Pollution from industrial facilities like this one at East Harbor in Indiana up to the 1970s left a legacy of contamination still in need of cleanup from new Great Lakes restoration funding.

Giving President Obama a major victory, Congress on Thursday sent him a spending bill containing $475 million in new funding to help restore the Great Lakes. During his 2008 campaign, candidate Obama committed to a multi-year effort to combat Great Lakes invasive species, habitat loss, climate change impacts and threats to water quality. The Great Lakes contain almost one-fifth of the world’s available surface freshwater.

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Many manufacturers of high-mpg and electric vehicles have adopted a 3-wheeled layout for cost and weight savings, and—in some cases—aerodynamic efficiency. In most states, however, these vehicles are classified as motorcycles. That motorcycle moniker has made them ineligible for DOE funds set aside to foster innovation among American automakers… until now!

More details, after the jump.

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In an unexpected U-turn, the U.S. Senate has agreed to continue to back research for the next generation of hydrogen cars - funding that the Obama administration had earlier proposed to cut.

The move came last Thursday as Senate members voted to commit $187 million to hydrogen research, almost as much as was promised before the indecision.

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Santa Monica, California-based EV start-up Coda Automotive has raised a cool $24 Million to support the development and 2010 California market entry of its all-electric sedan and funding of its battery manufacturing joint venture.

The funds came after a successful bid under the Series B Investment Round, backed by a team including former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson, Jr. & Farallon Capital Founder Thomas F. Steyer.

In a press release Kevin Czinger, president and CEO, Coda Automotive said, “Coda’s ability to raise capital under challenging market conditions and the caliber of our investors attest to the strength of our business model (video) and the opportunity that exists in the electric car and battery sectors.”

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The United States Department of Energy (DOE) announced yesterday that over the next three years it is ploughing $11 million into research projects to develop advanced batteries for electric cars.  The projects are also in line to benefit from a whopping $19 million in further support from the private sector.

A total of seven cutting-edge projects will focus on improving battery material performance and developing the manufacturing processes to produce them.  The ultimate aim is to reduce the cost of batteries for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), one of the main financial barriers to more widespread uptake.

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The Guide is filled with lots of information and hundreds of links to sites where more info and funding applications can be found.

The Guide starts by explaining the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and how it breaks down. Contained within the Guide is info about Green Energy Initiatives (DOE), Tax Credits, Green Environmental Projects (EPA)  Green Transportation Initiatives (DOT), Green Building Initiatives and Green Jobs/Job Training. It provides a modest number of “tips” and information as to how to actually land stimulus money which will be helpful to many people outside the Beltway. One that stuck out to me was contained within the “How To Apply” section:

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China has announced plans to take on the US head-to-head in the race to develop low emission vehicles, with a massive $2.2 billion investment in electric cars over the next three years.

The news comes hot on the heels of President Obama’s announcement of a whopping $2.4 billion investment in electric vehicles in the United States.

The Chinese government hopes that the investment will help the country to make 500,000 all-electric and hybrid vehicles a year by 2011 - and encourage organizations like city governments and airport taxi firms to enjoy subsidies of more than $70,000 on fleets of new vehicles.

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Both programs will be accepting applications for Phase I funding. These are small grants: A total of $70,000 is available in funding for each EPA Phase I award. The NSF’s SBIR Phase I solicitation funding is $150,000 per award. One expert told me that it probably means 5 awards from EPA and 6 awards from NSF for grants ranging from $15k to $25k each.

Under Phase I, the scientific merit and technical feasibility of the proposed concept is investigated…Through this phased approach to SBIR funding, EPA can determine whether the research idea, often on high-risk advanced concepts, is technically feasible, whether the firm can do high-quality research, and whether sufficient progress has been made to justify a larger Phase II effort.

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The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) is $60 million in the hole - double their expected revenue shortfall for 2008. Administrators are talking about raising fares and reducing consumer services to help the transit system cope with the losses.

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Responding to the sharp economic downturn facing the nation, a group of seven leading nonprofits that offer lending and support services to small businesses are taking swift actions to help entrepreneurs challenged by higher costs, declining sales, and tightening credit.

Leaders of the seven organizations came together last month in Albuquerque, NM, to share their approaches, including: customizing their counseling and coaching services to help businesses adapt to the economic downturn, implementing new technology and reconfiguring staff to increase loan production, and developing new loan products and financial counseling services for credit-challenged customers.

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President-elect Barack Obama wants the nation to derive 10 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2012, up from 2 percent today. That comes on top of the global push for green power, making wind and solar power companies a good bet.

It’s been a rocky road for the high flying sector, recently as the credit crunch has reduced investors willingness to capitalize any company, least of all those involved in risky new ventures. But, that hasn’t stopped big names like T. Boone Pickens from investing in wind power and..

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The Next Generation of Sustainable Capital

The Investors’ Circle spring conference attempted to answer that question during a lively breakout session entitled “Slow Money: New Strategies for Investing in Local Food Systems.” Attended by reps from next generation investors such as SJF Ventures, Transformative Capital, and Renewal Partners, the conference blended a business pitch competition, philosophical discussions, an entrepreneur showcase, and community education in an effort to jump start the transition to a sustainable economy. Ecopreneurist writers were out in full force at the conference, with Leah Edwards blogging the “Is Organic the Next Clean Tech?” breakout session and joining in the networking events.

Slow Money: New Strategies for Investing in Local Food Systems

As part of the larger Slow Movement sweeping the cultures of food, travel, cities, and schools, Slow Money proponents seek investments and returns at the pace of sustainable business development. Slow Money panelist Greg Steltenpohl, former CEO of Odwalla and self-confessed “fast money sinner testifying before you,” advocated for the creation of new metaphors for economic growth. In the Slow Money movement, organic phrases replace academic terminology and new financial vehicles arise to form the “compost of the slow money economy.” Investors’ Circle chairman Woody Tasch expressed this transition as a study in contrasts between old and new ways of thinking:

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But there are millions of ecopreneurial enterprises prospering throughout the U.S. and around the world. Perhaps you’re one, too.

So, we have formed a partnership with EcoSector.com, an on-line portal serving as a unique conduit for growing the green economy, offering opportunities to share video clips, feature photographs of products or services, and display blogs.

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Where can you find this? One example out there right now is Idea Blob. Idea Blob is the creation of Advanta, a bank that is exclusively focused on serving small businesses, and itself started with less then $100 seed money in 1951.

How does it work?

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