The Oil Drum

Goldman Sachs has bet long on Green investments over the last few years. Investing in wind farms, solar energy and ethanol producers, building up a $1 Billion stake in renewable energy investments. The NY Times Editorial Page calls for more incentives to reward "green" investments. With the former CEO Henry Paulson of Goldman set to become the Treasury Secretary, it might be that rewarding green investments is an idea whose time has truly come.

If Washington is smart, it will throw its weight behind these efforts by providing the necessary incentives, whether as loans, direct grants or targeted tax breaks. But Washington is dawdling; several excellent bills designed to advance the development and wider use of various alternative fuels, cleaner cars and carbon-free power plants are languishing in the election-shortened legislative year.

I would add that perhaps setting some type of standard of what "green" is would be a big help, since I don't think there is very good evidence that ethanol from corn grown on factory farms is very environmentally friendly.