Utilities

Electrical Apparatus, Jun 2008

Energy group linked to Wind farm opposition

A lobbying group opposed to the construction of a wind farm off Cape Cod., Mass., reported in April that it was partially funded by an international energy conglomerate but later withdrew the claim, according to the Boston Globe.

The federal disclosure filing linked the wind farm opponents to the Oxbow Corp., which produces energy and commodities, including coal, natural gas, and petroleum.

The Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound immediately withdrew the filing and amended it to remove references to the Oxbow Corp., according to the Globe.

Cape Wind, which has proposed the development, recently received an environmental review from the federal government that found no reason to prevent the development from moving forward.

New study will outline emissions allowance effect

A study to be released this month by the Natural Resources Defense Council and several utility industry participants will show the likely effect of distributing emissions allowances under cap-and-trade climate proposals on consumers and on the U.S.'s 100 top electric power companies.

The report analyzes scenarios based on approaches in the Lieberman-Warner and Bingaman-Specter climate proposals, Congressional bills whose purpose is to allocate emissions allowances fairly.

Sponsors of the report, in addition to the NRDC, include the energy companies PG&E and Public Service Enterprise Group, along with Ceres, a coalition of investors, environmental groups, and others seeking to address environmental concerns.

'Crazy' ants threaten Houston electrical gear

The Houston area has been infested by swarms of ants that pose a particular threat to electrical power equipment.

The ants, thought to have arrived in the Houston area aboard a cargo ship, are called "crazy rasberry ants" after Tom Rasberry, an exterminator who waged battle with them shortly after their arrival. First spotted in Texas in 2002, they have since spread to five Houston-area counties, according to the Houston Chronicle.

"Like some other species of ants," the Chronicle reports, they "are attracted to electrical equipment, for reasons that are not well understood by scientists."

Edited by the EA staff