Title: Senate must help clean energy sector continue to lead - MassHighTech

Industry sector: Government

Senate must help clean energy sector continue to lead

MassHighTech

As the U.S. pulls out of the recession, a common question is: Where are the jobs? Americans are awaiting a plan that will truly stimulate a job-creating recovery. Clean energy businesses in Massachusetts have a message you don’t hear too often these days. We’re hiring.

The clean energy industry is already the state’s fastest growing industrial sector. There are nearly 2,000 businesses employing tens of thousands of people in good jobs. And, there are more on the way. There are job listings at many firms, such as Conservation Services Group, Nexamp, EnerNOC, and A123 Systems. This sector is broad, including energy management, efficiency, solar, wind, biofuels, battery technology, education and research. Each of these segments includes many subcategories for a broad spectrum of job creation opportunities. For example, energy efficiency alone includes the manufacturing, design and installation of efficient lighting, appliances, HVAC, insulation, building materials and other technologies.

We’re hiring technicians, engineers, analysts, electricians, auditors and installers. We also need information technology professionals, human resource managers, accountants, finance clerks, lawyers, salespeople, marketers, truck drivers, and more. Clean energy jobs cross all economic and educational levels.

Clean energy jobs are not a distant dream. They’re here, right now, in Massachusetts, where we are building a clean energy economy that’s good for people, for the economy and for the environment. With the right political decisions, we can help fuel a vibrant economic recovery.

Unfortunately, the American clean energy industry’s job-creation potential is being held back by an unlikely culprit — our own United States Senate. To unleash billions of new dollars in private investment, investors and entrepreneurs need to know that our government is firmly committed to American energy independence and a clean energy future. We need clear and consistent market signals, including more accurate pricing for low-carbon energy.

We need our senators to pass a comprehensive clean energy and climate bill, and we need them to act this year.

The benefits of acting now are huge, and the risks of not acting are even larger. Studies show that a federal low-carbon policy could create up to 40,000 jobs in Massachusetts alone, perhaps because clean energy investments create 16.7 jobs for every $1 million in spending, while fossil fuel investments create only 5.3 jobs for the same amount.

If the Senate fails to act, there will still be a jobs boom from clean energy. It just won’t be here in the U.S. The risk of not acting is that these jobs will go overseas.

The trends are already against us globally. While the U.S. was the innovator of significant clean energy technology, it is no longer the leader. Today, the U.S. is home to only one of the top five wind turbine manufacturers, one of the 10 largest solar panel producers, and two of the top 10 advanced battery manufacturers. China is now the largest wind turbine manufacturer, the largest solar panel manufacturer, and a dominant player in vehicle and battery technology.

In Massachusetts, we have taken aggressive state action. In the last few years, our Legislature has moved us to the forefront of innovation with aggressive policies and investments.

We are deeply concerned, however, that without a federal commitment, many of the gains we have made in New England are in danger.

For us, the choice is clear. If the Senate acts this year to pass comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation, the clean energy industry in the commonwealth will be a major driver of economic recovery.

However, if the Senate fails to act, we run the real risk of sliding backwards, at a time when our citizens need new jobs more than ever. 

In addition to their Co-Chair roles at the Council, Wanda Reindorf is executive VP for finance at Conservation Services Group. Kevin Doyle is president of Green Economy.