Idaho Power is in talks with a developer to buy Jackpot Solar, a 120 MW facility proposed for a site near Rogerson, Idaho, between Twin Falls and the Nevada border.

Extraordinary returns of naturally spawning Snake River steelhead five years ago followed by steady declines and a dismal run this year triggered an "early warning indicator" that is prompting federal agencies to take formal steps to determine if "rapid response actions" should be taken to a…

With no rain in the forecast, continuing to provide flows for chum below Bonneville Dam is a tough decision, fish managers and dam operators who work together to manage Columbia River flows for fish agreed Nov. 6.

The Environmental Protection Agency expects to fund about $1 million in grants for projects to reduce toxins in the Columbia Basin.

A cleanup site on a Columbia River island that is part of the Bonneville Dam complex is more contaminated than previously known and should be designated as a Superfund site, a joint letter by the states of Oregon and Washington and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation says.

The TransAlta Centralia Coal Transition program has awarded $165,000 to Granger, Wash., in Yakima County to help build a 50-kW photovoltaic array.

Pattern Energy and affiliate Pattern Development will be acquired by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board in a transaction valued at $6.1 billion, the company announced Nov. 4. Pattern's portfolio of 28 renewable projects includes the 80 MW Stillwater wind project in Montana. CPPI, toget…

Gov. Kate Brown has nominated Portland energy lawyer Mark Thompson to replace Stephen Bloom on the Oregon PUC.

Lower Valley Energy has completed building the 24-mile Hooper Springs transmission project in southeast Idaho for $65 million, the cost BPA had estimated in 2015 when it had planned to build it.

Atlanta-based Southern Power has acquired from RES the 136 MW Skookumchuck wind project now under construction in western Washington, the company announced Oct. 28.

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service announced the start of its five-year status reviews for 28 Pacific salmon and steelhead runs, including all 13 listed stocks from the Snake and Columbia rivers, to determine whether they should be delisted, reclassified from endangered to threatened, …

In a strongly worded letter, the Washington Department of Ecology filed a formal objection to the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed rule to update the water quality certification process under the Clean Water Act.

Oregon local governments Marion County and the City of Salem say drawdowns at Detroit Dam sought by three environmental groups could shut down the city's water treatment facility, reduce water supply and quality for nearly 200,000 people, impact the county's funding for basic health and safe…

FERC staff on Oct. 30 issued the final environmental assessment for a proposed 5 MW hydro pumped-storage project on the Columbia River, concluding its potential environmental impacts, with "appropriate" protective measures, would not "significantly affect the quality of the human environment."

California ISO launched its expanded reliability coordinator services Nov. 1, making it the RC of record for 41 entities across 14 Western states and northern Mexico. RC West, as it’s called, now has oversight of power grid reliability for balancing authorities and transmission operators in …

The Oregon PUC approved two all-parties settlements in Avista's natural gas rate case, providing for a $3.6 million, 4.2 percent annual revenue increase, effective Jan. 15, 2020 [UG 366].

Alejandro de Hoz will replace Laura Beane as president and CEO of Portland-based Avangrid Renewables after Beane "decided to leave the company," Avangrid said Oct. 22. De Hoz is currently VP of offshore wind, and parent company Avangrid cited his "experience in both onshore and offshore rene…

The Klickitat County Planning Department, through its Energy Overlay Zone process, approved construction of Avangrid's 150 MW Lund Hill Solar Energy Project, and received no appeals of the decision by an Oct. 9 deadline, department director Mo-chi Lindblad told Clearing Up.

Grant County PUD's finances are in great shape thanks in large part to higher-than-expected wholesale market prices in 2019, according to the PUD, which plans to use the windfall to minimize any rate increase in 2020 and to reduce its debt load.

BPA has scheduled its fiscal year 2019 end-of-the-year quarterly business review webcast for Nov. 15, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. A follow-on QBR technical workshop will be conducted the following week, on Nov. 20, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to provide additional details on BPA’s performance.

Montana regulators rejected the central allegation of a developer's motion for reconsideration that it cherry-picked least favorable values in settling a PURPA contract dispute.

Advanced decay and bad weather brought down nearly 30 Seattle City Light poles in Tukwila, Wash., in April, according to {https://powerlines.seattle.gov/2019/10/09/seattle-city-light-releases-east-marginal-way-storm-investigation-report-recommendations-report-to-follow/ investigation} findin…

Jason Eisdorfer will leave his position as Oregon PUC utility program director effective Nov. 7, but will continue as an adviser through the end of the year while a nationwide search is conducted to find his replacement. During the transition, OPUC Chief Operating Officer Michael Dougherty w…

In a final order in Northwest Environmental Advocates v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency et al., [12-1751], a federal judge set final dates for Oregon to replace inadequate plans for dealing with warm water temperatures in several Oregon basins and subbasins, and for the EPA to approve them.

Debra Smith, Seattle City Light general manager and CEO, is among seven new members of the Alliance to Save Energy's board of directors chosen from energy and technology sectors. "Seattle City Light has been promoting energy efficiency for more than 40 years to support reliability, affordabi…

The California ISO is due to begin Phase 2 of its reliability coordinator services across a larger portion of the West on Nov. 1, having begun providing the service on July 1 (CU No. 1909 [9.4]).

A special report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that focuses on changes in the ocean and cryosphere—the frozen parts of the planet—includes a closer look at predicted impacts to hydropower around the globe.

The state of Oregon has released a six-year action plan for addressing ocean acidification and hypoxia that outlines five steps for adapting to and mitigating the impacts.

County commissioners approved a tax abatement worth millions of dollars annually for a proposed wind farm in Rosebud County, Mont.

BPA on Oct. 3 made its 36th consecutive U.S. Treasury payment as its fiscal year starts, on time and in full, the agency reported. This year's $1.06 billion payment includes $734 million in principal and $232 million in interest. The remaining $97 million includes assistance BPA provides to …

Idaho Power’s board of directors announced on Sept. 20 several changes to the company’s executive team.

Seattle plans to tax and regulate residential heating oil as part of its campaign to drive down the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. The Seattle City Council on Sept. 23 unanimously approved levying a 23.6 cents per gallon tax on heating oil beginning September 2020, and requiring all heatin…

Consolidated Edison has asked the Montana PSC to force NorthWestern Energy to sign a power purchase agreement for a 20 MW wind project.

Washington, Oregon and Idaho fish agencies have announced fishing closures on the Columbia and Clearwater rivers.

John Hairston will take over as new chief operating officer at BPA following the retirement of Janet Herrin on Sept. 30, the agency announced Sept. 24. Hairston has worked at BPA for 28 years, most recently as the agency’s chief administrative officer. With Hairston shifting to COO, Robin Fu…

A new proposal by NOAA Fisheries to expand the southern resident killer whales' critical habitat to include most of the waters off the U.S. West Coast mentions the importance of Columbia River Chinook to these endangered orcas.

Portland-based Pacific Ocean Energy Trust (POET) was selected by the U.S. DOE to be network director for the $10 million Testing Expertise and Access for Marine Energy Research (TEAMER) program, the agency announced Sept. 17.

PacifiCorp will develop the 240 MW Pryor Mountain Wind Farm in Carbon County, Mont., near the Wyoming border, after the county granted the project a conditional use permit earlier this month.

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council approved the release of a draft report to Congress for fiscal year 2019, beginning a 90-day public review period. The annual report on the state of the Columbia River is required under the Northwest Power Act. The 38-page document outlines many of…

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.