Client plug

While composing some notes and comments from the Fifth Conference on Clean Energy (my attendance at which was cut short due to illness), a little plug for Treeno Software, a Portsmouth based maker of enterprise content management (ECM) systems.

The firm’s recent push into the SaaS area has been a success, and after launching and integration unit with Salesforce.com earlier this fall, they have now launched a QuickBooks integration module. Tax season is not too far away, and I think it will take until the aftermath of the tax season for people to realize truly how useful automated document management can be when integrated with a program like Quick Books. Check the link here.

Mass Lightening Up?

Just a quick note to point out yesterday’s Globe story that reports the state (Commonwealth) of Massachusetts has proposed a bill that would ease the permitting process for wind projects in the state.

The bill has been proposed by the Governor’s office, which has conceded that without such permitting and process reform the Governor’s quest to reach 2,000 megawatts of wind power in the state by 2020 is virtually unattainable, according to the Globe story. With a current production rate of about seven megawatts, and project after project getting mired in legal wranglings, that seems to go without saying.

See a kind of synopsis of the bill here.

Without getting into the sometimes very emotional debate of turbine siting, nor the specific procedures of the bill, the very action of trying to streamline this process is a good thing. I am happy to see the state finally take a look at this, even if it means some sites will be denied more quickly, it could save developers time and money in project development, allowing them to allocate those resources to areas that may be more successful.

The fact is that Massachusetts is very short on natural resources when it comes to fossil fuels, and alternatives are going to have to be developed and grown in the state if it is to stay on the leading edge of both energy production and  environmental responsibility.

What I don’t see included in the bill is a stipulation for ocean, wave or current driven power sources. A personal favorite of mine, I understand they are taking it one step at a time, and with the Cape Wind debacle the national and international identifier for the Massachusetts wind community, I can’t blame them for focusing on wind. However, I wish they put a little more forward thinking into it.

Ocean, wave and even river power may be a ways away, in terms of large-scale deployment, but developers of such technology are going to run into the same problems as wind developers, and it is going to take years to get the wording of this bill, which i assume will be the one that covers hydro-turbines, to include them, and that will be a loss.

I Live! The Conference on Clean Energy and Other Bits

My apologies for the extended hiatus – through from the looks of readership, not many people noticed. Trying to generate revenue in other areas while also keeping up with the blog has been challenging, but I am getting there.

 

Just because I have been quiet on the blog of late, that doesn’t mean I have been out of the game completely. I should have brief updates with a handful of New England based clean tech companies with which I have spoken in the coming days, including EnerNOC, Mascoma and 1366 Technologies.

 

Today, I simply wanted to pass along some information.  If there is anyone out there interested in the clean technology/clean energy sector in New England, it is pretty much a requirement that they attend next week’s Fifth Conference on Clean Energy at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston. Check the site for details, as there are clean energy related events happening all week.

 

I have attended this event for the past four years and it has grown leaps and bounds every year. It is a great place to see what new technologies will be working towards commercialization over the next few years and boasts a who’s who of the local clean tech community. If anyone wants to meet me at the conference, drop me a line and we’ll see if we can set something up.