USDA Announces Renewable Energy Grants
USDA announced Wednesday that 639 individuals and businesses in 43 states and the Virgin Islands have been selected to receive $35 million in grants and loan guarantees for renewable energy systems or to improve energy efficiency in farm and business operations. USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development Tom Dorr announced the funding at the 2008 Farm Progress Show in Iowa on Wednesday.
The program provides financial assistance to agricultural producers and rural small businesses to support renewable energy projects across a wide range of technologies encompassing biomass (including anaerobic digesters), geothermal, hydrogen, solar and wind energy. It also provides support for energy efficiency improvements, helping recipients reduce energy consumption and improve operations. Of the $35 million announced, $27.5 million are grants and $7.4 million are guaranteed loans.
You can listen to Sec. Dorr’s press conference here: fp-08-dorr.mp3
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (7.5MB)
1 Comment »
Kelley
Wow, this is such wonderful news. I only wish they were giving more in grants…consider how much could be done with what is spent for one day in Iraq. I work for Sharp TV which is one of not very many companies that has taken the initiative to go green by installing one fo the world’s largest rooftop solar panel arrays in the world. However, this kind of investment is really only feasible for a company like Sharp which has more assets than the independent farmer. I hope both models of energy saving become a trend.
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