Posted on 9/6/2007 9:10:55 AM

The Ann Arbor-based Cleantech Network LLC reported Thursday that North American and European investments in clean technology industries were nearly $1 billion in the second quarter, up 10 percent from $903 million in the first quarter.

For the first half, total investment was $1.9 billion, up 10 percent from $1.73 billion in the first half of 2006.

The consulting firm also said there were 17 clean technology initial public stock offerings in the second quarter, raising nearly $1.7 billion for clean tech companies. That's up a strong 88 percent from nine IPOs in the first quarter.

August 31, 2007

Favorable energy policies involving budget allocations and air quality have bolstered solar energy. The latest news is coming from the Mojave Solar Park in California and expressly from Pacific Gas and Electric that has said it will buy some of its green power.

California and other states with ample renewable energy resources are requiring their utilities to offer more green options. Their efforts are winning de-facto national support, with Congress and the Bush administration allocating more research and development into all forms of energy, including solar - precisely $2.2 billion through 2009. And with all stakeholders concerned about the threats from climate change, the green movement in particular is finding lots of support.

Christine Ferretti / The Detroit News

TAYLOR -- Amid a national push to reduce fossil fuel usage, Taylor is poised to join the slowly increasing ranks of Michigan cities gambling on the wind to cut soaring energy costs.

The City Council this week signed on to a $100,000 deal to build a pair of 120-foot-tall meteorological towers in Taylor's north and south ends. They would measure currents for a year before officials consider spending $3 million on two 1.5 megawatt turbines in 2009 that would power 600 homes.

August 20, 2007

A proposed windmill that would soar 250 feet above the skyline near dozens of homes in Hanover Park could save the local school district millions of dollars in energy costs, officials said.

But the proposed 1.6-megawatt turbine has sparked an outcry from anxious village trustees who said it would be a noisy eyesore that could lead to windmills sprouting like weeds across the west suburb.

August 22, 2007

Cutting greenhouse gas emission need not be distant dream or expensive. Advocates of co-firing bio-mass with coal or natural gas say that it is an effective way for utilities to begin now to reduce their carbon footprints.

Biomass consists of any fuel produced from organic matter. That includes forest waste, agricultural waste, organic waste and municipal waste. Biomass produced from wood chips, for example, can be mixed with certain types of coal before the new compound is combusted. It can all be accomplished, say experts, without having to change the fuel-firing system.