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EcoSecurities founder says carbon markets work

As arguably the largest single market segment in the clean-tech sector, carbon markets are an area of keen interest for me personally and professionally, so it is always frustrating that the mainstream media largely refuses to learn the details.

In general, layman and media who don't understand the details of the carbon markets attack carbon offsets in two areas: first, questioning whether the credits are for a project that would have occurred anyway (a concept known in carbon as "additionality"); and second, questioning whether there are checks and balances to ensure the environmental standards are adhered to … Read more

Hackers going after restaurants, supermarkets

Updated 4:30 p.m. PST with news of the hacker attack on the state-owned Zimbabwe newspaper

Many people are worried about hackers stealing their data when they buy things or bank online, but it's turning out that even an innocent trip to a restaurant or supermarket can be risky.

Three men from the Ukraine, Estonia, and Miami, were indicted on charges related to stealing credit card data by hacking into cash register terminals at nearly a dozen Dave & Buster's chain of restaurants around the country, according to the Department of Justice.

The men gained unauthorized access … Read more

What is your stolen data worth?

You think your personal information is priceless. But everything has a price, even your stolen bank account information.

McAfee Avert Labs has discovered a price list that criminals use to buy and sell credit card numbers, bank account log-ins, and other consumer data that have been filched from unsuspecting Web surfers.

"Last Friday morning in France, my investigations lead me to visit a site proposing top-quality data for a higher price than usual," writes Francois Paget of McAfee. "But when we look at this data we understand that as everywhere, you have to pay for quality."… Read more

Hope under the sun? Senators propose extending renewable energy tax credit

Suppliers in the renewable-energy industry have tried just about everything to pass a law to renew an important investment tax credit that is set to expire at the end of this year.

On Thursday, Sens. Mary Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Senator John Ensign (R-Nev.) introduced a bill that would extend that credit and provide incentives for energy-efficiency measures.

The Clean Energy Tax Stimulus Act of 2008 ( click here for PDF) extends the investment tax credit for eight more years for businesses.

Consumers would have the existing 30 percent federal tax credit on renewable energy projects, such as solar panels, extended another … Read more

Renewable-energy pros plead president, Congress for tax credit

Heavy hitters in the renewable-energy business have scheduled a press conference on Tuesday to publicly lobby for long-sought policies, arguing that the industry and U.S. competitiveness are at risk.

The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) organized the press conference, which will include well-known energy investors and business people from General Electric, Credit Suisse, Google, and clean-tech venture capital firm Nth Power. It will be held at the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC), which is hosted by the U.S. government.

The renewable-energy industry has been thwarted at least two times in efforts to renew an existing federal … Read more

Parents, protect your kids from identity theft

Adults are increasingly aware of the risks of identity theft, but how many of us think about protecting our children's identities? This is an issue that we should be thinking about from birth, when baby registries, online birth announcements, and even the "Stork News" sign in the front yard expose kids' personal information--name gender, date of birth, and home address--to the wider world.

Children who get their identities stolen may not know for years, until they grow up and go to apply for a job, student loan, or credit card themselves. You can imagine what a mess … Read more

Super Tuesday is Super for a US based cap and trade system

One things for sure, post Super Tuesday with Governor Mike Huckabee far behind, Mitt Romney out, and McCain the all but crowned Republican nominee, the US is getting a cap and trade system for carbon. The question is which one. I thought I'd track a little of the candidates' various positions.

The major differences that are left between the parties are on how to do it. In general the Republicans favor US based systems, the Democrats favor a Kyoto based approach. The Democrats favor 100% allowance, the Republicans favor a slower adjustment scheme (The Kyoto mechanisms today are actually … Read more

Economic stimulus package leaves solar industry in the cold

An economic stimulus plan passed the Senate on Thursday without extending an important tax credit for the solar and wind industries.

Renewable energy companies and advocates were bitterly disappointed late last year with the passage of the Energy Act, which did not extend an investment tax credit. It would have been funded by repealing an existing tax break to oil companies.

Right now, renewable energy projects receive a federal tax credit once they are completed, but that provision runs out at the end of 2008.

On Thursday, the Senate again left out the tax credit extension, which solar and wind … Read more

Bringing seapower to the fight against global warming

The cleantech sector has developed as a major player in the fight against climate change. One of my friends, Dan Whaley, has founded a company called Climos to attack global warming in a new way, sinking massive amounts of carbon into the ocean depths using ocean iron fertilization. The approach has seen significant scientific study, but as he acknowledges, still has a ways to go to prove its effectiveness. That is where Climos comes in. The exciting part is the sheer scale of the potential carbon sequestration (on the order of a billion tons) and the low cost (possibly on … Read more