|
|
|
|
 HelloReturn to index of stories... |
Hello AND WELCOME. I'm Mike Nikitas from NECN. New England Cable News, guest hosting tonight on NH Outlook. |
| Preshow #1 Return to index of stories... |
In this edition, Another Democrat makes it official, but this Presidential candidate is getting into politics for the first time. |
| Preshow #2 Return to index of stories... |
It's back to the future for New Hampshire's biggest energy company. We'll look at how replacing coal and oil with wood might help the economy and the environment. |
| Preshow #3 Return to index of stories... |
And later, winter weather projections and candidate assessments in the 2004 Farmer's Almanac. |
| Clark Return to index of stories... |
But first, there's a new candidate in the Democratic race for president. Retired Army General Wesley Clark announced his candidacy Wednesday in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas. The former NATO Supreme commander is the tenth democrat to enter the race. His advisers say he's ready to hit the ground running with an uncoventional campaign. Clark didn't lay out his domestic or foreign policies, but says he'll do so right away. A survey released before Clark's announcement shows that Democrats face an uphill battle when it comes to defeating President Bush. The Quinnipiac University Polling Institute in Connecticut shows the President well ahead of any of the Democratic challengers. including New York Senator HIllary Clinton and former VIce President Al Gore, neither of whom is running. Another poll that doesn't include Clark shows former Vermont Governor Howard Dean in the lead. The California Field Poll show Dean with 28-percent support. |
| Intro Schiller Plant Return to index of stories... |
New Hampshire will soon be the site of the biggest renewable energy power plant in New England. Public Service of New Hampshire announced last month that by the end of 2005, they plan to produce 50 Megawatts of electricity by burning biomass - low-grade and waste wood products. The move will reduce harmful emissions, and is also generating new debate about renewable and alternative fuels. We'll talk about some of the issues involved in a few minutes, but first, we have this update from Richard Ager. |
| Schiller Plant Return to index of stories... |
Track: An ancient source of fuel is about to bring new life to the oldest power plant in the state. Schiller Station in Portsmouth began as a coal plant, switched to burning oil in the 1950's and then back to coal in the '80s. By late 2005, one of its three boilers will be burning wood chips. WOOD HAS GOT TO BE THE OLDEST FUEL KNOWN TO MANKIND, YET IT'S BECOMING A FUEL OF THE FUTURE, ISN'T IT? In a sense yes - especially for us. This is the first wood-burning plant facility that PSNH will have in its portfolio, and it's one that we never talked about much over the years. We have hydro plants, we have fossil fuel plants, but wood is not one that has really jumped out at us. But there are wood-burning facilities in NH that have filled that void over the years. Track: Eight wood-fired plants like this one in Ashland were built in NH in response to the energy crisis of the late 1970's - and were subsidized by PSNH through state rate orders. But only five still operate, and the remaining rate orders expire in 2008. If the current wood-fired plants close, that could eliminate a crucial market for low-grade wood chips. Track: That, in turn, would hurt the health of NH's forests. This is a white pine one of the most common species of trees in New Hampshire it's about eight five years old and it's a really high quality pine tree Track: But in most NH forests, the quality trees are the exception. Most - about 85% - are only good for chipping and burning. The real value in a forestry operation like this one is not in the chips, it's in the saw logs and other valuable products that come off with it. But you don't want to be forced to take only valuable products when you do a forest operation. That's called high-grading - just taking the good wood and leaving the junk behind. And that's what happens when you don't have a market for the low grade wood. Track: In recent years, the legislature has considered a number of bills to subsidize the wood burning plants, including one earlier this year. What I am here to talk about is to make sure we look very carefully at producing our own energy in the state of NH using NH products to do that, employing NH people, to ensure we have some energy independence in the state of NH, and that we help the people throughout the state who need the help at this time, in order to make sure we have that independence. I don't think this bill should survive, I think it should be killed. Track: PSNH has fought such attempts, but ended their testimony with an offer. We don't need to burn wood. I hope you understand that. We burn coal, we burn oil, we burn gas. We don't need to burn wood. But we know this is important to the state, and we want the state's economy to be as vibrant as possible, so we're saying PSNH has a lot of skill and talent - let's find a way to burn wood. HOW BIG A PROJECT IS THIS GOING TO BE FOR PSNH? The project itself is $70 million which is a very significant investment for our facility. SO YOU'RE HOPING FOR HOW BIG AN IMPACT ON THE WOOD PRODUCTS INDUSTRY HERE? Well, certainly we would expect with the amount of wood that we would burn here - approximately 400,000 tons a year - that we would have a very positive effect on the wood market and the state of NH - into the millions of dollars Track: PSNH plans to finance the project by selling "renewable energy certificates" to utilities in Massachusetts and Connecticut - states that now require that energy be from renewable sources. SO YOU'RE NOT JUST SELLING POWER HERE, ARE YOU? No, actually we now have two commodities we're producing here - and we're going into a whole new phase of the generation business. We've always produced electrical energy, that's what we do and we do it well, and now we are entering into a new phase where we have a new product to market and we look forward to doing that in the very near future. Track: So far, the reaction from all involved has been mainly positive, albeit with some caveats. I think it will help the marketability of low quality wood in Southern New Hampshire as long as they decide that a lot of the market is going to be from sustainably managed forests. it will not help us at all if the market comes from demolition wood or construction products or from clear cuts from developments we need a substantial market for low quality trees that are being thinned in efforts to improve our forests. It has been our intent and is our intent to burn NH wood to some degree. We are not in a position at this time to provide with certainty what percentage of wood we would burn. WHAT'S GOING TO AFFECT YOUR DECISION WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO BUYING WOOD? As in many markets, supply and cost. The ability to supply at the right cost, because we still have an obligation to provide low cost energy for our customers. Track: Clearly, some negotiations remain - but there does seem to be a new sense that all parties can cooperate to find and reach a common goal - and to look together to the future. I think PSNH is trying to do the right thing. As someone said to me, they don't have to do this. This is not critical to their bottom line. It's clear to me that going back 25 years or so to the energy crisis of the 1970's when we tried to find renewable or local indigenous sources of energy to replace imported fuels, and we looked at what's here in NH - that we found there's this resource and we're just not using it because of economics. It's just cheaper to use oil - and someday that will change and hopefully we'll have the technology and the infrastructure in place to shift to these more renewable resources. Track: For NH Outlook, I'm Richard Ager. |
| Intro Discussion Return to index of stories... |
Joining me now to discuss the future of energy in New Hampshire: Jasen Stock the Executive Director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, Gary Long the President and C-O-O of Public Service Company of New Hampshire and Josh Irwin, Director of the NH Public Interest Research Group. Thank you all for being here. We want to mention, that PSNH provides financial support for the production of New Hampshire Outlook. That support allows us to bring you open discussions on all issues, including this one. |
| Discussion Return to index of stories... |
THAT IS DISCLAIMER OUT OF THE WAY, START WITH YOU, GARY LONG. YOU SAID IN THE PIECE WHEN YOU WERE SPEAKING TO THE PANEL IN CONCORD THAT WE DON'T NEED TO BURN OIL OR COAL. THOSE ARE THE THINGS WE WANT TO BURN, WE DON'T WANT TO BURN WOOD. I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY WOULDN'T DO SOMETHING THAT THEY WERE NOT GOING TO MAKE SOME MONEY ON, THAT THEY DON'T FIND PROFITABLE. WHY ARE YOU GOING FORWARD WITH THIS IF YOU DON'T NEED TO DO IT? WELL, WE ARE A NEW HAMPSHIRE-BASED COMPANY. THE ONLY CUSTOMERS WE HAVE ARE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND WE'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE ISSUES OF FOREST PRODUCTS AND WOOD-BURNING POWER PLANTS. UNTIL RECENTLY, THEY HAVEN'T BEEN GOOD SOLUTIONS TO ECONOMICALLY BURN WOOD IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. IT'S BEEN A SUBSIDIZED PRODUCT. WE'RE EXCITED TO BE PART OF A SOLUTION, PART OF A SOLUTION TO HELP THE ECONOMY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE, PARTICULARLY IN THE FOREST AREA, PART OF A SOLUTION TO LOAFER OUR EMISSIONS AT A POWER PLANT. BECAUSE AS A POWER COMPANY, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO CONSTANTLY WORK TOWARDS WAYS OF LOWERING EMISSIONS AND THIS PROJECT WILL HELP WITH THAT. 8 AND IT GIVES US A DIVERSE FUEL SUPPLY. SO WE VIEW IT AS A GOOD THING. AND A VERY DRIVE PROJECT THAT CAN BE ECONOMIC FOR CUSTOMERS, TOO. IT SEEMS TO HAVE EVERYTHING GOING FOR IT RIGHT NOW. BUT NOT A PROFITABLE ENDEAVOR? IT'S -- OUR COST OF OUR PLANTS ARE RECOVERED WHETHER WE BURN COAL, OIL, OR WOOD. WE HAVE TO PUT IN $70 MILLION TO CONVERT AND BURN WOOD. WE WILL GET RECOVERY OF THOSE COSTS IN ADDITION TO THE COSTS THAT WE HAVE. BUT WE WILL HAVE OFFSETS TO THAT FROM THE INCENTIVES CREATED IN NEW ENGLAND FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY. SO, YES, WE WOULD MAKE AN INVESTMENT, AND AS WITH ANY INVESTMENT, WE WILL BE GETTING THAT INVESTMENT BACK. BUT AS I SAID IN THAT EARLIER TESTIMONY, WE DON'T NEED TO DO IT. WE WON'T DO IT IF THE PUBLIC DOESN'T WANT IT, IF WE CAN'T GET STATE APPROVAL. BECAUSE WE ALREADY ARE MAKING POWER. BUT WE REALLY WANT TO DO IT. WE'RE EXCITED AND WANT TO GO FORWARD. DO YOU THINK THE STATE WILL APPROVE IT? WE HAVE RECEIVED TREMENDOUS SUPPORT FROM ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS AND STATE AGENCIES, FROM REGULATORS, BOTH ENVIRONMENTAL AND THOSE WHO REGULATE OUR BUSINESS. I HAVE NOT HEARD ANYONE OPPOSE THE PRODUCT SO I BELIEVE ULTIMATELY WE WILL GET STATE APPROVAL AND WE'RE LOOKING FOR IT IN AN EXPEDITED WAY SO WE CAN 9 MEET CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULES. JASON STOCK, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE TIMBER LANDOWNERS ASSOCIATION. DOES THIS ALL JIVE WITH WHAT YOUR GROUP BELIEVES? DO YOU THINK IT WILL GO FORWARD? DO YOU SUPPORT IT WHOLEHEARTEDLY? WE'RE RESERVING JUDGMENT, QUITE HONESTLY. WE THINK CONCEPTUALLY IT COULD BE A FANTASTIC PROJECT. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE KEEP COMING BACK TO IS THIS COMMITMENT TO BURNING NEW HAMPSHIRE WOOD. NOT JUST NEW HAMPSHIRE WOOD, BUT WOOD THAT IS MANAGED IN THE SUSTAINABLE MANNER, YOU KNOW, THE PIECE THAT WE SAW EARLIER WAS A FOREST STAND. A LANDOWNER HAD AN INTEREST IN MAINTAINING THAT FOREST. IT WASN'T A LOT BEING CLEARED TO PUT IN A SHOPPING CENTER. WHAT WE WANT TO SEE IS THIS MARK THAT WOULD BE CREATED BY THIS PROJECT HELP KIND OF FOSTER SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY FOR NEW HAMPSHIRE. THE WAY IT IS DEVELOPING NOW, DO YOU SEE IT HAPPENING THAT WAY? SOUNDS LIKE YOU DON'T. WE DON'T KNOW YET. TODAY WE HAD -- THERE WAS A PREHEARING CONFERENCE AT THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION ON THIS. A LOT OF QUESTIONS WERE AIRED ABOUT WHERE IS THE WOOD GOING TO COME FROM, WHAT TYPE OF WOOD IS IT GOING TO BE? WE'RE HOPING TO GET SOME ANSWERS AS WE MOVE THROUGH THE REGULATORY PROCESS TO ADD TO THESE QUESTIONS. BECAUSE, IN OUR MIND, YOU KNOW, THIS PROJECT REALLY -- FOR IT TO 10 HAVE ALL OF THE BENEFITS THAT THE PUBLIC SERVICES IS FILING PURPORTS, IT NEEDS TO BENEFIT NEW HAMPSHIRE AND SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY. GARY, DO YOU THINK YOU CAN PROVIDE ANSWERS ON THIS PROGRAM TONIGHT? WHERE IS THAT WOOD GOING TO COME FROM? IS IT GOING TO BE HARVESTED IN THE SUSTAINABLE WAY THAT JASON IS HOPING? THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT THIS PROJECT IS GOING TO ENHANCE AND IMPROVE THE MARKET IN NEW HAMPSHIRE OF THE LOW-GRADE WOOD PRODUCT. THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT WE WILL BE PURCHASING FROM THE NEW HAMPSHIRE SUPPLIERS AND THE BETTERMENT OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE FORESTS. THE CONCERNS THAT WE HEAR FROM THE TIMBER AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, PARTICULARLY THEM, IS HOW MUCH. IT'S TRUE THAT WE HAVEN'T MADE AN AGREEMENT ON HOW MUCH. AS SUPPLIERS OF WOOD, WE WANT TO SIT DOWN AND TALK WITH THEM. WE HAVE NOT STARTED THE PURCHASING PROCESS YET OF PURCHASING WOOD. WE NEED TO GET APPROVAL TO GO AHEAD, FIRST OF ALL, THEN WE HAVE TWO YEARS TO LINE UP WOOD SUPPLY. THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT WE WANT TO AND WE WILL BE BUYING WOOD FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE. BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT THE OVERALL COSTS AND THE CONCERN THAT CONSUMER LETS HAVE IS THAT THEY DON'T WANT THIS TO INCREASE THEIR COSTS. JOSH IRWIN, DIRECTOR OF THE PUBLIC RESEARCH GROUP, YOU'RE LISTENING TO JASON AND GARY. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AS YOU 11 LISTEN TO THEM TALK ABOUT THIS? FOR ME THE JURY IS OUT. I WOULD SAY I'M CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC. YOU MENTIONED THE ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS BEFORE AND I THINK THERE'S POTENTIAL THERE. CERTAINLY IT'S CLEANER TO BURN WOOD THAN COAL. THERE ARE QUESTIONS, AS JASON SAID, ABOUT WHERE THE WOOD WILL COME FROM, HOW IT IS HARVESTED. THE BIG 800 HUB POUND GORILLA IN THE ROOM IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE FORESTS. WHAT IS YOUR CONCERN ABOUT THAT? WELL, IT IS EXACTLY THAT, THAT THE FORESTS CANNOT BE USE IN A SUSTAINABLE WAY. THEY MAY TURN INTO CONDOMINIUMS AND STRIP MALLS AND THAT'S THE LAST THING ANYONE WANTS TO SEE. HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN LOGGING SUSTAINABLES? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? IN BETWEEN US, WE MAY HAVE DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS ON THAT. WHAT IS YOURS? MINE WOULD BE NARROW. IT WOULD NEED TO BE WOOD THAT IS ALLOWED TO CONTINUE GROWING THAT IS STILL PRODUCTIVE AND ISN'T PERMANENT DAMAGE TO THE FOREST. HOW ABOUT YOU, JASON? DOES YOURS DIFFER? A LITTLE BIT. WE LOOK AT THE FOREST RESOURCE AS AN ASSET FOR MANY LAND OWNERS AND FAMILIES IN THE STATE, AND I THINK WHEN WE LOOK AT SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY, WE'RE LOOKING AT FORESTRY THAT IS DONE TODAY FOR FUTURE TREE GROWTH AND FUTURE BENEFITS DOWN THE ROAD. YOU KNOW, TO PERFORM A GOOD FORESTRY, YOU'RE PLANNING TIMBER SALES AND FOREST ACTIVITY TEN, TWENTY YEARS OUT. WHAT WE WANT TO SEE IS 12 INVESTMENTS IN FORESTS TODAY AT THAT TIME ARE LOOKING OUT 20, 40, 50 YEARS OUT. . YOU KNOW, WOOD THAT IS GROWN IN NEW HAMPSHIRE IS NOT ALWAYS THE CHEAPEST WOOD. YOU WILL WANT TO COME UP WITH THE LEAST EXPENSIVE SOURCE TO MAXIMIZE YOUR PROFITS. I WENT DO HOME DEPOT AND BOUGHT CASINGS AROUND THE PROJECT THAT WAS MADE IN CHILE. ARE YOU GOING TO BUY WOOD FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE? SURE. THE EXISTING WOOD POWER PLANTS DON'T BUY 100 PERCENT OF THE WOOD FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE. IN GET IT FROM VERMONT AND OTHER PLACES. THEY MAY GET PALLET WOOD. WE WON'T BURN DEMOLITION WOOD. WE'RE LOOKING FOR CLEAN WOOD THAT IS PRODUCED BY FORESTS AND OTHER OPERATIONS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. SO THERE'S NO DOUBT, AS I SAID, THAT WE WILL BE BUYING NEW HAMPSHIRE WOOD. I THINK PEOPLE WANT US AND OTHERS TO BUY AS MUCH AS WE CAN. BUT THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT, WITHOUT THIS PROJECT, THE MARKET WOULD NOT BE AS GOOD AS IT WILL BE WITH THE PROJECT. YOU KNOW, JOSH, YOU WERE MENTIONING THAT THE EMISSIONS WERE LOWER. YOU ALSO MENTIONED THAT. HOW MUCH CLEANER IS A PLANT LIKE THIS? WELL, THERE ARE FOUR CHIEF POLLUTANTS THAT WE TALK ABOUT WITH POWER PLANTS. CERTAINLY MERCURY AND THE POLLUTANT THAT FORMS SMOG, NITROGEN OXIDE AND SUGGEST FUR OXIDE AND ON THAT SCALE, WOOD IS CLEANER THAN COAL. 13 I HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILING YET, AND I UNDERSTAND THERE'S SOME QUANTIFICATION OF THE CARBON DIOXIDE SOLUTION THERE. QUANTIFY IT, IF YOU CAN FOR THE LAY PEOPLE WATCHING. HOW MUCH CLEANER IS THIS, ESPECIALLY FOR PEOPLE ON THE SEACOAST? ABOUT 300,000 TONS A YEAR. BUT THE THING ABOUT WOOD THAT ATTRACTS US, FIRST, IT HAS BEEN A PRICE STAPLE. FIRST, WOOD HAS VERY LITTLE SULFUR. SO THE SULFUR OXIDE'S EMISSIONS GO DRAMATICALLY DOWN FOR THAT POWER PLANT. SIMILARLY, THE NITROUS OXIDES GO DOWN SUBSTANTIALLY. BECAUSE WOOD IS A RENEWABLE PRODUCT THAT PRODUCES OXYGEN IN THE PROCESS, IT'S CO2 NEUTRAL. THAT'S WHY THE BIG BENEFITS OF HAVING THIS PROJECT HELPS MEET SOME VERY STRICT STATE REQUIREMENTS IN THAT AREA WITH THIS PRODUCT IN A SUSTAINED WAY. AND NEIGHBORS OF THE SCHILLER PLANT ARE GOING TO SEE CLEANER AIR, BREATHE CLEANER AIR? WELL, IT'S DEFINITELY GOING TO BE LESSEE MISSIONS. WHEN YOU SAY SEE AND FEEL, WE DON'T THINK THEY SEE AND FEEL IT NOW BECAUSE YOU CAN LOOK AT THE STACKS AND YOU DON'T SEE. IT'S REALLY WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE AND LIKE I SAID THE SULFUR AND NITROUS OXIDES WILL BE REDUCE THE CLEARLY. THE BIG QUESTION FOR PEOPLE WATCHING IS, IS THIS GOING TO IN ANY WAY REDUCE THEIR BILLS? IS THIS A COST EFFICIENT THING AS FAR AS CONSUMERS GO? GARY? THAT'S WHAT MAKES THIS PROJECT UNIQUE. WHAT WE ALL STRUGGLED WITH AS WE 14 FIND SOLUTIONS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND NEW APPLICATIONS FOR RENEWABLES, THEY TYPICALLY HAVE BEEN MORE EXPENSIVE AND RAISE RATES FOR CONSUMERS. THIS ONE WON'T BECAUSE WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF A LOT OF THINGS THAT CAME TOGETHER AT THE SAME TIME. WE CAN MARKET RENEWABLE ENERGY CREDITS TO MEET NEW ENGLAND REQUIREMENTS IN THAT AREA AND WE BELIEVE THE REVENUE GIVEN BACK TO CUSTOMERS WILL OFFSET THE $70 MILLION WE'RE HAVING TO PAY. DO EITHER OF YOU DISAGREE THAT? DO YOU THINK THE PRICE OF ENERGY IS GOING TO BE IMPACTED AT ALL? AM I GOING TO SEE A LOWER BILL? WILL YOU SEE A LOWER BILL? I DON'T KNOW. I'M NOT AN ENERGY FORECASTER. BUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S TO EVERYONE'S BENEFIT TO HAVE SOME DIVERSITY IN OUR POWER MARKET. I THINK -- IF YOU TALK TO ANY ECONOMIST. IF WE CAN HAVE DIVERSITY IN THE TYPES OF FUEL THAT WE'RE USING, WE'RE ALL MUCH BETTER OFF. AND I THINK THE SCHILLER STATION PROJECT, I THINK OUR EXISTING WOOD TO ENERGY PLANTS, THEY'RE ALL A STEP IN THAT DIRECTION AND WE NEED TO RETAIN THAT DIVERSITY. I THINK WITH THAT, IT'S A HEDGE OR A BUFFER AGAINST PRICE SPIKES WE CAN SEE IN THE FUTURE. JOSH, WHAT DO YOU THINK? I THINK GENERALLY SPEAKING, IT HOLDS POTENTIAL FOR CONSUMERS IN SAVINGS AND THERE'S A COUPLE OF REASONS FOR THAT. ONE IS THAT WE PUT A LOT OF OUR EGGS IN THE FOSSIL FUEL BASKET AND THE NUCLEAR FUEL BASKET AND THAT LEADS US TO COST SPIKES. SECONDLY, THERE'S A GROWING 15 AWARENESS OF THE CUSTOMERS HEALTH IMPACTS, ASTHMA ATTACKS TRIGGERED BY AIR POLLUTION AND RESPIRATORY ILLNESSES SO IN THE LONG RUN RENEWABLES PUT US AHEAD OF THE GAME. IF YOU GET THE GO AHEAD, DO YOU EXPECT US TO BE OPERATING BY WHEN? WE BELIEVE WE CAN GET IT OPERATING BY THE END OF DECEMBER 2005, BURNING WOOD. GOOD LUCK. I HOPE IT WORKS OUT NEAR TO EVERYBODY'S SATISFACTION. GARY JOSH AND JASON THANKS FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU. . |
| Intro Almanac Return to index of stories... |
Over the years they've predicted the winter weather. and taught us things like how to hypnotize a chicken. We're talking about the Old Farmer's Almanac. The 2004 edition is now on sale. The almanac is published right here in New Hampshire. It's been around for a long time -- since George Washington was president. But as our Celene Ramadan reports, there's always something new with the old Farmer's Almanac. and/or |
| Farmer's Almanac Return to index of stories... |
Janice: Do you know why George Washington never smiled? You look at a dollar bill and you see how serious he is - he's very somber and very authoritative. But he never smiles. We learned just this past year why and that's because he was hungry and he was in pain because he had hippopotamus teeth in his dentures! A STORY LIKE THIS CAN ONLY MEAN ONE THING - THE 2004 OLD FARMER'S ALMANAC IS HERE. THE ALMANAC IS FILLED WITH THE TRADITIONAL INFORMATION - LIKE THE YEAR-LONG WEATHER PROJECTIONS, ASTROLOGY, ASTRONOMY AND GARDERNING TIPS JANICE STILLMAN, THE EDITOR OF THE ALMANAC GIVES US A PREVIEW OF SOME OF THE LESS COMMON FEATURES THIS YEAR. Janice So we have a section entitled "never say no to Zucchini" and it's filled with new recipes like zucchini marmalade, which we tried here in the office and it's delicious and zucchini brownies - junk food with a nutritious additive and zucchini pizza. Another one happened quite by accident. I was at a party and a woman came up to me and said "Oh, you have thin lips - I'll bet you like to get right to the point" and before I knew it she was telling me all about myself just by the way I looked. Well, come to find out, she studied personology which is the study of face reading…so she has a story in this issue of a couple dozen facial features and readers can look at this and see about themselves and see about family and friends, TV personalities, celebrities, political candidates even and just see if in fact their facial features do indicate their personality traits. JANICE GETS RIGHT TO THE POINT ON THIS YEAR'S WINTER WEATHER PROJECTIONS. Janice It's going to be cold. Last year was cold, but look out for this year. The cold is going to start in November, in fact, so is the snow - intermittently and mostly up in the north country. But it will be cold from early November right into early January especially in mid-December, look for some really frigid temperatures. Mid January we should get a thaw and that will bring relief to a lot of folks but then in February, stand back because the show is going to come and come - mostly in the north country but the south is not going to be excepted from that. YIKES! NOW WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO MENTION THAT THE OLD FARMER'S ALMANAC HAS ACHIEVED A REPUTATION FOR ACCURACY OVER THE YEARS. This past year I can tell you with absolute accuracy and certainty that we were 68% accurate coast to coast in all of our forecast. Now I can tell you also that the national weather service which makes it's predictions 45 days in advance was only 56% accurate - so we felt pretty good having a long-range forecasts 18 months out and being as accurate as we were. THE SECRET TO THE ALMANAC'S SUCCESS IN WEATHER DATA COMES FROM STUDYING CLIMATOLOGY, SOLAR SCIENCE AND METEOROLOGY. THE SUCCESS OF THE PUBLICATION ITSELF COMES FROM IT'S FOUNDER BACK IN 1792. The Old Farmer's Almanac was founded by a man named Robert B. Thomas not far from here in Sterling, MA. His father was a farmer and a teacher so he had lots of books around - which was unusual for that time - Robert used to sit down and read the books and he was most interested in astronomy. He decided at the age of 22 that he was going to make an Almanac that would be the best almanac - there were others at the time and it's still being published today. Standup Even though the cover of the Old Farmer's Almanac hasn't changed in over 200 years - don't judge the book by it's cover. Inside it's filled with up to date information. Every issue is entirely different. Every one is full of new, useful and entertaining items - the weather is new the astronomy information is new. The sun never rises and sets at the same time. The Old Farmer's Alamanac is the one book you can read all year long because there's truly something for every day of the year. FOR NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK, I'M CELENE RAMADAN. |
| Web Pointer Return to index of stories... |
For more information on the Farmer's Almanac and the other topics in this broadcast, connect with us online at nhptv.org. You can also find links to news and join in our discussion. |
| Tomorrow Return to index of stories... |
On the next New Hampshire Outlook - find out what the No Child Left Behind Act means to your local schools. |
| Goodnight Return to index of stories... |
We'll see you next time. Thanks for watching. |
| Founders Return to index of stories... |
Thanks to our founding sponsors who have provided major funding for the production of New Hampshire Outlook: New Hampshire Charitable Foundation Public Service of New Hampshire Stratford Foundation |
| Tonight 10:00 Return to index of stories... |
Tonight on New Hampshire Outlook. find out what the No Child Left Behind Act means to your local schools. Join us tonight at 10:00 only on New Hampshire Outlook. |
| key: Economy / Business Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 9/17/03 22:00 HOST: Mike Nikitas Length: 14:00 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, another Democrat makes it official, but this Presidential candidate is getting into politics for the first time. It's back to the future for New Hampshire's biggest energy company. We'll look at how replacing coal and oil with wood might help the economy and the environment. And later, winter weather projections and candidate assessments in the 2004 Farmer's Almanac. New Hampshire will soon be the site of the biggest renewable energy power plant in New England. Public Service of New Hampshire announced last month that by the end of 2005, they plan to produce 50 Megawatts of electricity by burning biomass - low-grade and waste wood products. The move will reduce harmful emissions, and is also generating new debate about renewable and alternative fuels. We'll talk about some of the issues involved in a few minutes, but first, we have this update from Richard Ager. Joining us instudio to discuss the future of energy in New Hampshire: Jasen Stock the Executive Director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, Gary Long the President and C-O-O of Public Service Company of New Hampshire and Josh Irwin, Director of the NH Public Interest Research Group. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Richard Ager NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Dick Despins\Schiller Plant Manager, Charlie Moreno \Professional Forester, Paul Doscher\Society for the Protection of NH Forests, Craig Benson\NH Governor, Gary Long\President, PSNH, Josh Irwin\NH Public Interest Research Group, Jasen Stock\Exec Dir, Timberland Owners Assoc |
| key: State Politics / Government Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 9/17/03 22:00 HOST: Mike Nikitas Length: 14:00 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, another Democrat makes it official, but this Presidential candidate is getting into politics for the first time. It's back to the future for New Hampshire's biggest energy company. We'll look at how replacing coal and oil with wood might help the economy and the environment. And later, winter weather projections and candidate assessments in the 2004 Farmer's Almanac. New Hampshire will soon be the site of the biggest renewable energy power plant in New England. Public Service of New Hampshire announced last month that by the end of 2005, they plan to produce 50 Megawatts of electricity by burning biomass - low-grade and waste wood products. The move will reduce harmful emissions, and is also generating new debate about renewable and alternative fuels. We'll talk about some of the issues involved in a few minutes, but first, we have this update from Richard Ager. Joining us instudio to discuss the future of energy in New Hampshire: Jasen Stock the Executive Director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, Gary Long the President and C-O-O of Public Service Company of New Hampshire and Josh Irwin, Director of the NH Public Interest Research Group. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Richard Ager NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Dick Despins\Schiller Plant Manager, Charlie Moreno \Professional Forester, Paul Doscher\Society for the Protection of NH Forests, Craig Benson\NH Governor, Gary Long\President, PSNH, Josh Irwin\NH Public Interest Research Group, Jasen Stock\Exec Dir, Timberland Owners Assoc |
| key: Consumer Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 9/17/03 22:00 HOST: Mike Nikitas Length: 14:00 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, another Democrat makes it official, but this Presidential candidate is getting into politics for the first time. It's back to the future for New Hampshire's biggest energy company. We'll look at how replacing coal and oil with wood might help the economy and the environment. And later, winter weather projections and candidate assessments in the 2004 Farmer's Almanac. New Hampshire will soon be the site of the biggest renewable energy power plant in New England. Public Service of New Hampshire announced last month that by the end of 2005, they plan to produce 50 Megawatts of electricity by burning biomass - low-grade and waste wood products. The move will reduce harmful emissions, and is also generating new debate about renewable and alternative fuels. We'll talk about some of the issues involved in a few minutes, but first, we have this update from Richard Ager. Joining us instudio to discuss the future of energy in New Hampshire: Jasen Stock the Executive Director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, Gary Long the President and C-O-O of Public Service Company of New Hampshire and Josh Irwin, Director of the NH Public Interest Research Group. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Richard Ager NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Dick Despins\Schiller Plant Manager, Charlie Moreno \Professional Forester, Paul Doscher\Society for the Protection of NH Forests, Craig Benson\NH Governor, Gary Long\President, PSNH, Josh Irwin\NH Public Interest Research Group, Jasen Stock\Exec Dir, Timberland Owners Assoc |
| key: Culture / Arts Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 9/17/03 22:00 HOST: Mike Nikitas Length: 5:00 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, another Democrat makes it official, but this Presidential candidate is getting into politics for the first time. It's back to the future for New Hampshire's biggest energy company. We'll look at how replacing coal and oil with wood might help the economy and the environment. And later, winter weather projections and candidate assessments in the 2004 Farmer's Almanac. ver the years they've predicted the winter weather. and taught us things like how to hypnotize a chicken. We're talking about the Old Farmer's Almanac. The 2004 edition is now on sale. The almanac is published right here in New Hampshire. It's been around for a long time -- since George Washington was president. But as our Celene Ramadan reports, there's always something new with the old Farmer's Almanac. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Celene Ramadan NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Janice Stillman\Editor, The Old Farmer's Almanac |
| WEB PROMO Return to index of stories... |
Tonight on New Hampshire Outlook. . Tonight at 10pm on New Hampshire Public Television. |