Obama Cleantech Stimulus: Bad Policy, Bad Politics and Bad for Cleantech

The Solyndra debacle is no surprise to this cleantech venture capitalist. The inherent conflict between trying to get money out of the U.S. Treasury as quickly as possible to stimulate the economy and, at the same time, have government agencies that are ill-suited at making business decisions do just that was nothing other than a recipe for disaster.

Chu’s Troubles

Fallout from Solyndra’s bankruptcy isn’t the only difficulty confronting the Energy Secretary. Investigations have been launched by a couple of Congressional committees, and several Republicans are using Solyndra’s failure to make the case against green energy financing programs, which they say amount to “picking winners and losers” in the market. On top of this, some critics question whether his laboratory smarts and Silicon Valley background have undercut his ability to operate inside the Beltway. Still, Chu is standing firm in defense of federal investment in renewable energy.

What Obama Could Say in His Speech That Would Really Turn The Economy Around

These three little stories—all within the past few weeks, represent the overall attitude of this administration toward businesses that create jobs and revenue. Until the administration decides to work with, and not against, the job creators in the economy, growth will remain flat—or worse.

Plug Wars: When Cities Take Back the Power

The City of Boulder is weighing whether to renew its 20-year franchise agreement for electricity with Xcel, or to create its own municipal utility. The rub? The city has pegged contract renewal to reduction of carbon emissions á la Kyoto Protocol goals (greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2012). Boulder officials dismiss recent offers by Xcel (like offsetting carbon emissions with renewable energy) as window dressing to disguise the utility’s heavy carbon emissions statewide.

TABOR Hampers Colorado Education

Partly because of TABOR, Colorado schools rank 40th in spending per pupil and 48th in percentage of income applied to education spending according to a 2007 study by the US Census Bureau. Colorado’s future job market is dependent on well-educated workers that are highly skilled in math and science. Renewable energy manufacturing and design, aerospace technology and computer sciences have a strong presence in Colorado, but if newer generations are not well-educated, the jobs will disappear to other markets that have a better supply of well-educated applicants.

Interior Wins
Legal Battle

The District Court decision in Wyoming affirming the Interior Department’s ability to weigh environmental impacts when issuing oil and gas leases on public lands – as long as it does so in a timely fashion. Still, Republicans are pushing hard to speed up both the leasing and the permitting process, and U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., recently blasted the Obama administration for impeding domestic oil and gas production.

But Robin Cooley (pictured above), the Earthjustice attorney for the groups that intervened in the Utah and Wyoming case, said the decision is actually a win-win for both the industry and the environmental community.