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Clean Jobs Pennsylvania 2016

To better understand how clean energy is creating jobs in the Keystone State and to examine what policies are needed now to support future job growth, Clean Jobs Pennsylvania analyzes the size and scope of the state’s clean energy economy. Relying on databases and survey data from Pennsylvania employers, this comprehensive report found that the clean energy sector in Pennsylvania in 2015 employed more than 66,000 workers at 5,900 businesses and establishments.

Overall Clean Energy Jobs

The clean energy industry—which in this report includes energy efficiency, renewable energy, alternative transportation and greenhouse gas (GHG) management and accounting—is a source of good jobs for tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians.

In 2015, Pennsylvania’s clean energy industry supported 66,021 workers at 5,900 businesses and establishments according to E2 and the Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance’s (KEEA) 2016 Clean Jobs Pennsylvania report. Four out of five of these jobs are in energy efficiency. To grow the clean energy sector even more, state and federal lawmakers can strengthen policies like Act 129, the state’s renewable energy law, and implement the Clean Power Plan in a way that prioritizes renewables and energy efficiency.

Energy efficiency industries led the clean energy sector in job growth last year, increasing from 37,000 jobs to 53,000 jobs. These gains in energy efficiency employment helped boost the overall number of clean energy jobs in Pennsylvania by more than 8,700 workers between 2014-2015, despite job declines in clean fuels and other areas. Renewable energy jobs increased slightly to more than 8,800 jobs, reflecting growth in the wind, solar, and low-impact hydro-electric industries. The bioenergy industry shed about 2,000 jobs, which mirrors a national slowdown trend in the technology. Companies in the state are bullish on the industry’s future. More than half project hiring more employees in 2016.

This represents about 1 percent of total state employment. It also represents a 15 percent increase over the number of clean energy jobs in the state in 2014, nearly doubling the predicted growth rate E2 identified in our previous Clean Jobs Pennsylvania report. Clean energy businesses across the state say they anticipate growth to continue. More than half of the businesses surveyed expect to add jobs in the upcoming year, with only 3 percent expecting to cut jobs.

DOWNLOAD

The complete report is available for download at this link or by clicking the cover of the report above.

Understanding Solar Energy Issues in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Solar energy is at a turning point in Massachusetts. While its benefits and popularity are undeniable, continued growth is in jeopardy. Solar development is completely stalled in half of Massachusetts and could grind to a halt throughout the state without supportive policies.

Clean Jobs New York 2016

A comprehensive analysis of clean energy jobs in New York

E2 and our partners recently released Clean Jobs New York, a comprehensive report showing that more than 85,000 people work in the clean energy sector in New York at more than 7,500 business establishments.

The report is available here and you can also search for clean energy jobs in your home county with this dynamic, searchable dashboard.

The campaign’s new website is here.

The press release for the report is here,the press release for the New Yorkers for Clean Power campaign is available here, and press coverage of the report is available here.

By looking  at the size and scope of the state’s clean energy economy, Clean Jobs New York helps stakeholders better understand how clean energy is creating jobs — and what policies are needed now to support further gains in the future.

A few of the report’s key findings include:

• Clean energy employs 85,197 people at 7,500 business establishments statewide. Energy efficiency is the largest industry in the sector, employing four out of five clean energy workers in New York.
• Clean energy businesses anticipate growing more than 6 percent this year. That’s more than double the growth rate of the entire U.S. economy in 2015.
• Clean energy knows no politics. Clean energy jobs are growing in legislative and congressional districts across the state. With the right policies from Albany and Washington, D.C., even more jobs can be created all across New York.

Sharable graphics for use on social media and blogs are available here: Report Cover, Overall Numbers, County Map, Energy Efficiency, and Renewables.

To learn more about Clean Jobs New York, please contact Ying Li at [email protected] or Jeff Benzak at [email protected].

To find out more about E2’s New York chapter, please see here.

Clean Power Players | Landing a Job in Clean Energy

A new, first-of-its-kind guidebook by Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) offers practical, how-to advice for young people seeking careers in clean energy.

Clean Jobs America 2016

More than 2.5 million Americans work in clean energy nationwide, according to a comprehensive analysis of U.S. clean energy jobs. Energy efficiency, renewable energy and advanced vehicles were the clean energy industries with the most workers.

Clean Jobs Midwest 2016

Clean Jobs Midwest shows 569,000 clean energy jobs across the 12-state Midwestern region. The report’s website is searchable by county, congressional district and state legislative district.

Clean Jobs Quarterly | Q4 and Year-in-Review

2015 was a big year for clean energy policy, with the finalization of the federal Clean Power Plan, which sets the first-ever limits on carbon pollution from power plants; an international agreement at the UN climate talks near Paris; extension of key federal tax incentives for wind and solar electricity; and major investments in clean energy by business leaders.

Clean Jobs Quarterly | Q3 2015

In the third quarter of 2015, 34 clean energy and clean transportation projects were announced across 22 states. Combined, these projects are expected to create just shy of 10,000 jobs, with solar once again the top sector. Utah, California, and Colorado led the nation in job announcements, followed by Texas, Arizona, Georgia, Maine, Nebraska, Mississippi, and North Dakota. Since E2 began tracking jobs in 2012, more than 250,000 clean energy and clean transportation jobs have been announced.

Clean Jobs Quarterly | Q2 2015

In the second quarter of 2015, nearly 40 clean energy and clean transportation projects were announced across 22 states. Combined, these projects are expected to create nearly 10,500 jobs.

Texas, Nevada, and California led the nation in announced jobs, followed by Utah, North Carolina, Kansas, Arkansas, Colorado, Virginia, and Nebraska. In Texas, solar and wind installation projects drove the state’s top performance.

Two new wind farms will cumulatively produce 402 MW of power from wind turbines in the Lone Star State, while Spanish wind manufacturer GRI Renewable Industries will create 300 jobs with a new wind turbine manufacturing plant in Amarillo. Three solar farms will add another 320 MW of Texas power and could create up to 1,364 jobs in Windthorst, Floyd, Andrews, and Pecos counties.

California’s Golden Energy Efficiency Opportunity Report

California’s 40-year commitment to energy efficiency has saved Californians $90 billion on their utility bills, created hundreds of thousands of efficiency jobs, and will have avoided the pollution from 41 power plants by the end of the next decade, according to a report published by NRDC and E2. However, the report cautioned that a major efficiency ramp-up is necessary to meet the state’s long-term climate and energy goals.

Clean Jobs Tennessee 2015

As Tennessee’s clean energy economy expands, the industry will contribute to statewide economic vitality. With a diverse renewable energy portfolio and robust employment across all value-chain activities, employers are optimistic about future growth. Increased support for local suppliers and vendors will encourage successful industry expansion, spur local job creation, and further bolster the state’s economy.

Tennessee could capitalize on its market diversity by tapping into the region’s renewable potential and committing to energy efficiency as a resource. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that Tennessee’s technical solar potential for utility-scale projects is 1,296 GW and 16 GW for rooftop photovoltaics. With an additional 54 GW potential from geothermal systems and 1 GW from hydropower, the state’s clean energy cluster will benefit by developing these resources.49 Other states provide solid examples of how effective energy efficiency policies focused on consumer incentives, rebates and proactive utility programs can create jobs across traditional industries, especially within the building trades.50 States that are leaders in energy efficiency have illustrated that supportive clean energy policies are highly correlated to economic impacts, particularly regarding construction-related employment. If Tennessee could emulate these policies, the resulting employment impact could exceed 10,000 new clean energy jobs across the state.

Tennessee is already home to more than 2,600 clean energy employers and nearly 45,000 workers. Its companies supply the market with electric cars, energy efficient materials, renewable energy and advanced building controls. Clean energy employers are adding jobs faster than the overall state economy and project continued growth in the coming year. To sustain this growth, many firms report the need for greater consumer incentives, more supportive policies on renewable energy and more innovative financing mechanisms to expand the state’s clean energy market.

Clean Jobs Quarterly | Q1 2015

In the first quarter of 2015, nearly 40 clean energy or clean transportation projects were announced in 19 states. Together, these projects are expected to create more than 9,800 jobs, according to jobs tracking analysis by E2.

Largely due to a big spike in solar projects, this number is almost double the number of jobs tracked during the corresponding quarter in 2014, and roughly equivalent to the fourth quarter 2014.

Georgia, California, and Texas led the nation in job announcements, followed by New Mexico, Michigan, Colorado, Virginia, Utah, Maryland and Indiana. The solar industry was the top sector for job growth. It announced more than 6,600 jobs in generation and manufacturing at 19 projects across the country. Declining materials costs and favorable policies have spurred tremendous growth in solar; however, the sunset of the federal Investment Tax Credit in 2016 could be a challenge to the industry.

In Georgia, solar installation projects helped make it the No. 1 state for clean energy job announcements in Q1. Five projects, which will cumulatively produce 382 MW of power from solar cells across 3,500 acres in Taylor County, could create approximately 2,000 jobs. Major electric utility Southern Company will purchase power from at least one of the projects, and others are lining up for the rest.