Beyond Enemies

Despite the title, this article at WorldChanging (Working With the Enemy) certainly gets it. If we want global action against climate change, it is going to be companies who will deliver it. For as much good as all the lobbying groups and NGOs do, most only press others into action. It is going to take the financial might of Home Depot, Wal-Mart, etc. to bring about real change.

If environmentalists see corporations as the enemy, the battle is already lost. If corporations are an ally, there is no battle at all. There is cooperation.

Got Financial Innovation?

Gristmill hits the nail right on the head when they say "the next few significant developments in the solar field are going to be in the field of financial rather than technical innovation."

Let's take a look at what sorts of financial innovation are needed to advance clean energy. I've already discussed green mortgages and subsidies. But what about other more subtle innovations? I predict there is money to be made in the trading of solar exploitation rights. Perhaps you can sell the right to develop your rooftop, even if you don't want to buy the solar power yourself. Or weather futures as a financial instrument to reduce the risk of cloudy days.

There is no limit to the number of new financial tools that could be developed to further green energy development.

Tracks converging

Warren Buffet is on rails. The storied investor is buying up 15% of Burlington Northern Santa Fe, even though:
"U.S. freight shipments down 3.5% in the first eight months of the year, and intermodal traffic down 1.9%. Fewer housing starts have shrunk lumber shipments, and shipments of most commodities, motor vehicles and equipment are down."

While railroads are very efficient, and I'd love to see them used more, it does matter what they are carrying. The article talks about another railroad deal where the "gem in the deal was DM&E's rights to develop in the coal deposits of Wyoming's Powder River Basin." Being really efficient at bringing more coal out isn't really the best thing.

Get rich on poverty

An article on WorldWatch says that homes in India are being powered for a few hours each day on solar instead of kerosene.

"local and national banks to finance small loans—usually $300 to $500—for a system that typically contains a roof-installed solar PV module, storage battery, charge controller, interior wiring, and switches and fixtures with the capacity to power two-to-four low-watt compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and a DC fan."

Right now this seems to be a humanitarian mission costing a reported 1.5 million dollars. Maybe a savvy reader will find a way to fuse all the elements of this plan -- micro-lending, solar manufacture, infrastructure construction -- into a viable business plan.

This isn't a get-rich-quick scheme, but think about the scale: ~450 million people (1.5x the United States) suffer through grid outages daily. Millions more have no access to the grid access whatsoever. That is a vast market, and an even more awesome opportunity to help.

10 million AA batteries

There has been a lot of press about the UK power company EON's plans to create a giant battery? The two questions that come to my mind are: is it green, and does it make economic sense?

Batteries are not all that green. They have all sorts of nasty chemicals and their ability to store a charge slowly decreases with time. They are also expensive. It will be interesting to see how this plan can compete with hydrogen or compressed air as energy storage.

Start a green business

My new friends over at LivePaths have an article about potential green businesses. Many of them featured are small time ideas right now, like recycling licence plates and making your own biodiesel. But that's what you are here for. Take these ideas and run with them.

NIMBY goes out with the tides

The Energy Blog has a story about the AquaByOy 2.0, an experimental tidal power generator recently deployed off the coast of Oregon. It is not generating power right now, but collecting data that will be used to create a 250 kW test unit.

The article says that:
"A cluster of AquaBuOYs would have a low silhouette in the water. Located several miles offshore, the power plant arrays would be visible to allow for safe navigation and no more noticeable than a small fleet of fishing boats."

Safe, quiet, and unobtrusive. Should not be any not-in-my-back-yard (NIMBY) problems with these. Can something this appealing be made inland?