If you want to find out what the incentive is for buying a solar water heater in Oregon or the tax break for operating a wind farm is in Tennessee, just ask the folks at North Carolina State University.

Among many other activities, the NC State Solar Center maintains a database of state and federal incentives on sustainable incentive and grant programs. The comprehensive database, which is funded by the DOE, provides a description of the laws that created the incentives, the maximum amounts available from the incentives, and links to the agencies where you apply for grants or rebates. This is incredibly useful for businesses and homeowners who are considering new energy purchases and what to calculate the financial impact.

Stephen Kalland, the executive director of the Solar Center, told me at the Solar Power 2007 conference that the university is also involved in many clean energy programs, including capturing the methane from hog and poultry waste. Farmers who must pay to dispose of the waste are concerned about higher costs as more laws target greenhouse gas emissions. Instead of a liability, Kalland says the waste can be turned into an asset as energy companies must buy some of that power because of a requirement from the state's renewable portfolio standard law.

Kalland says North Carolina is also working on research for creating biofuel from sweet potatoes and switchgrass, as well as wind and green building initiatives. He said the state government is using renewable energy projects to spur the economy and help farmers who previously were growing tobacco.