Towns Recognized in Midwest Living
Posted on: Monday, 5 May 2008, 15:00 CDT
Industry experts and the public are invited to learn about biofuels, accessing the grid and regional energy-related projects at Bismarck State College this month.
The third annual Renewable Fuels Action Summit will be held May 18-19, featuring speakers and topics about the positive progression for agriculture and energy. Keynotes speakers are Steve Chu, director of the Berkeley National Lab, and Bart Ruth, a member of the 25 x 25 National Steering Committee. Chu, a professor of physics and molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley, shared the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics for "development of methods to cool and trap atoms with laser light."
Bart has traveled the world representing American farmers and establishing agricultural policies. He farms near Rising City, Neb., and raises 1,800 acres of no-till crops.
The Renewable Fuels Action Summit is co-hosted by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., Gov. John Hoeven, Montana-Dakota Utilities and BSC. The summit is $30 and includes a social Sunday evening and breakfast and lunch on Monday in addition to numerous speakers and panelists on Monday. Register online at www.bismarckstate.edu/energysummit/.
The new "Real, Live" Energy Hog Program is now available free of charge to elementary schools in North Dakota.
The program makes it easy for teachers to bring energy education into the classroom. The Alliance to Save Energy has teamed up with the North Dakota Department of Commerce Office of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency to offer this program to schools on a first- come, first-served basis while funding allows.
The program shows children where energy comes from and why conservation is important.
Teachers interested in the program should call Maria Ellingson at 303-333-4570 for more information.
The North Dakota Agricultural Products Utilization Commission will review funding requests for 11 projects totaling $745,553 at its quarterly meeting in Dickinson on May 15-16.
APUC is a program of the North Dakota Department of Commerce that administers grant programs for researching and developing new and expanded uses for North Dakota agricultural products. The February requests to be reviewed include programs at the North Dakota State University Department of Plant Sciences in Fargo, the North Dakota Dairy Coalition in Mandan and the Missouri River Lodge in Stanton.
Georgia Pacific Corp., Atlanta, recently recognized Dacotah Paper Co. with its Distribution Excellence award.
Dacotah Paper Co. was one of a few chosen recipients for this award and was the only distributor in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska to receive the honor.
A recent survey conducted by the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives indicates electric cooperatives operating in North Dakota will invest nearly $2 billion over the next three years in new electric facilities.
This major investment is one reason North Dakota's rural electric leaders will ask Congress to support a strong rural utilities loan program when they attend the annual legislative conference of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association set for today through Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
Nearly 3,000 grassroots delegates from across the nation will attend the conference. Dennis Hill, executive vice president of NDAREC, says along with financing issues, the delegates will also ask Congress to take a balanced approach to global climate change legislation and to reform railroad regulation to protect captive shippers from monopoly pricing. Hill says North Dakota co-ops typify the need for a strong rural utilities finance program.
North Dakota's 16 distribution cooperatives and five generation and transmission cooperatives have invested about $1 billion to date in distribution facilities, and about $4 billion in coal conversion and transmission facilities. Of the $2 billion to be invested over the next three years, it's estimated that $300 million will be needed to build or upgrade distribution lines, with the remaining $1.7 billion used for high-voltage transmission lines, environmental upgrades and efficiency improvements in cooperative-owned power plants and new investment in wind farms.
The U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released its annual ranking of leading utility green power programs. Basin Electric ranked among the top 10 in two categories: Total sales of renewable energy to program participants and green power sales as a percentage of total retail electricity sales.
Using information provided by utilities, NREL develops top 10 rankings of utility programs in five categories. The others are total number of customer participants, customer participation rate and the lowest price premium charged for a green power program using new renewable resources.
Ranked by renewable energy sales, Basin Electric placed eighth with its wind resources.
In the category of green power sales as a percentage of total retail electricity sales, Basin Electric ranked seventh with the cooperative's PrairieWinds program.
The American Lung Association's "State of the Air" Annual Report for 2008, released Thursday, gave seven North Dakota counties "A" grades for lack of ozone, also known as smog, and five counties "A" grades for lack of particulates, also known as soot.
The counties, chosen because of major population centers or proximity to national parks and grasslands, include Billings, Burke, Burleigh, Cass, Dunn, McKenzie, Mercer and Oliver. The last two counties are home to five of the state's seven power plants and the nation's only lignite-to-natural-gas synfuels plant.
Utilities in North Dakota have invested more than $800 million in technology to protect the environment and spend $60 million annually to operate it. according to Partners for Affordable Energy. Four power plants have announced plans to invest another $700 million in new technologies to further reduce emissions.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also has designated North Dakota as one of only 13 states to meet all of the nation's strict federal ambient air quality standards.
To see the American Lung Association's 2008 report, visit www.stateoftheair.org.
Ormat Technologies Inc. and Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. have entered into an engineering, procurement and construction agreement to build a 5.3-megawatt recovered energy generation facility to be located on the Northern Border Pipeline Company's compressor station in Morton County. The facility, which is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2009, will produce electricity without burning additional fuel.
"Ingredients for Nonprofit Success" is the theme of the Annual Nonprofit Leadership Conference June 10-11 in Bismarck. The conference will bring together nonprofit staff, board members and volunteers from across the state to participate in educational sessions and to network and exchange ideas with nonprofit sector, government and private industry colleagues.
Attendees can save $50 by registering by May 15. The conference is hosted by the North Dakota Association of Nonprofit Organizations.
Robert Egger will kick off the event with a discussion of his newest initiative, the V3 Campaign, "Elevating the Voice, Value and Vote of the Nonprofit Sector." Egger is president of DC Central Kitchen and author of "Begging for Change: The Dollars and Sense of Making Nonprofits Responsive, Efficient and Rewarding for All." He was cited in the Nonprofit Times "50 Most Influential Nonprofit Leaders" list in both 2006 and 2007.
James Toscano, president of the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, will provide the luncheon keynote on the role of boards in fundraising. Jay Wilkinson, Firespring chief executive officer, will speak on the Web's role in marketing and communications for nonprofits. Breakout sessions during the conference include other "ingredients" for nonprofit success.
The conference rate is $100 for NDANO members and $150 for non- members until early bird registration ends on May 15. Registrations will be accepted online until the conference and also at the door. To view the conference brochure or register online, visit www.ndano.org. Call NDANO at 258-9101 or 888-396-3266 for more information.
The North Dakota Chamber of Commerce is accepting nominations for its statewide awards program.
The award categories include agriculture, business development, entrepreneurial spirit, education and business, natural resources, tourism and recreational development and the Greater North Dakotan award.
The Greater North Dakotan Award will be presented during a North Dakota Chamber event. The other awards will be presented at events in the recipients' communities this fall.
Nomination forms, additional nomination criteria and a list of past recipients can be obtained by contacting the North Dakota Chamber at 222-0929 or 800-382-1405. Forms also can be downloaded from the chamber's Web site at www.ndchamber.com. Nominations also can be submitted online at the same address. The deadline to submit nominations is July 31.
Four North Dakota towns, with populations under 20,000, are recognized in Midwest Living's "100 Best Small-Town Getaways" listing and are included in the publication's "Best of the Midwest 2008" guide.
Medora ranked 30th, Williston was 53rd, Valley City was 88th and Jamestown was 94th.
Editors looked at 8,500 towns with populations less than 20,000 in the Midwest and added a layer of research that spanned several months and ranked towns in 12 categories: Attractions, vibe, scenery, walkability, shopping, dining, lodging, arts scene, outdoor activities, proximity to major cities, multiday potential and wild card (for special events such as festivals).
"Best of the Midwest 2008" is now available on newsstands and in book stores and at midwestliving.com. Business briefs
(c) 2008 Bismarck Tribune. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Source: Bismarck Tribune
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