Involved in Green Business? Benefit the Environment and Your Budget…
by Travis Smuckler, Van Winkle Summer Associate
If you’re operating a green business in North Carolina, you may qualify for grants from the State. Over the last several years, North Carolina has been allocating funds for businesses and non-profits that are working to improve environmental conditions within the state. In particular, two programs focused on renewable energy and clean water have begun distributing funds to small businesses.
The North Carolina Green Business Fund is a grant program controlled by the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology. The program was set up to encourage small businesses with fewer than 100 employees to grow the green economy in North Carolina by providing funding for business projects focused in certain priority areas set out by the State. These priority areas include biofuels, green building, and renewable energy products. If your business operates within one of these categories and meets the other requirements of the program, you could be eligible to receive up to $100,000 in grants from the State.
2008 grants have already been awarded, but it is likely that the program’s budget will increase in 2009. Proposed budgets from Governor Easley and the North Carolina Senate show that an additional $1 million will most likely be made available to the already $15 million program. Interested businesses should therefore watch very carefully for developments in the program.
Another program is The North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund. This program was established in 1996 to give grants to non-profits, local governments, and state agencies involved in addressing water pollution problems in North Carolina. Recently, however, the program has been expanded to finance innovative efforts, including pilot projects, that seek to improve stormwater management, reduce pollutants entering North Carolina’s waterways, improve water quality, and research alternative solutions to North Carolina’s water quality problems. As of January 2008, the fund had already awarded over $800 million to more than 1,000 grantees. The fund is currently taking applications for grants for 2009, and the deadline to apply is February 1, 2009.
- Additional information regarding the Green Business Fund is available on the website of the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology at www.ncscienceandtechnology.com.
- Additional information regarding the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund is available on the website of the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund’s website at www.cwmtf.net.
Tags: grants, green business