Investors see U.S. admin promoting investments in eco-friendly enterprises. The cultural acceptance of "green" themes and approaches among affluent Americans, along with the near-term prospect of increased U.S.-government support for private-sector participation in "environmental" initiatives, has laid the groundwork for a boom in eco-friendly investing.

So at least suggest a couple of recent surveys: one is out of PNC Wealth Management and focuses on well-to-do Americans' attitudes about green themes generally; the other, by Allianz Global Investors, focuses on environmental investing.

Next big thing

Nearly three quarters of mass-affluent and high-net-worth have "socially responsible" and green investments in their portfolio, according PNC Wealth Management's fall 2008 survey of 1,263 Americans from households with at least $500,000 in investable assets.

"We have seen a discernable trend in recent years by the wealthy to put at least some of their funds into green and socially responsible investments," says PNC Wealth Management's Bruce Bickel, who manages grant distributions for two dozen private-family foundations with total assets topping $300 million. "It is not a complete buy-in yet, but the results unquestionably show us they want part of their investments to be in companies that reflect their own values."

Allianz Global Investors' December 2008 survey of 1,264 U.S. adults with responsibility for investment decisions in households with financial assets of at least $100,000, has "environmental technology" as the "next great American industry" for 78% of the respondents. The same percentage sees more government policies promoting business investment in the environment in the first year of the new U.S. federal administration than in the entire eight years of the previous administration.

"Barack Obama won this election on a platform of change, and the regulatory changes are likely to be very positive for environmental investing," according to Bozena Jankowska, lead portfolio manager of Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund (which has lost about 47% of its value in the last 12 months). "The type of stimulus President Obama is proposing represents a significant opportunity for investors."

Call it what you will

The PNC Wealth Management study shows 86% of respondents somewhat or strongly agreeing with the statement "The U.S. should increase spending and incentives for development of alternative renewable energy sources," and 78% supporting the view that "increased fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks should be mandated."

And investors see little in the recent broad-market declines to dissuade them from the view that green investing themes are likely to prove winners. In fact, 72% of respondents Allianz Global Investors' survey say the recent decline in stock prices has had no impact on their inclination to invest in environmental stocks; nearly half of them -- 48% -- say they're at least "somewhat likely" to invest in green-themed companies within the next year.

This bullishness is based on the perception among investors of that "there is real opportunity" in environmental investing themes and a desire "to capitalize on it,' says Brian Gaffney, CEO of Allianz Global Investors Distributors. "The need for pollution control, clean water and energy efficiency is not going away."

But the PNC Wealth Management survey on "eco"-investing betrays several hints that the enthusiasm for green themes is connected, if not confused, with a desire to profit from activities that increase the supply of energy from any and all sources. It seems that 79% of the people PNC Wealth Management polled believe that "the government should promote greater use of nuclear energy" while 71% of them support drilling for oil in places where such activity is now specifically outlawed.

PNC Wealth Management comprises the private-client, financial-planning, private-banking and family-office units of Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services.

Allianz Global Investors is the asset-management division of Munich-based Allianz Group. Its subsidiaries PIMCO, NFJ, RCM Nicholas-Applegate and Oppenheimer Capital managed more than $1 trillion at the end of September 2008. -FWR

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