A pair of bills that will give Oklahomans who choose alternative energy to heat and cool their homes and run their vehicles a break on their taxes continue their way through the state’s legislature.
This story from The Daily Oklahoman says House Speaker Chris Benge’s bills are designed to lessen the dependence on foreign oil and could be applied nationally:
House Bill 1948 would provide a 5 percent tax credit for residents and businesses who would buy a geothermal heat pump system. House Bill 1949 is intended to double the number of publicly available compressed natural gas fueling stations and give Oklahomans tax credits to help them make a transition to alternative fuel vehicles.
Benge, R-Tulsa, said other energy-related measures to be taken up this session deal with solar, nuclear and wind power.
It’s estimated HB 1948 would cost the state about $850,000 a year while no estimate has determined yet how much HB 1949 would cost, Benge said.
Benge authored HB 1949 last summer when gasoline prices were about $4 a gallon in the state. Gasoline prices have dropped more than half since then, but Benge said it’s still important for Oklahoma to push an energy plan.
“Once the economy picks back up, we’re expecting the gasoline prices to go up again because that demand’s going to be there,” he said.
The American Lung Association of Wisconsin will be sponsoring the UW-Platteville Society of Automotive Engineering (SAE) Clean Snowmobile Challenge team in a project designed to inspire students and showcase innovative, cleaner energy technologies. As part of SAE’s Clean Snowmobile Challenge, the group modified a stock snowmobile to operate on E85.
Renewable energy and biofuels are among the big winners in the $787 billion economic stimulus package signed by President Barack Obama today.
The 
Geldof, an Irish musician who launched his activist career by organizing Live Aid in 1985, will discuss how he believes biofuels can help developing countries become more energy independent without impacting food production. He and along with other speakers will discuss the sustainable bio future and how this could help eradicate poverty, particularly across the African continent.
In an interview with WBM, Geldof explained how he sees biofuels helping Africa. “Import substitution. More money in the economy. More jobs. Domestic fuel at the local level,” he says. “Africa has always used “bio-fuel” as a primary source – wood, dung, residue etc. They can build responsibly on this tradition.”
A wind energy project in Southern California soon could be lighting up 50,000 homes. The Acciona Wind Energy USA wind farm will be Santa Barbara County’s first renewable wind-energy project after the county Board of Supervisors gave unanimous approval to the project.
Writing about a green fuel could earn you some green for school! The American Lung Association’s Minnesota and South Dakota field offices, in conjunction with their respective states’ soybean promotion councils, are offering scholarships to students who write essays on biodiesel.
In Minnesota, winners will receive $1,000, while second place gets a $500 scholarship. South Dakota winners get $500, and second place receives $250.
Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said in a recent 
Meanwhile, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack recently said in an 
Galva Holstein Ag, LLC has opened their third E85 fueling location in Iowa. The site is located at 211 North Main Street (Highway 59) in Holstein. Other fuels offered include E10, E30 biodiesel and regular unleaded gasoline. 
Renewable Energy Group, the leading biodiesel producer and marketer in the country, is helping miners learn how to use biodiesel in their underground operations.