(New York, NY) – Con Edison expects customers’ gas bills to decrease again due to lower natural gas prices. Residential gas heating bills are expected to drop 11.5 percent from last year – saving customers an average of $42 per month.

Natural gas costs less than heating oil.

The 2011-2012 average gas-heating winter bill from November to March is expected to be approximately $322 per month, down from $364 during this time last year. The amount is based on monthly usage of 236 therms.

Con Edison delivers gas to 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, and parts of Queens and Westchester County. On Sunday, these customers helped set a new distribution load record as Con Edison delivered 979,191 dekatherms of gas in one day. That broke the company’s old record of 967,908 dekatherms on January 3, 2010.

Customers who are interested in converting to natural gas can learn more about the benefits of using this clean energy and available energy efficiency incentives by visiting Con Edison’s newly- launched website www.conEd.com/gasconversions.

(Albany, NY) The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today decided to solicit comments on revised regulations governing residential electric submetering, a system that allows a landlord, property management firm, condominium association, homeowners association, or other multi-tenant property owner to bill tenants for individual measured electric usage.

Frontline Investigates The Hazards And Benefits Of Nuclear Energy (video after the link)

Has the world lost faith in nuclear power?

Almost a year after a devastating earthquake and tsunami crippled Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex, there’s an emerging consensus in Japan and Germany that the hazards of nuclear energy overshadow its benefits. In the United States and other countries, the question remains unresolved.

In Nuclear Aftershocks, airing Tuesday, January 17, 2012, at 10 P.M. ET on PBS (check local listings), FRONTLINE correspondent Miles O’Brien travels to three continents to explore the revived debate about the safety of nuclear power, the options for alternative energy sources, and questions about whether a disaster like the one at Fukushima could happen in the United States.

NEW YORK – Con Edison is encouraging customers who plan to decorate their homes or offices to use energy-efficient LED lights during the holiday season.

Using LED or light emitting diode lights, instead of traditional incandescent bulbs, saves on bills and helps the environment. LED lights use nearly 90 percent less electricity than older bulbs, which also means fewer carbon emissions in the atmosphere.
LED holiday lighting is one way customers can trim bills and contribute to energy savings that aid the environment. An array of energy-savings tips is available at www.coned.com/thepowerofgreen. Energy efficiency tips are also found on Con Edison’s Power of Green Facebook page at www.facebook.com/powerofgreen.
Con Edison is also helping customers make their home or business more energy efficient. A list of programs can be found at www.conEd.com/greenteam or by calling the “Green Team” at 1-877-870-6118.
Con Edison also encourages customers to make safety a top priority when installing their holiday lights and offers some tips.

• Make sure that holiday lights carry the seal of approval of a recognized safety-testing laboratory, such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL).

New Rochelle firefighters responded to reports of a high concentration of natural gas around noon today at a home located at 288 Clove Road, across the street from the New Rochelle High School football field.

Laurell Smith, the man convicted of murdering Kevin Blank during the infamous “broad daylight stabbing”, has been transferred out of the Westchester County Jail, sources say. Smith's new home in the New York State prison system is as yet unknown to Talk of the Sound.

Developing…

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (Aug. 30, 2011) – The New York State Environmental Facilities Corp. today announced that New Rochelle today won the 25th New York State Drinking Water Taste Test at the New York State Fair.

After being selected from 10 regional contests, water from 10 municipal water systems (see list below) were tasted and judged by nearly 300 Fairgoers today. Votes were cast for two finalists – the Village of Baldwinsville in Onondaga County (judged the best tasting water among ground-water drinking sources) and the City of New Rochelle in Westchester County (judged the best tasting water among surface-source water systems) with New Rochelle winning the final tally by just three votes.

The Environmental Facilities Corp. sponsored this year’s contest to underscore EFC’s role in improving and protecting Clean Water and Drinking Water systems in New York State. EFC has assets of more than $12 billion for low-interest financing, grants and other financing of drinking water and wastewater systems in New York..