Cleantech investing is no longer a Silicon Valley exclusive, thanks to the Clean Wave Ventures’ fund. Rick Kieser of Cincinnati and partner Scott Prince of Indianapolis are raising $100 million and looking to invest it in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan based research and work.

The research and manufacturing in the Midwest can make a difference in the fight for improving our environment, and these investments can make a huge difference for these companies and individuals.

They plan to invest in green energy, transportation, and advanced materials; beginning with a wind turbine maker, a geothermal company, and a new electric motor that cuts air conditioning power needs by 30%.

The good news is that living in an urban environment rather than a suburban one does cut our per capita (per person) output of carbon dioxide (the gas that contributes to Global Warming).

The bad news is that Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana are the top states for per capita output.

According to a recent CNN article on the subject:

Cities in Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana dominated the bottom tier of high carbon emitters.

These urban areas are “kind of a poster child of what high carbon intensive growth looks like,” said Brown. She noted their reliance on coal for electricity and natural gas for heating, a shortage of mass transit, and often older, energy-inefficient buildings.

The positive note here is that they identified 3 areas where Cincinnati citizens can begin to focus on making it better here. Not only do these things make it less healthy and contribute to global warming, but these are also the things that cost us more money in our daily lives.

Let’s fix our issues by looking at the 3 areas of improvement we should all focus on:

1. Encourage alternative sources of energy such as wind and solar
2. Support and use mass transit - buses, streetcars, commuter trains, etc.
3. Put our household renovation money towards better energy efficiency rather than cosmetic changes

These are investments that will repay you in lower transportation costs and energy bills. Not to mention they guarantee that young Cincinnatians will stay here and continue to build their own families here rather than leave for areas of the country that are doing these things better than us. You know that will make grandma happy.

The Smart Papers facility in Hamilton is making a commitment to going fossil fuel free in 2009.

The Hamilton based specialty paper manufacturer is installing a $30 million system that will use alternative energy and steam from the use of cellulosic biomass to run the mill and facility.

The beauty of cellulosic biofuel (as mentioned in the ethanol myth) is that the biomass fuel will come from a combination of yard waste, industrial wood and fiber waste, and agricultural bi-products. This means the fuel source in use will not need to harvest any new wood or use any food crops, and will divert things that would normally go into the landfill to run the factory.

The grass is cut so finely that it can be left in place to compost in the yard. Sounds like the next best thing to getting rid of your grass altogether and xeriscaping with plants that require little or no manual watering and maintenance.

PG&E in California is now utilizing cow manure as an alternative way to create energy. In Cincinnati, the Zoo is also using animal poo to generate power.

The city is not yet using cow poo for an energy source, but this city does have a history of unique and important cows like the infamous runaway a few years back. Practically as famous for our historical relationship with (flying) pigs as for anything else, Cincinnati has a one-of-a-kind history with animals and would be paying homage to our ancestry to setup a broad program to turn animal waste into a new source of energy.

Maybe we can change our moniker to the “City where pigs light up the sky”.

UC consistently sets a local example of how environmental practices can be adopted in buildings and design. The UC Solar House for example represented the city in a global contest to design housing that uses minimal and self-producing alternative energy.

The UC Solar House will be on display at Showcase 2008 on March 7 at UC. Check out all the technology being demonstrated including sustainable engineering and ideas for advanced fuels, and better uses for scarce resources.

Two presentations you’ll definitely want to check out are

• Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology - Presented by Vesselin Shanov and Rodney Roseman, College of Engineering
• From Green Roof to Off the Grid - Presented by Dan Oerther, College of Engineering

While checking out the Great Oaks continuing education catalog to search out what new skills or subjects I would like to learn about this year, I stumbled across two excellent options for environmental living at home.

The first is called Home Energy Efficiency. You can learn to understand your bills and how your energy is being used so that you can figure out how to utilize less energy and lower that bill.

The second is called Solar Energy at Home. Learn to use the power of the sun in your home to supplement your heating/cooling and go with more natural ways to achieve a comfortable temperature in your home.

Both sound great, really excellent ways to bring alternative energy and energy conservation practices to an individual level. Price is reasonable. Classes start soon, so take a look at the catalog online if you want to get registered.

The Cincinnati Zoo is beginning a program affectionately referred to as “Poo Power” to turn animal waste (biomass) into energy. It is believed that the animal poo will create enough energy to heat, cool, and light the elephant and giraffe houses at the zoo.

Designing, constructing, and moving UC’s entry to the Solar Decathlon on the Washington D.C. Mall was a feat in itself. Huge congratulations are owed to all involved as the house placed 15th in this competition with select universities across the globe. The overall winner was the solar house from Technische Universitat Darmstadt, Germany.

UC got some great experience and will focus on engineering, spending their funds on the most functionally important equipment, and organizing the team and classes in the effort to prepare for the 2010 Solar Decathlon to be held in Spain.