Rewards for creating a green business

when you made the decision to make your business a green business, you probably thought of a few rewards that would come with the process:

• Reduced energy use and energy costs
  
  
• Less wasted paper and other office supplies
  
  
• A reduction in employee stress with the addition of telecommuting
  
  
• A cleaner earth

But did you know that there are financial benefits beyond the savings realized from cutting energy use and paper waste? There are federal, state and local programs that will reward your business for greener practices and more environmentally sound decisions! Some are designed for large corporations, some for small businesses and some will reward enterprises of any size for greener business practices.

Here are a few of the programs that might make going greener an even better choice for your business.

Business.gov

The mother of all clearing houses for environmental grants, loans, incentive programs and information about government rewards for green businesses, this site has dozens of ways to get started in funding and reaping financial benefits for your company large or small. They even include a state and local list for energy efficiency grants and assistance programs.

Federal Solar Energy rebates

This one only has a short time remaining if you want the full 30% rebate, (it drops to only 10% after 31 December 2008), but in the meantime it's a great way to get almost a third of the money back you've invested in solar power and fuel cells. There are also state programs that may add to your rebate, including the California and Arizona programs for energy efficient construction and remodeling of commercial buildings.

TIAP Coalition

An association of governmental and non-profit groups, they provide up to date information on tax incentives, rebates and rewards for the installation and use of energy efficient power sources and consumption reducing technologies.


These are just a few of the resources out there/ I'll be adding more to the list on the right as I find them. And please let me know about the resources you find so i can add them to the list.