The board of Babylon, Fla. voted to reclassify carbon emissions as solid waste, enabling them to use some of the town's garbage district surplus to promote green building and energy efficiency measures.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to award approximately $3.4 million in grants to establish projects using emerging technologies to reduce emissions from the nation's existing fleet of diesel engines. Addressing the existing fleet is important because it pre-dates EPA's stringent new particulate and nitrogen oxide standards and diesels remain in use for decades. The deadline for application is 21 Sep 2008.

The EPA has many resources to help municipalities implement parts of their climate change reduction goals. This report lists EPA grants and other programs that may be of use.

If you're struggling with how to fund the development and maintenance of environmental systems--like drinking and waste water systems--the How To Pay: Challenges and Solutions Of Environmental Protection is for you and your local government team.

Three reports created by the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders seek to better explain alternative mechanisms that governments can use to finance and manage infrastructure, and offer examples of how these alternatives have been applied successfully by state and local governments.

Public sector entities are helping meet their energy needs with on-site renewable energy facilities. One key to the long-term success of an on-site renewable project is financing: how will construction be funded and what incentives can be leveraged to ensure the financial feasibility of the project?

Los Angeles County, California is considering imposing a fee on drivers in the county in order to generate funds for public transit and congestion-reduction programs, with the ultimate goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles. The bill, which is currently in the state legislature, has been endorsed by the County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Many communities want to foster economic growth, protect environmental resources, enhance public health, and plan for development, but may lack the tools, resources, and information to achieve their goals. In response to this demand, EPA developed the Smart Growth Implementation Assistance (SGIA) Program.

The state of Wisconsin expects to award about $15 million per year for 10 years from the newly created Wisconsin Energy Independence Fund. The money will be used to support research and development of renewable fuels and encourage businesses to adopt new technologies that save energy and use renewable energy.

Kyoto's Miyako Green Power Certification System aims to promote "local production for local consumption" of solar power as a way of helping curb global warming.