June 2009

On June 16, 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") issued a request for applications ("RFA") for its Climate Showcase Communities Grant Program.  The RFA provides $10 million for programs to help lower green house gas ("GHG") emissions through energy and resource management.

Eligible activities are those that reduce GHG emissions in the following priority areas:…

In October 2008, the Department of Energy (“DOE”) agreed to provide $43.1 million for 21 research projects to research, develop and demonstrate enhanced Geothermal Systems (“EGS”) which are next-generation geothermal energy technologies capable of producing baseload electricity across the United States. DOE’s geothermal technologies program works in partnership with U.S. industry to establish geothermal energy as an economically competitive …

The Department of Energy is requesting proposals for regional sequestration technology training.  The funding is available to develop regional training that promotes the transfer of knowledge and technologies related to carbon capture and sequestration technologies. 

Up to $6.97 million in Recovery Act Funding as available for up to 7 individual awards.

Proposals must be submitted…

The Air Force has announced a presolicitation related to biomass project on Dyess Air Force Base in Texas.  A request for proposals is expected to be issued on July 15, 2009.

The Air Force is seeking proposals from private contractors to fund, design, construct, operate, and maintain the biomass energy plant.  Feedstocks will be municipal…

The Naval Air Warfare Center has issued a presolicitation for geothermal investigations at Eastern Lava Mountains, Almond Mountain, and Southern Slate Range Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California.

The investigations shall be conducted in two phases.  The first phase consists of a geologic field study, fault trenching, thermochonologic sampling and analysis, and geologic modeling. …

The Department of Agriculture ("USDA") is now accepting proposals for its Small Business Innovation Research Program ("SBIR").  SBIR has $18.5 million available to fund research projects that address important problems facing American agriculture.  Research areas include, but are not limited to:

  • Biofuels and biobased products;
  • Air, water, and soils;
  • Rural development;
  • Aquaculture; and
  • Animal Manure management

Individual…

The USDA has released a proposed Notification for Funds Availability (NOFA) for the Collection, Harvest, Storage and Transportation (CHST) of eligible biomass material.  CHST is one of the programs under the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, which was created by the 2008 Farm Bill.  

The purpose of CHST is to provide matching funds to eligible persons or entities for the collection…

Numerous federal agencies are actively seeking services and materials related to solar power.  For example, the following opportunities are currently open:

  • The Department of Defense is seeking a ten year photovoltaic (PV) solar power purchase agreement related to its Defense Distribution Depot in Tracy, California.  The total contract quantity is 12,200,000 kWh.  Responses are due July 28,

…

At the Western Governors’ Association Annual Meeting on June 15, 2009, the Western Governors heard a sobering  and candid report from Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, which, at its core, indicated that climate change is real and happening faster than scientists previously warned.  According to Secretary Chu, "the news is getting scary . . . but the most scary thing in my mind is the [scientific] observations.  People can be entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts."  A few of the observations cited by Secretary Chu included the following:

  • Loss of 1/2 of the Northern polar ice cap in the last 10 years
  • Sea level rise
  • 40% of the British Columbia pine is dead
  • Extreme water stress in the Western United States (with exception to the Pacific Northwest) as a result of decreased snow pack and changing weather patterns

Secretary Chu was particularly concerned with the continued melting of the permafrost in the Northern Hemisphere, which he predicted could have "runaway effects" due to the massive release of CO2 and methane from the biomass that has accumulated over time. 

President of the World Bank, Robert B. Zoellick, also participated in the discussion on climate change, indicating that the rule making that will be necessary for implementing climate change policies will stay with us for decades and will be some of the "toughest negotiations" he has ever seen.  Mr. Zoellick stressed the importance of having the Governors plugged into the rule making process since this will be the framework that the states will have to live with.  There was also an acknowledgment among the group that the farmers and ranchers are skeptical about climate change, but that this is a key stakeholder group that needs to be part of the equation.  Governor Bill Richardson commented that the key will be the creation of a carbon offset market that will  work.  Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, concurred indicating that a carbon offset market will be critical to the survival of rural communities. Continue Reading Western Governors Consider Regional and National Polices Regarding Global Climate Change