NETL's netlognews and Carbon Sequestration Atlas win first-place awards from the National Association of Government Communicators.

Washington, DC - Two National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) publications have received National Association of Government Communicators (NAGC) first-place awards for superior government communications.

The annual Blue Pencil & Gold Screen awards recognize communications pieces produced by government agencies that are particularly high quality and effective. NETL, the research laboratory for the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy, received 2012 awards for its Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada (Atlas III) and netlognews, an online newsletter.

The Carbon Sequestration Atlas received top honors in the Technical or Statistical Report category. The third edition of the atlas updates U.S. and Canadian geologic carbon dioxide storage potential and provides current information on the activities of the U.S. Department of Energy’s seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships. These partnerships--comprising more than 400 organizations, 43 states, and four Canadian provinces--test carbon storage potential and research best practices for carbon storage in a variety of geologic formation types across North America.

NETL developed the atlas in collaboration with the regional partnerships and the National Carbon Sequestration Database and Geographical Information System (NATCARB) team. Two versions of Atlas III--an interactive viewer and a print version--are available for viewing and downloading from NETL’s website.

netlognews was recognized by NAGC as the year’s best e-newsletter. Stories in this quarterly publication, which is available to the public on NETL’s website, feature major NETL research efforts and accomplishments, special recognition of NETL researchers by other organizations, and a listing of the laboratory’s current research publications. One of NAGC’s judges was particularly impressed by the "incredible photography and infographics" displayed in the newsletter and stated that "the content is interesting, even to the non-researcher."

The NAGC Blue Pencil & Gold Screen Awards program is an international competition that recognizes superior government communications products like Atlas III and Netlognews and those who produce them. This year’s competition included 41 categories, with new categories for social media efforts--such as blogs, Facebook, YouTube, and Best 140 Characters--to reflect the changing ways in which government agencies communicate with their audiences.

 

<p>FECommunications@hq.doe.gov</p><p>&nbsp;</p>