One of the big NDP and Liberal story lines is that the US is spending US $118-billion in stimulus funds on environmental initiatives, while Canada’s stimulus package has only Cdn $3-billion for green initiatives.
 
These numbers come from a table lifted from the World Resources Institute (WRI) website, and could not be less accurate. The website suggests that the data was provided by HSBC, but in a phone call with a WRI representative, who wishes to remain anonymous, I was told that while HSBC provided the estimates for some countries included in the table—including the US—the data for Canada was provided by International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).

Official US and Canadian budget documents clearly show that:

• the value of green initiatives in the US stimulus package totals just under US $93-billion, to be spent over the next 4 years, while

• the value of green initiatives in the Canadian stimulus package totals just over Cdn $11-billion, most of which is to be spent over two years.

Given that the population and economy of Canada is about 10% the size of those of the US, the Canadian stimulus package is slightly more green than the US stimulus package and being spent about twice as fast.

US stimulus and other green spending details

From the WRI website: "In October 2008, Congress passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, which extended existing incentives for wind, solar, and other renewable energy technologies. The bill also offered significant financial incentives for carbon capture and storage projects.”

The value of these incentives is deemed to be in the order of $13 billion over 4 years—2009 – 2013. This was deemed an "emergency" action because it brought forward to October, 2008 a decision to extend existing incentives—a decision that would not normally be made in the absence of the financial crisis—until March 2009 at budget time. These incentives come up for renewal/extension every five years.  

Note that Bush was still President and Congress was dominated by Republicans when this decision was made, but presidential candidate Obama ran on a platform committing a Democratic Congress to extend/renew these incentives if/when they won the Nov 2008 election.

"In February 2009, Congress, with the encouragement of President Obama, passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (commonly known as the stimulus package), which provides at least $112 billion for investments in renewable energy, efficiency, smart grid, “green-collar” job training, and other emissions-reducing clean energy projects. Worldwide, this green investment by the U.S. is second only to China’s stimulus package in amount dedicated to green funding. An evaluation of stimulus packages by HSBC also found that only the U.S. plan provided a “real boost to renewables.” [WRI cites HSBC as the source of this information and dates it February 2009]

But the official US government estimate of the green spending component of the US stimulus bill (source: final US budget, as summarized by the US Budget Office) is US$93 billion, much of which is really putting the cost of continuing operations into the stimulus bill. Even when I combine the renewal/extension of existing programs with the stimulus bill, I get just under US$110 billion for the US green initiatives over the next 4 years.  

I can only get up to US $112 billion if I reclassify normal ongoing annual federal spending on rail (Amtrack) and transit (which are at historical lows) as "green stimulus" spending.

Total US Stimulus Green Spending, as itemized by the US Budget Office: $93 billion:

• $11 billion funding for an electric smart grid

• $6.3 billion for state and local governments to make investments in energy efficiency

• $6 billion for renewable energy and electric transmission technologies loan guarantees

• $6 billion for the cleanup of radioactive waste (mostly nuclear power plant sites) [Note: This spending was required, by law, prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $5 billion for weatherizing modest-income homes

• $4.5 billion for the Office of Electricity and Energy Reliability to modernize the nation’s electrical grid and smart grid.

• $4.5 billion for state and local governments to increase energy efficiency in federal buildings

• $3.4 billion for carbon capture experiments

• $3.25 billion for the Western Area Power Administration for power transmission system upgrades. [Note: This spending was required/committed prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $2.5 billion for energy efficiency research  [Note: This maintains pre-stimulus bill budgets.]

• $2 billion for manufacturing of advanced car battery (traction) systems and components.

• $3.2 billion toward Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants.

• $500 million for training of green-collar workers (by the Department of Labor)

• $400 million for electric vehicle technologies

• $300 million for federal vehicle fleets, to cover the cost of acquiring electric vehicles, including plug-in hybrid vehicles.

• $300 million to buy energy efficient appliances

• $300 million for reducing diesel fuel emissions

• $300 million for state and local governments to purchase energy efficient vehicles

• $250 million to increase energy efficiency in low-income housing

• $600 million to cleanup hazardous waste that threaten health and the environment [Note: This spending was required, by law, prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $200 million to cleanup petroleum leaks from underground storage tanks [Note: This spending was required, by law, prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $100 million to evaluate and cleanup brownfield land [Note: This spending was required, by law, prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $400 million for the Geothermal Technologies Program

• $4 billion to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for repairing and modernizing public housing, including increasing the energy efficiency of units.

• $100 million to help remove lead paint from public housing [Note: This spending was required, by law, prior to the passage of this bill.]

• $1.38 billion for rural drinking water and waste disposal projects

• $4.6 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental restoration, flood protection, hydropower, and navigation infrastructure projects

• $4.5 billion to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) for energy efficiency and renewable energy.

• $4.2 billion to repair and modernize Defence Department facilities.

• $4 billion toward the establishment of an Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings within the GSA.

• $4 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (wastewater treatment infrastructure improvements)

• $4 billion for public housing improvements and energy efficiency ( Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)).

• $2 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (drinking water infrastructure improvements)

And for Canada: