Bank of America launches environmental funding program

Bank of America launched a new 10-year, $50 billion environmental business goal to help address climate change, reduce demands on natural resources and advance lower-carbon economic solutions.

The new environmental business initiative will consist primarily of lending, equipment finance, capital markets and advisory activity, carbon finance, and advice and investment solutions for clients. The areas of focus include:

-- Energy efficiency -- in residential, commercial, and public properties, as well as supporting the full supply chain that drives energy efficiency.

-- Renewable energy and energy infrastructure -- including wind, solar, hydro, biomass and waste-to-energy solutions and their upstream and downstream supply chains, as well as smart grid, large-scale energy storage and other important infrastructures.

-- Transportation -- including certain lower carbon forms of transport such as electric and hybrid electric vehicles, batteries/fuel cells and sustainable bio-fuels, as well as developing local and regional charging infrastructure to support the growth of new hybrid vehicle technologies.

-- Water and waste -- focusing on innovative new technologies and infrastructure development, including water purification and waste disposal and recycling.