Solar power can be a great alternative for any business, but those in Oregon can really benefit. If you have an existing business and you switch over to solar energy, you can set the solar system up for almost no costs (after you receive rebates and tax benefits).

Setting up solar power is not cheap. It could initially cost a business around $150,000 to set up a small and simple system. For business with some capital to invest back into the company, this could be a great choice. There are plenty of incentives offered in the Oregon area that help bring the final cost down to almost zero.

Unfortunately, not all states are so generous. The federal government is also decreasing tax incentives that it offers to citizens to go green. It is always a good idea to check out your local incentives and to talk with your accountant BEFORE you count on any rebates or deductions.

Even if you aren’t able to receive rebates or other incentives, going solar can be incentive enough of its own. You can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year if you go green. Some of the electric companies even offer payment for any power you generate that comes back into the general system so that you could potentially make money.

Switching your business is not just good for the environment - it’s great for the bottom line as well.

Alternative energy is becoming more popular with the mainstream consumer. Even the resent presidential debates have been bringing to light the importance of changing the way we supply energy in this country. Fueled by the increased interest (pun intended), many companies are expanding their research into commercially viable products.

One of the directions companies, like SkyFuel, are aiming is the development of solar powered plants. Projects like these will make clean fuel a reality for more people in close quarters. Traditionally, the rural population has been more likely to grasp the technology around alternative energies.

The Department of Energy is helping to spur on innovation through its grants for research and development. The government seems eager to find ways to reduce American dependence on foreign energy sources and at the same time quiet the clamoring of green organizations that feel America is responsible for the depletion of the ecosystem.

As the interest in alternative fuels continues to find a home in the mainstream consumer, the options will also expand. The building of green power plants is surely to bring the industry to the forefront of the minds that don’t already have it there. With the government willing to back companies financially, the technology is sure to keep up with demand.

There are very few government officials out there calling for people to destroy the environment.  Some of them are even quite vocal that we need to work to save it in any way possible.  But the government - as an entity - does not need to push any green tech

on the populous.

The only way for the technology to take off is for the industry to push its development.  The only way the industry will push the development is when a need arises.  Right now, there isn’t much need for cheaper fuel.  Even with gas prices running over $3 per gallon, people just kept fueling up the cars.  The initial scare did cause a flood of used SUV’s to hit the market, but the automobile industry responded in kind with more fuel efficient SUV’s.

There has been some talk lately that the government should support financial the green industry.  It was even a subject in a recent republican presidential debate.  Subsidizing anything is a bad idea.  It causes innovation to stagnate.  Necessity is the mother of invention, not government support.  Hopefully, the green technologies will find their own footing and take off.  Until that happens, the government shouldn’t get involved.

McDonald’s in not exactly known for the healthy choices it offers its customers or the eco-friendly impact it has on the environment.  Best known for the golden arches and the Big Mac and grease, McDonald’s is working hard to change its image.

The company is beginning to make its waste cooking oil into biodiesel fuel for powering up its trucking fleet in Europe.  It will take almost an entire year to get the whole fleet converted.

I admire the corporate world for looking to creative ways to help the environment, but I can’t help but wonder if there is more in it for them.  I have a friend that owns a car run on waste cooking oil.  It smells a lot like what’s been cooking.  Now imagine an entire fleet of trucks driving around the region smelling like fries.  It could be almost as bad as the sound of the ice cream truck.

Still, the conversion of the McDonald’s fleet (according to their own figures) will save almost 2,000 tons of carbon.  Since it will also help the company by cutting the cost of shipping (because of the reducing in fuel purchases), I can only dream that it will also reduce the cost of my next run through the drive through.