CitiesGoGreen - December 2008 - (Page 8)

In Motion Global Green Economy Initiative The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has announced a Green Economy initiative modeled on the New Deal and aimed at helping governments foster a new, sustainable industrial revolution. Local communities and other groups are invited to participate in the project. Pavan Sukdhev, a senior banker from Deutsche Bank, said, “Investments will soon be pouring back into the global economy—the question is whether they go into the old, extractive, shortterm economy of yesterday or a new green economy that will deal with multiple challenges while generating multiple economic opportunities for the poor and the well-off alike.” The five foundations are identified as sustainable cities, including planning, transportation and green building; clean energy and clean technologies, including recycling; rural energy, including renewables and sustainable biomass; sustainable agriculture, including organic agriculture; ecosystem infrastructure; and reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. Add your comments and ideas at CitiesGoGreen.com ©Aaron Kohr-fotolia.com San Francisco Businesses Get Solar San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced a new set of incentives for businesses to go solar. The city will provide independent auditors to assess the costs of solar installations and energy saving potential, if the businesses join Newsom’s Solar Founder’s Circle. “We’re now sending a letter to 1,600 businesses and knocking on everyone’s doors,” Newsom told Green Tech Media. “We’ll do all the work, is the idea.” The businesses targeted under the new incentives have the potential to produce 170 megawatts of solar energy— more than 30 times the current capacity of 5 megawatts. Newsom specifically challenged the targeted businesses to double San Francisco’s solar capacity to 10 megawatts by September 2009. The audits are partly funded by a $200,000 US Department of Energy grant, and support the city’s existing Solar Energy Incentive Program. Residents can apply for $3,000-$6,000 rebates on solar installations under SEIP, and can ask for more if the contractors are local businesses or the installations are in Environmental Justice Areas. Businesses can apply for solar rebates of up to $10,000. 8 Rochester Bus System Turns a Profit ©btorzyn-flickr.com Regional Transit Service in Rochester, NY expects to show another profit this year, its third in a row, even as it drops the price for a single ride from $1.25 to $1.00, the New York Times reports. Plagued by debt just four years ago, the transit authority is now debt-free and has cash reserves, thanks to efficiency measures and some creative funding ideas. While successfully lobbying for increased state aid, the Rochester transit authority eliminated some under-used routes. It also developed subsidy agreements with private businesses and local educational institutions in exchange for services. The Rochester City School District, for example, pays for city buses to transport students in grades 7-12 to and from school; the district agreed to a substantial fare increase because switching to a private contractor would cost even more. Local colleges also subsidize buses to ensure the continuation of low-profit bus routes that benefit their students, and the owner of one apartment complex pays $1,200 a year to ensure a bus line runs by his property. December 2008 http://citiesgogreen.com/issues/december-2008/in-motion/global-green-economy-initiative http://www.unep.org/pdf/TowardsGreenEconomy-Flyer.pdf http://www.unep.org/ http://citiesgogreen.com http://www.Kohr-fotolia.com http://citiesgogreen.com/issues/december-2008/in-motion/san-francisco-businesses-get-solar http://www.citiesgogreen.com/component/content/article/55-june-2008/98-gavin-newsom http://www.sfgov.org/site/mayor_index.asp?id=89763 http://www.sfgov.org/site/mayor_index.asp?id=89763 http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/san-francisco-offers-free-solar-assistance-1509.html http://www.environmentalleader.com/2008/10/01/sf-mayor-challenges-1500-businesses-to-go-solar/ http://www.btorzyn-flickr.com http://citiesgogreen.com/issues/december-2008/in-motion/rochester-bus-system-turns-a-profit http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/nyregion/15rochester.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/nyregion/15rochester.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin http://sfwater.org/mto_main.cfm/MC_ID/12/MSC_ID/139/MTO_ID/361?CFID=2753685&CFTOKEN=27081662 http://sfwater.org/mto_main.cfm/MC_ID/12/MSC_ID/139/MTO_ID/361?CFID=2753685&CFTOKEN=27081662 http://www.sfsolarsubsidy.com/sfsolarsubsidy/where-are-the-environmental-justice-districts/ http://www.sfsolarsubsidy.com/sfsolarsubsidy/where-are-the-environmental-justice-districts/ http://citiesgogreen.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CitiesGoGreen - December 2008

Citites Go Green Contents In Motion We’re Taking Steps 10,000 Rain Gardens in Kansas City Chicago Center for Green Technology Connecticut’s ‘One Thing’ Green Infrastructure for Stormwater Management Philadelphia The Economics of What Matters New Context: New Possibility

CitiesGoGreen - December 2008

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