Avista Corp. is planning oninvesting $125 million in its first wind farm in eastern Washington. Two local power providers that have played a key role inpromoting the generation of clean energy as part of an earlier state-sponsoredinitiative now stand to benefit from stimulus spending by the federalgovernment. Both plan to continue their surge in investments…

Washington state is on the cusp of another breakthrough.Only this time the change isnt in aerospace, software or the internet. Its inenergy. But theres a major caveat for those seeking to benefit fromthis new gold rush: It has never been done before. And new federal spending isgoing to change the landscape in ways we cant…

The sun shines brightly onInfinias CEO J.D. Sitton, who sees a worldwide market forefficiently-generated solar power. As the world looks for new viable alternatives to fossilfuels, Kennewick-based Infinia Corp. is becoming a major player thanks to itsapplication of a free-piston Stirling engine, a device that converts heat intomechanical energy. The engine is used in Infinias…

Blue Mountain Station inDayton is intended to introduce tourists to local natural and organic foodproducers. Southeastern Washingtons reputation as a destination forwine lovers is spurring one local organization to try to expand the regionsappeal to travelers as an emerging center for processing organic food products. In Columbia County, the Port of Columbia recently purchased28 acres…

A 1991 photo shows a logger working with fallen Westernhemlock trees at the Weyerhaeuser Snoqualmie Tree Farm. Weyerhaeuser no longerowns the property. Last spring, the Weyerhaeuser Co. closed its wonderfulPacific Rim Bonsai Collection to the public. The company didnt say how much itwould have cost to keep the bonsai exhibit open, but this move was…

Seattle Steam CEO Stan Gentsees the future of district-wide energy to be closely intertwined withsustainability. Against the backdrop of luxury hotels, condos and high-riseoffice buildings, the billowing plumes of smoke from Seattle Steam Co.shulking industrial plant on Western Avenue seem out of place. But given itspurposeto make steam and hot water for 200 downtown and…

Wilcox Family Farms CEOLinda Thomas is working with the new generation of owners, including AndyWilcox (right), to develop new sources of revenue. When Judson Wilcox traded his Seattle home for a farm in ruralRoy, Wash., in 1909, he couldn’t have imagined the site would one day be usedto host weddings and events. Neither could he…

Seattle-based startup Principle Power Inc., a company working to improve offshore wind energy, has received a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to further develop the company’s WindFloat platform, an innovative support structure for large offshore wind turbines. Principle Power will partner with the National Renewable Energy Lab in Colorado and Berkeley, Calif.-based…

Ted Baseler has been CEOof Ste. Michelle for eight yearsand in the companys leadership for a quarter of a century. In that time he hasbrought the wine worlds attention to Washington state. Five years ago, on a stunningly clear night in rural easternWashington, the burgeoning wine industry that dots the rolling hills of theWalla Walla…