Randy Hardy, former BPA administrator, was presented with the inaugural Robert Kahn Lifetime Achievement Award by the Northwest and Intermountain Power Producers Coalition, at the group's annual meeting Sept. 9.

Washington state regulators have suspended certification of the proposed 25 MW Columbia Solar Project for failure to pay more than $264,000 in permitting and administrative fees owed to the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council and the Washington UTC.

Four consulting firms have been hired by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s office to gather views on whether removing the lower Snake River dams could recover Chinook populations vital to southern resident killer whales, and to put together a draft report by December.

Work is almost finished on Clark Public Utilities’ newest substation, which together with a new transmission line is being built to serve a new casino and anticipated commercial and residential growth along Interstate 5.

Gov. Brad Little appointed one new member and reappointed another to the Idaho Fish and Game Commission. Bradley Melton, a financial advisor and lifelong outdoorsman from Lewiston, will replace Dan Blanco as the representative of the Clearwater region of Idaho. Derick Atterbury, an irrigatio…

BPA has agreed to pay the State of Idaho $24 million to compensate for the operational impacts of Albeni Falls Dam on fish and wildlife habitat, permanently resolving any interests by the state for at least 30 years.

Facebook has committed by 2021 to running its global operations with renewable energy alone and reducing its greenhouse gas emissions 75 percent, the company said in an Aug. 27 blog post.

The Oregon PUC on Aug. 28 approved opening a docket to set rules for community-based renewable energy projects, as recommended by commission staff [AR 622].

Cryptocurrency operations in Grant County PUD’s service area will pay higher rates starting April 1, 2019, after the PUD’s commissioners unanimously approved a new rate class for bitcoin miners and other businesses tied to cryptocurrencies.

Avista’s annual purchased gas cost adjustment would lower natural gas rates for its Idaho customers effective Nov. 1, if approved.

Washington and Oregon closed a large section of the Columbia River and the lower John Day River to steelhead fishing on Aug. 27 due to poor returns.

BPA reset the schedule for upgrading its Fossil ­Substation in Sherman County, Ore., after ­canceling four outages set for July, August and September in response to concerns.

BPA has proposed funding for relocating up to 50 Columbian white-tailed deer from an island in the Columbia River to the mainland in Columbia County, Ore., in 2019 and 2020, and is seeking comments on its plan.

The U.S. House Natural Resources Committee will host a hearing in Pasco, Wash., Sept. 10 on the benefits of the Columbia and Snake rivers, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Pasco City Hall’s council chambers. Scheduled at the request of Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) to “help dispel misinformation ab…

The National Marine Fisheries Service is seeking comments until Oct. 29 on a request by three states and four tribes for permission to capture and kill sea lions in a 180-mile stretch of the lower Columbia River and its tributaries.

Coming off two of its best financial years, Chelan County PUD is considering gradual rate increases and pouring money into its hydropower system and grid infrastructure during the next five years.

Former Montana PSC member and Western EIM board member Travis Kavulla has joined NRG as its new VP for regulatory affairs. Prior to joining NRG, Kavulla oversaw energy and environmental policy for the R Street Institute, a conservative think tank.

Mid-Columbia PUDs have joined upper Columbia River tribes in an ongoing effort to prevent northern pike populations from growing and spreading into Columbia River salmon habitat below Lake Roosevelt.

Canada and British Columbia have signed a memorandum of understanding affirming their joint commitment to power the province's natural gas production and LNG sectors with electricity instead of natural gas.

Seattle City Council on Sept. 3 greenlighted a pilot program to encourage commercial customers investing in intermediate-sized solar arrays.

The region’s premier energy conservation advocate, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, is taking applications for the public interest representative position on its 20-member board of directors.

A collaboration between Washington State University and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will help determine whether drones can be used to enhance, and eventually replace, some of the tedious fieldwork of fish biologists.

Michael Linn has joined the Public Power Council as its senior policy analyst. He spent the last eight years in the commercial business group of BPA's transmission organization.

The Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council has adopted temporary administrative rules governing the site certificate amendment process, after the Oregon Supreme Court invalidated rules aimed at expediting it.

The Washington UTC has mapped out a four-year plan to turn the state’s ambitious Clean Energy Transformation Act into reality—at least, in terms of rules.

Wind developer Building Energy asked the Montana PSC on Aug. 22 to reconsider its decision in a contract dispute with NorthWestern Energy, citing the a-la-carte pricing approach the agency used that resulted in the lowest possible QF contract prices for its Grizzly and Black Bear wind projects.

After getting one last permit, Whooshh Innovations will begin to test and demonstrate new technology that transports fish, and also attracts and sorts them.

Avista has submitted annual rate adjustment filings with regulators in Washington and Idaho that, if accepted, would increase natural gas rates for customers in the two states, and electric rates in Washington, effective Nov. 1.

The Centralia Coal Transition Board on Aug. 27 announced a $238,036 award to support installation of a 99 kW rooftop solar project on the Providence Centralia Hospital.

Three Energy Northwest executive board officers were re-elected Aug. 23, and a fourth, Will Purser, will serve as vice chair. Returning for additional terms are Sid Morrison (chair); Linda Gott (secretary); and Jim Moss (assistant secretary). Morrison has served on the board since 2001, when…

The EIM Governing Body is due to vote Aug. 28 on the nomination of former public power executive Anita Decker to a 10-month term on the body.

The two populations of Columbia Basin salmon listed as endangered and the 11 populations that are threatened under the Endangered Species Act will not be ­immediately affected by changes in the act that were finalized on Aug. 12.

Oregon is a little over halfway to its goal of having 50,000 registered electric vehicles on the road by the end of 2020, the Oregon Department of Energy announced Aug. 21.

Along with dozens of letters urging FERC to grant the Klamath River Renewal Corp. a license transfer—a ­necessary step to facilitate the removal of four dams on the Klamath River—a few groups and individuals are ­urging the agency to reject the transfer.­

Tony Grover, 66, retired from the Northwest Power and Conservation Council Aug. 19, ending a 17-year career.

Limiting market exposure and increasing baseload ­generation dominate the resource procurement plan ­NorthWestern Energy filed with the Montana PSC on Aug. 20.

Clark Public Utilities’ community solar program had its most productive year since coming on line in 2015.

LEDs have continued to squeeze out less-efficient incandescent and halogen light bulbs in the Northwest residential lighting market, according to results from the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance’s long-term study of the market released Aug. 20.

A Portland-based electric vehicle advocacy group has been awarded a U.S. Department of Energy grant to spur electric vehicle adoption in rural communities.

The Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde have purchased 23 acres of property adjacent to Willamette Falls where the now-closed Blue Heron paper mill was located, the tribe announced. The site, in Oregon City, was once home to both Willamette and Clackamas bands, who were relocated to Grand…

Puget Sound Energy and Avista are in compliance with the state’s Energy Independence Act, the Washington UTC announced Aug. 8.

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council has recommended BPA continue funding 48 projects in its Fish and Wildlife Program that the Independent Scientific Review Panel reviewed.

As record numbers of shad continue to migrate up the Snake and Columbia rivers, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council decided it’s time to look into the ecological impacts of having millions of additional fish in the Columbia Basin.

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission says the state’s Department of Fish and Wildlife needs an additional $50.5 million to meet operating costs, capital needs and new responsibilities in 2020—which include recent state and federal laws enacted to promote salmon recovery—and approved m…

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says between 200 and 300 gallons of oil at Lower Monumental Dam cannot be accounted for and may have leaked into the Columbia River from a turbine in Unit 2, prompting the agency to take the unit off line.

FERC on Aug. 13 terminated Okanogan County PUD’s operating license for construction of the 9 MW Enloe hydroelectric project, after the PUD failed to begin construction by the July 9, 2019, statutory deadline.

Avista has reached a settlement with all parties in its Oregon natural gas general rate case that, if approved by the Oregon PUC, would provide a 4.2 ­percent, $3.6 ­million annual revenue increase, the utility announced Aug. 14.

A special fund setup under a three-year pilot project to help BC Hydro customers pay their power bills during times of financial hardship is turning out to be far less costly than expected.

Avista on Aug. 12 announced a number of near-term leadership changes to facilitate the CEO transition next March, when Scott Morris retires and Avista President Dennis Vermillon steps in. These include promoting Mark Thies from senior VP/CFO to executive VP/CFO; Heather Rosentrater from VP o…

Robert Kahn, executive director of Northwest and ­Intermountain Power Producers Coalition, died Aug. 8 after a brief battle with cancer, NIPPC said in a statement.