Commentary
When I first heard the term “green bonds” several years ago, I tried to find a definition for the term, but could not. There were multiple examples of how “green bonds” could be used, for things like mass transit systems, wetlands preservation, etc. But there was no “standard” definition per se.
So what qualified as “green”? I understood the general nation that a green bond was environmentally friendly, but what exactly did that mean?
If a state built a bridge that cuts 40 miles off a daily commute each way, and thereby cuts gasoline usage for 100,000 commuters a day, is that a “green” project? What about a municipality cleaning up a landfill? What about financing a low-emissions film production studio as part of a state’s industrial policy?…