Reports: Clean-energy shift adds jobs
State could get 38,000, environmental groups say.
Federal spending from the stimulus bill and proposed environmental legislation could create 38,000 jobs in Indiana, according to reports issued Thursday by a group of environmental-advocacy organizations.
The reports say shifting to a cleaner-energy economy would help millions of low-income Americans by creating more accessible job opportunities while reducing utility bills and transportation costs.
The analyses – prepared by the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Center for American Progress; Green For All; and the Natural Resources Defense Council – say existing occupations can dovetail cleanly with the demands of a new economy.
“Most of the jobs created through clean-energy investments will be in the same areas that people work in today,” said a summary on the shift in Indiana. “Constructing wind farms creates jobs for sheet metal workers, machinists and truck drivers. Increasing buildings’ energy efficiency through retrofitting requires roofers, insulators and building inspectors. Expanding mass transit systems employs civil engineers, electricians and dispatchers.”
