25 Exciting Stats on Green Job Growth

Although many past Earth Days have come and gone with little in the way of good news regarding the environment, there is much to celebrate on April 22, 2012. Backed by one of the more environmentally-friendly presidents in recent memory, the United States has seen huge funding for alternative energy sources, a drive for better fuel economy, and a massive movement by colleges and other groups to live cleaner, greener, and more efficiently. So this Earth Day, think of these 25 exciting statistics about the growth of jobs for work that benefits the environment, and be happy. The future is bright.

1. Hydropower is estimated to have the potential of adding 1.4 million jobs by 2025

   Every state has the potential to create hydropower projects, from ocean water, streams, or pumped storage water, meaning plants all over the country could be created and staffed with workers.

2. The government has created a $2 million green job competition for veterans

   In March 2010, the government announced it would allocate $2 million toward grants for training military veterans in industries like bio-fuels, renewable electric power, energy-efficient construction, and more.

3. The green construction industry will add 2.3 million workers to its labor force

   According to the U.S. Green Building Council, green construction employed more than 1 million people from 2000 to 2008. This number is expected to rise to 3.3 million by 2013, about a 230% increase. Nearly half of American solar power firms plan to hire more workers: In August 2011, almost half of 2,100 solar power companies surveyed said they plan to add an expected 24,000 jobs by August 2012.

4. The solar industry job growth rate is 6.8%

   Compared to the fossil fuel industry’s negative growth rate of 2%, the nearly 7% growth in solar power jobs, including manufacturing and installation, is very promising.

5. Tennessee will see the creation of 10,000 new green jobs by 2014

   A handful of companies like Volkswagen and Nissan Leaf and Storage Battery Manufacturing will help the state continue to see an 8% growth rate annually, with jobs like energy brokers and solar installation managers becoming available.

6. Ohio could see 23,000 new auto industry jobs in the next 10 years

   A recent report by non-profit research group Ceres found that because of new federal regulations for fuel efficiency, hiring will increase by automakers and companies that make fuel-efficient tech.

7. The geothermal industry has added 7,000 jobs and counting since 2008

   Executive Director of the Geothermal Energy Association Karl Gawell estimated in 2011 that new geothermal construction projects, which have no fuel costs and produce very little CO2, will add another 3,000 jobs in California, Nevada, and elsewhere.

8. The bio-fuel sector could produce 807,000 jobs by 2022

   The Biotechnology Industry Organization said in late 2011 that the bio-fuel industry could produce hundreds of thousands of jobs while lowering U.S. oil imports by $70 billion.

9. Knoxville, Tennessee’s green jobs grew by 14.6% annually from 2003 to 2010

   In 2009 alone, Knoxville added more than 16,000 green jobs, helping lower the unemployment rate to 7.7% for the city, a full two points lower than the rest of the state.

10. The green industry in the U.S. now employs 3.1 million workers

    Green jobs now outnumber jobs in the fossil fuels industry (although some have taken issue with the definition of “green job” used in the calculation).

11. In Little Rock, Arkansas 11,933 green jobs were created in 2010

    Being home to clean-tech companies like LM Wind Power and CLEAResult Consulting helped Arkansas’ capital become one of the fastest-growing cities in America for green jobs.

12. President Obama’s Recovery Act of 2009 invested $90 billion in clean energy

    This money has already helped sponsor 40 clean-tech projects that will eventually employ upwards of 60,000 people.

13. With more than 28,000, Albany has the highest concentration of green jobs in the country

    One out of every 15 workers in and around Albany has a clean job, or 6.7%, thanks in large part to the business of GE, which houses many of its clean-tech operations in Schenectady.

14. The U.S. is only tapping 20% of its hydropower capacity

    There is much, much more room for job growth in hydropower because out of the 500 gigawatt capacity, the U.S. is only making use of 100 gigawatts.

15. The Dept. of Energy’s Loan Guarantee Program will help create 10 times the number of the failed Keystone Pipeline

    And what’s even more exciting is that the DOE program will cost taxpayers $2 billion less than originally expected.
    
    
    
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