Advanced Biofuels USA is saying no to Clean Energy Victory Bonds. Green America supporters have been working to gain support of the bonds as a way to raise money to be invested in clean energy technologies. Yet according to Advanced Biofuels USA’s Bob Kozak, there are several major flaws in the proposed legislation.

Here are several problems as outlined by Kozak:

1. Because the bonds will require immediate income from the projects to pay the interest income promised to the investor, bonding is not the appropriate method for funding renewable energy research and project prototypes. These bonds could only be used for projects that have already been proven to be commercially viable and would not provide funding where it is needed most in biofuel and other renewable energy development – at the research and commercialization stages.

2. Clean Energy Victory Bonds would duplicate other available funding mechanisms via the requirement to have a return on investment that is higher than current US bond issues, the only projects that would be eligible for funding are those that are relatively low risk that would be funded by existing commercial instruments.

3. Clean energy is not defined. Besides advanced transportation biofuels not being included in the legislation, it also seems that the “dirty” elements of projects would not be factored into a life cycle analysis of the environmental impact.

Kozak counters that there is legislation that could be developed that would be effective. He suggests a $200 billion, 10 year, science-heavy “Manhattan Project” for new renewable transportation, heating and electrical production of energy sources. He also recommends a makeover of accounting and taxation laws that would properly charge for Climate Change and other environmental costs. To learn more, click here.