July 1st, 2008 - Hawaii State Gov Newsroom:

HONOLULU – Governor Linda Lingle signed into law today three bills to increase renewable energy generation and reduce the state’s dependence on imported oil.

Two of the bills will provide renewable energy project developers with much needed assistance with Hawai‘i’s complex permitting process. The third bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture to offer a new class of loans in its agricultural and aquaculture loan programs to encourage farmers to contribute to the production of alternative sources of energy.

What does this mean for Green Collar Workers?

• First of all think slow. This isn’t going to change anything until we have a vision. This still doesn’t exist. If Green Collar workers want change, they must still as Ghandi might say, “be the change you seek in your world.”
• Streamlining governmental processes can result in the creation of new projects. These acts may help entrepreneurs obtain startup funds and angel investors which otherwise ignore Hawaii due to the unfavorable climate for small businesses. So keep your eye open for new startups but the jobs won’t be here for a while. A full-time facilitator could mean more transparency which could lead to more reporting depending the state energy coordinator position that needs to be filled first. Could Green Collar Jobs be a metric?
• The new agriculture loans will apply to food safety, product tracking, photovoltaics, hydro, wind, methane, biodeiesel and ethanol. Look for projects and jobs in these areas.
• There’s potential here for these acts to improve Hawaii’s digital economies.

Additional Resources

Read about the new Acts 207, 208 and 209 here:
http://hawaii.gov/gov/news/releases/2008/governor-lingle-signs-key-legislation-to-boost

Local Farmer Richard Ha helps farmers generate and use Renewable Energy.
http://hahaha.hamakuasprings.com/2008/02/in-support-of-f.html

A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY Conference Committee recommendation:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2008/commReports/HB2863_CD1_CCR146-08_.htm

Malama Aina

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