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Peter Jensen

Communications Specialist

Peter is a Communications Specialist at the Northwest Power and Conservation Council. Prior to the Council, Peter worked as a journalist for more than a decade with newspapers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California. His reporting frequently covered energy, water, environmental, and fish and wildlife issues, including in the Columbia and Snake River Basins. After leaving journalism and pivoting to communications consulting, his work focused on energy and climate policy throughout North America, with an emphasis on energy efficiency, buildings, and heavy industry. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from Western Washington University.

pjensen@nwcouncil.org

503-820-2300

Peter's recent news posts

Upcoming timelines for developing the Ninth Power Plan, amending the Fish and Wildlife Program in summer & fall 2025, early months of 2026

At July’s Council meeting, Power Planning Director Jennifer Light explained the upcoming process for developing the Ninth Power Plan this summer and fall, as well as the early portion of 2026. The Council is also in the process of amending its Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Program with the goal of having a draft ready this fall and a final verison adopted in spring 2026.

PNUCC staff present results of annual Northwest Regional Forecast, discuss trends and challenges in regional power system

At July’s Council meeting in Portland, staff from the Pacific Northwest Utilities Conference Committee discussed a new 10-year outlook they’ve produced showing regional utilities’ forecasted electricity demand and planned resources.

Independent science panel: Habitat projects show benefits to Columbia Basin fish & wildlife, while lengthy time periods needed

At July’s Council meeting in Portland, members of the Independent Science Review Panel discussed results and key findings from the Habitat Retrospective Report that the ISRP published in July. This report reviewed the Fish and Wildlife Program’s habitat restoration work in the Columbia River Basin over the past several decades.

Ninth Power Plan reaches key milestone, and Council reviews preliminary energy efficiency, demand response potential

At the Council’s June meeting in Missoula, Power Planning Director Jennifer Light gave an update on the process of developing the Ninth Plan while noting that a key milestone has been reached. She also led a discussion of a hydro operations scenario, and Power Division staff presented the preliminary, total potential for energy efficiency and demand response for the Ninth Plan.

Montana news roundup: Co-operatives discuss wildfire season & load growth, and an update on operations at Libby & Hungry Horse Dams

At the June meeting held in Missoula, the Council heard presentations from representatives of electric co-operatives serving rural communities in western Montana, about the status of operations at Libby and Hungry Horse Dams, and about the Ice Age flooding that swept through the Columbia River Basin thousands of years ago.

Spring snowpack was near normal in parts of the Columbia River Basin, but melted quickly

At May’s Council meeting in Pasco, Wash., the Council listened to a briefing by Amy Burke, Senior Hydrologist for the Northwest River Forecast Center, on the snowpack that built up in the Columbia River Basin this past winter and how it would affect the water supply for the upcoming seasons.

Council releases initial 20-year forecast for Pacific Northwest electricity demand

On April 29, the Power Division staff released a new initial forecast showing a range of potential electricity demand growth in the Pacific Northwest over the next two decades. Senior Energy Forecasting Analyst Steve Simmons, Senior Power Analyst Tomás Morrissey, and Power System Analyst Jake Kennedy led a presentation on the forecast during an online meeting of the Council.

Columbia River Basin fish & wildlife managers discuss status of white sturgeon, 2025 forecasts and 2024 returns for salmon and steelhead

At April’s Council meeting, managers from the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Idaho Department of Fish and Game provided forecasts for adult salmon and steelhead returns to the Columbia River Basin in 2025.

Council sets resource adequacy thresholds for Ninth Power Plan

At its April meeting in Portland, the Council set the thresholds for its resource adequacy metrics, which are intended to protect the Pacific Northwest’s power system from outages that are too frequent, too large, or too long in duration.

April Council meeting is final one for outgoing Executive Director Bill Edmonds

After announcing in December that he would be stepping down, Executive Director Bill Edmonds confirmed his departure date of April 18. The Council also announced that Guy Norman, a former Washington Council member (2016-2023), is serving as interim executive director.

Integrating energy and the environment in the Columbia River Basin

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