Local Press Notes Viability’s ‘Green Grant World’ Success
Viability makes mark in green grant world
By Peter Daining
The Holland Sentinel, Oct. 29, 2009
Holland, MI — The Holland-based firm Viability secured $1.3 million in clean energy grants for its clients through the Rural Energy for America Program.
The grant dollars will help leverage $31.5 million of green investment such as a biomass-fueled dryer for a biomass fuel facility. The Viability clients come from six states, Seymour said.
“Even though these energy projects pay for themselves in time, the grant helps overcome the initial capital investment that accompanies new technologies,” Viability President Chris Byrnes said.
Click here to Read Full Article
Post on Oct 30 in Viability in the NewsViability Tunes into Energy on WGVU Radio
Broadcast by Shelley Irwin
WGVU Morning Show, Oct. 26, 2009
Viability’s Chris Byrnes and Dan Kuipers sat down with WGVU Morning Show host Shelley Irwin to talk carbon and energy and also feature the company’s growth. Over the twenty-minute segment, Byrnes and Kuipers discussed how Viability develops energy projects through grants, incentives, and carbon credits. Additionally, the Viability personnel foreshadowed upcoming projects, such as a carbon credit project Rwanda.
Click here to Download the mp3 of the interview or stream the audio
Post on Oct 27 in Viability in the NewsViability Secures $1.3 Million in Clean Energy Grants, Leverages $31.5 Million
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 20, 2009
Contact: Chris Byrnes, President
616-396-6101, chris@viabilityonline.com
Viability Secures $1.3 Million in Clean Energy Grants, Leverages $31.5 Million
West Michigan firm harnesses millions in new energy investments through USDA program to implement energy projects
HOLLAND, MI – October 20, 2009 – Viability, LLC “reaped” the reward of a national focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. The West Michigan based economic development consulting firm secured $1.3 million in grant funding and leveraged $31.5 million in overall project investment for its clients as part of the USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).
The federal REAP grant funds up to $250,000 for efficiency projects and $500,000 for renewable energy projects in designated rural areas. Viability assists companies prepare and submit grant applications that promote sustainability through several programs.
“Businesses are seizing the opportunity to lower operational costs and reduce their environmental footprint through clean energy technologies,” said Viability President Chris Byrnes. “Even though these energy projects pay for themselves in time, the grant helps overcome the initial capital investment that accompanies new technologies.”
Altogether, Viability’s REAP clients will reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by 33,519 metric tons annually. That amount (according to EPA estimates) is approximate to the annual electricity for all households in Ada Township, MI, or individually barbecuing with each person from Grand Rapids, Detroit, Kalamazoo, Flint and Lansing combined.
Viability’s lead grant writer believes that companies are recognizing the value in energy technologies.
“Nationwide, there is an increased interest and competition from businesses for grants,” said Greg Lam. “One state alone saw four-times the number of applicants this year compared to last.”
Even with the recession, Viability saw a 15% jump overall in awarded grants compared to 2008.
Viability’s REAP clients came from six states and featured dramatic reductions in energy use and costs. Projects included:
• A greenhouse biomass boiler system that replaces 100% of natural gas usage, trims $1.6 million a year in heating costs and supports local biomass production;
• Biomass-fueled dryer for a biomass fuel facility that decreases propane usage by 87% and increases biomass fuel output by 240%;
• Energy efficiency equipment that better insulates a greenhouse structure, lowers heating requirements by 43% and increases crop yield.
The 2010 REAP program began accepting applications October 1st.
ABOUT VIABILITY
Since 2003, Viability, LLC has partnered with a wide range of businesses in over 20 states and secured millions in grants and incentives. Viability’s comprehensive services include domestic and international carbon credit development, grant and incentive research, citywide carbon action plans and renewable energy project construction.
For more information on Viability, please visit www.viabilityllc.com
###
Click here to download the PDF of this release
Post on Oct 20 in Press ReleasesClean Rwandan Water Thanks to Carbon Credits
Astronaut Targets Drinking Water in Rwanda — and Carbon Credits for Revenues
By Ciara O’Rourke
New York Times, Green Inc, Oct. 20, 2009
In keeping with the rising tide of businesses tapping into potentially lucrative markets at the bottom of the economic pyramid, Manna Energy is seeking to turn a profit — someday — by bringing safe drinking water to Rwandan schools.
The startup, which is headquartered in Houston, is currently providing solar-powered water purification systems — which filter rainwater with sand and ultraviolet light — at several secondary schools in Rwanda. In the initial phase, the systems, which cost $50,000 a piece, are subsidized by $1 million in grants from the Coca-Cola Foundation and the Global Water Challenge, a business coalition based in Washington.
But the company’s larger goal is to sell carbon-reduction credits, and use the revenues to expand its operations.
Manna is waiting for the approval of a United Nations board to generate the carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism, a provision of the Kyoto Protocol that encourages projects in developing countries that reduce pollution (the company’s purification systems help to curtail the significant emissions arising from burning wood, which is used to boil water).
Industrial polluters elsewhere in the world can then purchase those credits to offset their own carbon footrprints.
Click here to Read Full Article
Post on Oct 20 in Related storiesGrants, Carbon, Energy on the Menu, Says Kuipers at A&WMA Luncheon
Viability’s Senior Carbon Specialist Dan Kuipers will serve up a seminar on energy, grants, and carbon during the West Michigan Chapter of the Air & Waste Management Association’s October 21st luncheon. Set in the picturesque Frederik Meijer Gardens, Kuipers’ seminar will showcase successful renewable energy projects and movements in the field.
Date: October 21, 2009
Time: 11:45am to 1:30pm
Location: Frederik Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI
Sponsor: WEST MICHIGAN CHAPTER AIR &WASTE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION (site)
Important Information: This event requires registration, and the fee structure varies based on the attendee. The registration deadline is October 16.
Denning to Share GHG Knowledge During SAMI Panel
Viability’s Kyle Denning will join a panel of experts and business leaders for a round-table discussion on implementing sustainable business practices in the Grand Rapids community and incorporating Triple Bottom Line principles. Attendees are encouraged to stay after the discussion for networking and additional questions.
Date: October 19, 2009
Time: 6-7pm
Location: Loosmore Auditorium (122E), Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI
Sponsor: Society for the Advancement of Management and International Business (site)
Important Information: The event is free and open to the public. There will be opportunities for questions and networking after the panel discussion.
Higher Ed Making the (Green) Grade
Colleges: Less Green in the Bank, More Green on Campus
New portal allows universal access to sustainability data from 332 schools
[Information from Sustainable Endowments Institute's Oct. 7 press release, Mark Orlowski]
Despite budget-breaking investment losses and widely fluctuating energy costs, many schools became greener during the last year, earning higher grades on the College Sustainability Report Card 2010. Released on the new GreenReportCard.org website by the Sustainable Endowments Institute, a special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, the annual publication provides school profiles and grades along with exclusive insights about sustainability in higher education.
More than 95 percent of participating institutions agreed to share the inner workings of their green practices, resulting in over 10,000 pages of detailed data and descriptions. Overall, the College Sustainability Report Card has the highest response rate of any college sustainability ranking or rating.
Grading the schools entailed researching publicly available information, conducting surveys of appropriate school officials, and assessing performance with 120 questions across 48 indicators in the following 9 categories: Administration, Climate Change & Energy, Food & Recycling, Green Building, Transportation, Student Involvement, Endowment Transparency, Shareholder Engagement and Investment Priorities.
Viability staff’s alma maters were featured:
Grand Valley State University – B
Hope College – C+
Northwestern University – B-
Ohio State University – B
Michigan State University – B
Click here to Read Full Article and find other rankings
Post on Oct 08 in Related storiesVenture Capitalist: Michigan primed for economic recovery
Five One-Way Tickets to Michigan, Please
By: Jeff Bocan
The Huffington Post, September 23, 2009
As a venture capitalist in sunny (and smug) Santa Monica, who happened to often travel to Michigan, I’d heard every possible joke and put-down about the Michigan economy (you know, how it’s cheaper to buy a foreclosed house in Detroit than a decent used car, but at least you can live in the car if you have to, ha ha ha.) Well, I’m not laughing any more. This summer, I decided to move my wife and three little kids away from the sunny beaches and new media millionaires of Southern California to — you guessed it — Michigan.
Yup, we bought a one-way ticket to Michigan. Five of them, actually.
What was I thinking? Don’t worry, you’re not the first to ask. For several months I’ve been explaining my decision to friends, family and work colleagues. Why walk away from good weather and a sweet gig investing in new media companies for a cold, Rust Belt state that’s been hemorrhaging jobs and hope for decades?
Quite simply, because I believe it’s a hell of an opportunity — despite the jokes, the put-downs, or the perceptions of Detroit as a lost city — I wouldn’t be moving to Michigan if I didn’t.
Click here to Read Full Article
Post on Oct 04 in Related stories