A recent workshop by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Energy for America Program in Salt Lake City encouraged small business owners and farmers to generate their own “green power,” Jasen Lee reports for the Deseret News.
Perry Mathews, the business and cooperative program director for USDA Rural Development, told Lee that REAP can combine grants and loans to help farmers and rural businesses buyand install renewable energy systems. Environmentally conscious designs such as wind turbines, solar panels, geothermal, micro-hydro or biomass systems all add up to a better bottom line for owners.
"The administration feels that it's very important, from President Barack Obama to [Agriculture] Secretary [Tom] Vilsack,” Jeff Jobe, national cooperative field advisor for Rural Development, told the Deseret News. Lee reports that money is available on a competitive basis for communities with populations of less than 50,000.
An important angle is the ability to make the most of current resources. William Chatwin, energy efficiency coordinator for the Utah State Energy Program, said people can "multiply the benefits" of producing clean, renewable energy as they improve efficiency, with measures such as taking advantage of water running downhill as an additional source of electricity. Read more here.
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