda sedan, with 125-mile range per charge, rolls off assembly line in California

‘Devastating evidence of abject failure’ seen in goal of one million electric cars

Related: Forget one million EVs by 2015, embrace ‘EV Everywhere’ plan for 2022

Has the time finally come to switch off hype about electric car revolution?

Adding heat pump to condition air inside electric cars might help extend range

‘Reality is phasing in’ as media and manufacturers confront dismal EV sales

Price point at which Americans will shift from gas to electric is elusive target

No demand for all-electric version of Rolls-Royce luxury car, says CEO

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

America versus the EPA in upcoming court challenges over GHG regulation

Environmental groups no longer promote natural gas as alternative to coal

Radical environmentalists would like to repeal the fossil-fueled Industrial Revolution

Huge Mediterranean Sea natural gas resource could be new flashpoint in Middle East

On EPA’s new regulations: ‘We need to fight coal plant pollution, but not like this…’

The Buzz’s WEEKLY STINGERS...

Does Pentagon have its own ‘Solyndra situation’ with Navy biofuels program?

Official EPA science advisors get lucrative research funding grants from the agency

‘Greening’ of today’s young people might not be broad or deep, new study indicates

Update of SimCity game, first in a decade, will include a climate change component

Columnist: ‘Hey, AEP… Cool it with the reminders’ about energy efficiency

MIT study: Integrating renewable energy on grid will be costly and have other impacts

‘Demon Coal:’ Radio series examines why conventional wisdom about coal is wrong

Editor’s Note – This is the first of a two-part series aired on CBC Canada Radio. Part 2 will be broadcast Monday, March 19, and available on the same website. The first segment, approximately one hour long, touches on coal mining, coal-related disasters, coal economics and the debate about greenhouse gases and global warming. I recommend this series as one of the most objective treatments of the current fossil fuel and climate change debate.

Proposed solution to Pacific Northwest wind power-hydro conundrum draws fire

The Buzz’s HALL OF SHAME…

Can’t keep your New Year’s dieting resolution? Blame it on increasing levels of CO₂

Fact-checking Obama: Energy policy slur of Rutherford B. Hayes proves incorrect

Want to combat climate change? Become a bioengineered, veggie-eating cat-person

Fisker’s ‘bad Karma’ dies in Consumer Reports parking lot before road tests

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

Drunken Amish drag-racing gangs terrorize small town near Buffalo, NY

‘Eau de Your Holiness’ … Pope Benedict orders personal cologne from perfume maker

Rhinoceros horn cups discovered on ‘Antiques Roadshow’ could bring over $1 million

Venerable Encyclopedia Britannica to end print edition sales after 244 years