Green banks help CO2 rule compliance, study says

OREANDA-NEWS. July 20, 2015. State-run financing entities known as "green banks" could provide a cost-effective compliance mechanism for the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed regulations to cut power plant CO2 emissions, a report says.

Green banks and other low-cost financing options could help renewable energy projects as states aim to comply with the EPA Clean Power Plan, according to this week's report from the Union of Concerned Scientists. The EPA plan, which will require states to cut the carbon intensity of their power sectors by 2030, is scheduled to be finalized this summer. EPA says states can use a host of measures to meet their 2030 targets, including emissions trading and more renewable energy.

Green banks can "complement the available set of policy options" and "help make renewable energy and energy efficiency more competitive, especially as existing policies change, expire or become less effective at driving deployment," the report says.

Green banks are government-sponsored institutions designed to spur the growth of clean energy by providing financing that leverages public funds through financial mechanisms. The report provides case studies on green banks and other programs in Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Iowa, Massachusetts, as well as Germany. The programs are at various stages of implementation. The New York Public Service Commission this week approved the first \\$150mn in funding for the state's planned \\$1bn green bank, while Germany's green bank has been in place for about a decade. Connecticut's green bank has supported 8,800 projects since it was authorized in 2011.