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Updated every weekday as availableLED bulbs to be installed Monday on the Mall
Washington Post, January 30, 2012
"If you drive by or stroll along the Mall in the coming days, yes, the lights will look brighter. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Energy Secretary Steven Chu plan to flip the switch Monday night on newly installed LED lights that will illuminate most of the Mall — and reduce the National Park Service’s energy bill."
Rappahannock Town Hall Meeting on Uranium
Rappahannock News, January 26, 2012
"Should corporations be allowed to mine and mill radioactive uranium in Virginia? This question – with high stakes for Virginia’s public health and environmental quality – will be the subject of an informational town hall meeting in Washington this Saturday ( Jan 28). The 5 to 6 p. m. meeting at the Theatre in Washington will be hosted by the Piedmont Environmental Council ( PEC). A wine and cheese reception will follow the meeting. "
Scroll down for information on this PEC event.
READER’S VIEWS: Uranium mining affects our area
Culpeper Star-Exponent, January 25, 2012
"...While the governor’s directive is focused on a site in Pittsylvania County, the implications of actions here could directly impact Culpeper, Madison, and Orange as potential uranium deposits were previously identified in this area. I have traveled to the Coles Hill site at my own expense and see many similarities to our region. The opportunity for high-paying jobs and contributing to energy independence must be balanced with public safety, environmental protection, and possible negative economic impacts for property owners and farmers in the area of mining and milling. "
By Del. Ed Scott
School board to fund energy improvements
Fauquier Times-Democrat, January 25, 2012
"Energy saving, not new schools, is the focus of Fauquier County Public Schools’ FY 2013-22 Capital Improve - ment Plan, which the school board approved unanimously Tuesday night. Following a lengthy discussion of the division’s priorities, school board members adopted a $34.7 million plan, which places energy management and lighting upgrades at the top of the list. "
Weekly News
Updated every week as availableDOE tries a ’fundamentally different’ approach to modernize the nation’s power grid
E&E Publishing, January 18, 2012
"The Energy Department is preparing to change how it assesses congestion on the high-voltage power line network as it seeks to revitalize the stalled transmission policy process created in the 2005 Energy Policy Act, DOE senior adviser Lauren Azar says."
PEC is pleased that the Department of Energy is not limiting its choices to high voltage transmission solutions. We have long advocated for equal treatment for demand response, energy efficiency and clean distributed generation. PEC will be following the 2012 Congestion Study closely.
More study sought on uranium mining
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, January 18, 2012
"A group of Southside Virginia business leaders and Republican legislators said the question of whether to allow uranium mining needs a lot more time and study, and that lawmakers should do nothing on the issue in this General Assembly session."
McDonnell unveils energy agenda
Washington Post, January 5, 2012
"Gov. Bob McDonnell unveiled a package of energy proposals Thursday for the upcoming legislative that includes $500,000 to promote wind development off Virginia’s coast and increases energy efficiency programs."
VA tries to dodge fed ban on incandescent lightbulbs
Loudoun Times Mirror, January 8, 2012
"Delegate Bob Marshall hopes to do for lightbulbs in Virginia what California did for marijuana and Arizona did for guns. But he faces an uphill climb. The Manassas Republican introduced a bill to allow makers of incandescent lightbulbs to set up shop in Virginia after a federal ban on the bulbs went into effect Jan. 1. "
Disposal Halted at Well After New Quake in Ohio
New York Times, January 12, 2012
"An official in Ohio said on Sunday that the underground disposal of wastewater from natural-gas drilling operations would remain halted in the Youngstown area until scientists could analyze data from the most recent of a string of earthquakes there... The latest quake, the 11th since mid-March, occurred Saturday afternoon and with a magnitude of 4.0 was the strongest yet. Like the others, it was centered near a well that has been used for the disposal of millions of gallons of brine and other waste liquids produced at natural-gas wells, mostly in Pennsylvania. "
Uranium could be a ’marquee issue’ in the General Assembly
Richmond Times Dispatch, December 25, 2011
"Would a Virginia uranium mine be a safe source of much-needed jobs or the start of a dangerous dump that lasts thousands of years? The General Assembly will weigh those scenarios and others if it decides next session whether to lift a state ban on mining uranium, a radioactive metal used to fuel nuclear power plants."
Five legislators: Keep Va. uranium mining ban in ’12
AP, January 3, 2012
"Legislators representing districts that encircle a uranium deposit in Southside Virginia are asking their colleagues to abandon any effort in the 2012 session to end the state’s 30-year ban on mining the radioactive ore. They said in a letter that the General Assembly needs additional time to review recent studies on uranium mining, including a dense statewide analysis by the National Academy of Sciences. It concluded Virginia faces "steep hurdles" to ensure that a 119-million-pound deposit in Pittsylvania County is mined and milled safely."
Save money with an ’enlightened’ roof - and decorate too
Leesburg Today, January 2, 2012
"Enlightenment isn’t just a state of mind - it can also be an important energy-saving state of being for your home’s roof. By "enlightening" your roof, you can use less energy, save money, and dress up the interior of your home at the same time. All roofs protect us, and the interiors of our homes, but they can do so much more. They can be the collection and distribution point for an inexhaustible supply of free natural light and energy."
Fairfax Water Authority weighs risks of uranium mining
Washington Post, December 29, 2011
"Another agency has weighed in on uranium mining in Virginia. Fairfax County Water Authority’s board of directors has released a study it commissioned on the impact that uranium mining could have on its watersheds... The upshot of the Fairfax study: “[U]ranium mining and milling represent unique risks that require additional process controls to prevent impacts from toxic and radioactive byproducts."
Study warns of health and environment hurdles to uranium mining in Virginia
Washington Post, December 20, 2011
"A company lobbying lawmakers to unearth in Southside Virginia what is thought to be the nation’s largest uranium deposit needs to overcome significant health and environmental obstacles before the site is mined, according to a long-awaited study released Monday. The 22-month review by the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering said that “steep hurdles” need to be surmounted before Virginia’s longtime ban on uranium mining could be lifted."
