President Barack Obama signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (or the Stimulus Bill) last Feb. 17, 2009. Prior to the signing, there were many speculations with regard to the provisions included. However, energy and environment advocates have found several worthy green provisions. Actually, the bill is loaded with a number of laudable renewable energy benefits.

Under the Stimulus Bill, the Department of Energy will have $39 billion for use in developing clean energy. A significant portion of the amount is meant for creating jobs in demonstration, research, and deployment. An additional $8.5 billion targets renewable energy projects as well as expanded electric transmission.

Research, development, deployment, and demonstration activities in energy efficiency and renewable energy are allotted an estimated $2.6 billion. This funding also focuses on picking up the pace in terms of developing technologies aimed at energy supply diversification.

Another noteworthy provision is the $4.6 billion allotted for fossil energy research and development. This clean energy initiative is divided into several spectrums like zero emissions from power plants, carbon capture and storage projects, and clean coal projects.

With the Stimulus Bill already approved, energy efficiency and conservation takes a big boost with its $4.2 billion funding. Federal building repair for better energy conservation and efficiency is likewise prioritized with $2.5 billion. Working on buildings will greatly help advance energy efficiency because these structures are some of the biggest violators of clean living and environmental sanitation.

There are other notable green provisions in the bill including those that deal with coming up with more efficient government vehicles and the development of better car batteries.

President Obama’s main concerns for the stimulus package are the improvement of the country’s economy and the saving and creation of more jobs. With the inclusion of clean energy and green jobs in the bill does more than just boost the economy, it also drives the country towards a more sustainable, energy-independent future.

Official Department of Energy breakdown of the stimulus package.

Obama’s stimulus bill green lights green spending.

U.S. stimulus bill likely to revive green power.

THE HOME DEPOT LAUNCHES NATIONAL CFL BULB RECYCLING INITIATIVE
Also Implementing In Store Energy Conservation Program

ATLANTA, June 24, 2008 – The Home Depot ®, the world’s largest home improvement retailer, today expanded its long-term commitment to the environment and sustainability by launching a national in-store, consumer compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb recycling program at all 1,973 The Home Depot locations. This free service is the first such offering made so widely available by a retailer in the United States and offers customers additional options for making environmentally conscious decisions from purchase to disposal. The Home Depot Canada launched a CFL recycling program in November, 2007.

At each The Home Depot store, customers can simply bring in any expired, unbroken CFL bulbs, and give them to the store associate behind the returns desk. The bulbs will then be managed responsibly by an environmental management company who will coordinate CFL packaging, transportation and recycling to maximize safety and ensure environmental compliance.

In addition to the CFL recycling program, The Home Depot has also launched an in store energy conservation program to switch Light Fixture Showrooms in U.S. stores from incandescent bulbs to CFLs by Fall 2008 and save $16 million annually in energy costs. The CFL recycling program is an extension of The Home Depot’s Eco Options program. Eco Options, launched in April 2007, is a classification that allows customers to easily identify products that have less of an impact on the environment.

“The CFL recycling program is another example of how The Home Depot is empowering
customers to help make a difference in their own homes, and have less of an impact on the
environment,” said Ron Jarvis, senior vice president, Environmental Innovation. “With more
than 75 percent of households located within 10 miles of a Home Depot store, this program is the
first national solution to providing Americans with a convenient way to recycle CFLs.”

Original Source

Related Environmental Initiative Sources:

Check out Home Depot’s latest products and services designed to help you design your home to be more comfortable and environmentally friendly.

The Amero Cabinet Collection has premium, semi custom kitchen cabinets, also specializing in green kitchen cabinets.

Pacific Crest Industries is well known for their seattle kitchen cabinets, detailed beautiful custom designs, both economical and environmentally friendly, like with their green kitchen cabinets.