financing

In this tight economy your city may be looking for new ways to more efficiently spend your financial resources and attract green jobs, while making your community more livable. You might want to take a look at what San Francisco is doing. continue

Eco Alternative Solutions, LLC is looking for 25 large US cities to participate in a no-cost 90-day trial of its Integrated Solar Series (ISS). ISS is an innovative solar-powered street light system. The company says ISS lights have been “vigorously tested” over the last year and half and placing lights in 25 selected cities will provide data from different ambient conditions.

The solar unit replaces the city’s current lighting system on 30 foot utility poles commonly used on residential and busy streets. Solar power is stored in batteries, and at dusk the the unit powers up white or yellow LEDs for 8 to 12 hours of lighting. continue

SightlineDaily reports on a potentially good idea: Washington state Representative Hans Dunshee proposes that the state issue bonds for $3 billion, which would employ some 90,000 people to make “safety, health, and energy efficient improvements to public facilities in all public K-12 school districts, community and technical colleges, state universities, regional universities, [and] The Evergreen State College.”

The bonds would be paid back from energy savings. Besides the health and learning benefits of green schools to the occupants, the lower carbon footprint, permanent savings on energy costs, the tens of thousands of jobs and increased business in the state, the sales and business taxes earned back by the state both directly and indirectly, the economic stimulus to any number of local businesses in every community statewide, the green skills gained by workers and contractors statewide, and the great example, would it work? Ah, the pesky bureaucratic details.