Interesting editorial from our sister paper, the Boston Phoenix, this week on the disaster in Japan:

"Most people today," writes political philosopher John Gray, "think they belong to a species that can be master of its destiny. This is faith, not science."

The unfolding disaster at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station sorely strains that faith, as did the 1979 crisis at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island nuclear plant and the 1986 catastrophe at Chernobyl in the Ukraine.

Just a day after the federal government gave approval for the controversial Cape Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts, new hope for a stalled off-shore wind farm in Rhode Island.

Plans for the 100-turbine project hit a major roadbloack when the state's Public Utilities Commission rejected plans for a small, eight-turbine project off the coast of Block Island that was to serve as a dry run for the larger project.

Electricity deals don't generally scream "excitement." But Governor Carcieri's announcement of a 20-year agreement for National Grid to buy power from Deepwater Wind, the company planning a 106-turbine wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island, is about as exciting as these things get.

The deal - the second of its kind in the nation - should strengthen Deepwater's pitch for financing for the project, allowing Rhody to move one step closer to realizing its vision for a clean energy hub.

UPDATE: Release from Langevin's office:

“I am proud to be a part of this energetic group of lawmakers who are dedicated to building a robust green economy in our nation,” said Langevin. “The time has long come and gone for Congress to take a strong leadership role on issues relating to the environment and energy.

The gov's office has sent out a release with this news:

Governor Donald L. Carcieri today announced that the state has signed a joint development agreement with Deepwater Wind Rhode Island, LLC outlining the terms and conditions for the construction of a wind energy development off the shores of Rhode Island that will provide 1.

The dour fiscal climate is likely to make more difficult efforts to promote renewable energy in Rhode Island. Meanwhile, in a recent exchange of letters, two General Assembly leaders and Governor Carcieri debated the state's approach for selecting Deepwater Wind to develop an offshore $1.5 billion wind farm.

Recent reports suggest the bad economy could complicate efforts across the US to promote renewable energy.

Yet some noteworthy things are taking place close to home:

-- At 2 pm today, a Narragansett family will be showing off its home, described as Rhode Island's first LEED for Homes Gold certified home. It's related to an effort called GreenLifeSmartLife

Enviros have expressed concern about at least one past plan for an energy plant near the Central Landfill in Johnston. How this initiative will be greeted remains to be seen.

From Vision Strategies:

Ridgewood Renewable Power, an international owner and operator of renewable electric power and infrastructure projects, will announce the development of a major electric power plant fueled by landfill methane gas, which will be located at the state’s central landfill in Johnston, Rhode Island.

From the General Assembly:

STATE HOUSE –The Public Utilities Commission is preparing to review National Grid’s proposed plan to comply with a new law requiring the company to credit customers for excess solar or wind energy they produce.

The new law, sponsored by Rep. David A. Segal of Providence and passed by the General Assembly in June, requires electricity suppliers to use “net metering,” the practice of allowing customers on the electrical grid to be credited on their electricity bills for the value of electricity that they produce with generators such as solar panels or wind turbines but do not use.

State Senator Josh Miller is rasing concerns about the wind farm project announced by Governor Carcieri last week.

“While the General Assembly has fully supported developing renewable energy projects in Rhode Island, I am concerned that Governor Carcieri has unilaterally moved Deepwater Wind to the front of the line when major questions remain about their experience and background.

Saul Kaplan of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation and Andrew Dzykewicz, the governor's energy czar, join Tim White, Arlene Violet and myself to talk about the planned off-shore wind farm and related topics. The show will be broadcast Sunday, at 5:30 am on Channel 12, and at 10 am on Fox 64.

Also joining us is Christine Lopes, the departing head of Common Cause of Rhode Island.

With all the bleak economic news, the promise of green jobs in RI may offer a glimmer of hope.

Local enviros plan a community discussion on the topic this Saturday, and I write about it in this week's Phoenix:

With global warming looming and the US economy in a mess, environmentalists have a simple answer — green jobs — for simultaneously promoting environmental protection and economic development.

It's due to happen this afternoon at the Port of Davisville.

From the gov's office:

The successful developer will be chosen to construct a wind energy project off the shores of Rhode Island that will provide 1.3 million megawatt hours per year of renewable energy - 15 percent of all electricity used in the state.

Anchor Rising's Andrew, who made his Phoenix debut last week with a piece on the prospect of making heating oil from algae, nicely captured some of the zeitgeist of last week's Tji page, which features a mini-profile of Joe Bernstein (depicted above).

However, my article may get upstaged by this "Almost Famous" item about someone else familiar to RI blog readers…

We all know how the Northeast is facing a looming crisis because of growing heating costs this winter.

So how effective a regulatory watchdog is the little-known state Public Utilities Commission? (The PUC's three commissioners are pictured above, along with their most outspoken critic, two-time AG candidate Bill Harsch.