Waste Management is converting a part of its California fleet to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG) to reduce emissions. But the really innovative part is that it will be generating its own renewable LNG from landfill emissions. Generating the fuel locally cuts down on waste while at the same time reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the landfill.

Previously, the only way for a local government to have a say in where the community's power came from was to establish a municipally owned utility. The Community Choice Aggregation process provides an easier way to switch to an earth-friendlier power supply without taking on the burden of managing the power lines, collecting bills, and the divisive politics involved with the expensive process of bringing energy under municipal control.

Public sector entities are helping meet their energy needs with on-site renewable energy facilities. One key to the long-term success of an on-site renewable project is financing: how will construction be funded and what incentives can be leveraged to ensure the financial feasibility of the project?

At the Northwest Solar Expo, held last week in Portland (Ore.), the city's Bureau of Development Services announced a new permitting process for solar installations, which greatly simplifies what had been a fairly onerous process. The expo also saw much training in the booming field of solar installation.

The mayor and city council of Gresham, Oregon have issued a challenge to city residents: live up to your environmental beliefs and sign up for renewably-generated power. Gresham hopes to enroll 300 more households during the course of the Green Power Challenge. Similar challenges have been conducted in Beaverton and Salem, Oregon.

Program Manager Daniel Lerch starts a two week trip to the British Isles at a symposium for local officials, planners, architects and builders in Kilkenny, Ireland.

The state of Wisconsin expects to award about $15 million per year for 10 years from the newly created Wisconsin Energy Independence Fund. The money will be used to support research and development of renewable fuels and encourage businesses to adopt new technologies that save energy and use renewable energy.

With high energy prices, distance really makes a difference. Remote Gordo, California is seeing what may be the highest gas prices in the country; but it's not just gas that's expensive. Their distance from larger cities makes everything cost more - a difference that will just be amplified as energy prices soar.

Scotland wants to become a global force in marine energy - harnessing the restless waves off the Orkney Islands, where the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean meet. The idea is to turn their unique location into a benefit: by 2020, according to some estimates, Scotland could produce as much as 1,300 megawatts, enough to power a city the size of Seattle. The Orkneys are already home to the European Marine Energy Centre, the world's only test facility for tidal and wave energy.

Turning a problem into a solution: cities in California are the first in the U.S. to investigate a process of waste management that converts garbage to energy. The goal is to reduce the millions paid annually to haul municipal waste to a dump -- and possibly earn revenue though electric generation.