United States a hotbed for green innovation

I remember being a kid in elementary school on Earth Day as one of the most annoying parts of my life. You see, the idea, seemingly, was to annoy us into doing things that are good for the environment. The recipe was simple - bring in a guy to sing extremely cheesy songs about recycling (songs that are getting stuck in my head again at this moment), forcing us to never forget the value of sustainability. Annoyances aside, the idea of starting young when it comes to teaching people about sustainability was valuable. However, like many environment-focused strategies, these efforts were the kind of things that pop into our lives, remind us to perform some basic tasks, and leave us to try and implement such simple measures.

Similarly, many organizations tend to focus on low-hanging fruit when it comes to sustainability. However, times are shifting and the focus is increasingly on holistic environmental efficiency programs that can have a major impact on the world. The United States is one of the best places in the world for those projects as tax incentives in the country are among the strongest in the world, according totheKPMG Green Tax Index.

Sustainability in the United States
Efforts to improve environmental efficiency in the United States are evident in the rise of technologies like the smart grid, data center efficiency programs and green construction projects. While these solutions offer the potential to support long-term sustainability goals, they can be extremely costly. Tax incentives can play a major role in controlling costs and the U.S. federal government is the world's leader in this area. John Gimigliano , principal-in-charge of sustainability tax in the Washington National Tax practice of KPMG, explained that U.S. tax incentive strategies have led to major investments in renewables.

"Japan, for example, tops the rankings in its promotion of tax incentives for green vehicle production, while the United States favors a comprehensive system of renewable energy tax incentives," said Gimigliano. "As a result, we're seeing more green cars coming out of Japan and dramatic growth in the U.S. renewable sector."

Using smart grids to support renewables
Developing renewable resource strategies can help utility providers operate much more sustainably. However, this presents major interoperability challenges. Serial to Ethernet solutions can help electric companies establish the network infrastructure they need to support renewable energy use by enabling interoperability infrastructure in smart grid systems. In turn, smart grid provides organizations with the ability to use real-time data analysis to maximize the value of renewable energy sources.

Perle offers a range of cost effective serial-to-Ethernet converters to help meet NERC-CIP compliance for the protection of critical cyberassets in substations. The IOLAN SDS HV/LDC Terminal Server is designed to meet harsh environments associated with Power Substations with attributes such as support for substation AC and DC voltage ranges, extended operating temperatures and meeting emission, immunity and safety approvals associated with substation IT equipment.