The Ten Fastest-Growing Green Jobs

A book by Laurence Shatkin helps us understand the growing green job sectors:

Randy Woods for Hire Ground reports:

"The irony of our current economic situation, however, is that the greatest momentum in the green business field can be found in the sector that has perhaps been hardest hit by the recession: the construction industry. Through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program developed by the Green Building Council, the concept of "green building" has swept the industry with its energy-saving materials and design elements.
Today, LEED certification is being sought for most building projects, from single-family homes to skyscrapers--and a growing industry of LEED-trained engineers and designers are moving in to soak up demand.

The trend can be seen in the latest findings by occupational expert and author Laurence Shatkin. In his latest book, "200 Best Jobs for Renewing America," Shatkin analyzes six industry sectors that he says will lead a shift toward a "forward-looking economy"--education, infrastructure, health care, information technology, advanced manufacturing and green technology--and identifies sectors that have the fastest-growing and best-paying jobs in the nation.
In the green technology sector, Shatkin found that many of the new jobs can be found in the construction industry as property owners look for ways to reduce energy and operational costs. Here are the top 10 green jobs, in terms of nationwide growth, highlighted in Shatkin's book:

1. Environmental Engineers. Growth: 25.4 percent; avg. annual earnings: $72,350
2. Environmental Scientists and Specialists. Growth: 25.1 percent; avg. annual earnings: $58,380
3. Geoscientists. Growth: 21.9 percent; avg. annual earnings: $75,800
4. Industrial Engineers. Growth: 20.3 percent; avg. annual earnings: $71,430
5. Construction and Building Instructors. Growth: 18.2 percent; avg. annual earnings: $48,330
6. Construction Managers. Growth: 15.7 percent; avg. annual earnings: $76,230
7. Plumbers, Pipefitters and Steamfitters. Growth: 10.6 percent; avg. annual earnings: $44,090
8. Carpenters. Growth: 10.3 percent; avg. annual earnings: $37,660
9. First-line Supervisors/Managers of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers. Growth: 9.1 percent; avg. annual earnings: $55,950
10. Electricians. Growth: 7.4 percent; avg. annual earnings: $44,780"

See full article.

A New Fund For Green Jobs In Low Income Communities

A new multi-billion dollar investment fund will help create green jobs and advance eco-friendly projects:

The New York Times and Green Inc reports via Dealbook:

"The Energy Efficiency Opportunity Fund, which is expected to announce its launch today at the Clinton Global Initiative conference in New York, is a social investment fund that will finance projects like retrofitting buildings to achieve greater energy efficiency.

It also plans to invest in low-income areas, creating “green collar” jobs in the process.
The fund is sponsored by Living Cities, a consortium of foundations and financial institutions that invests capital to strengthen low-income communities, and Green for All, an advocacy group founded by Van Jones, formerly the White House’s environmental jobs “czar,” that advocates for equality and opportunity in the new green economy." See full article.

Green Jobs: Learning Sustainable Landscaping In Providence

Unemployed and under-employed workers in Providence Rhode Island will get eight weeks of training on sustainable landscaping as part of new city program.

Alex Kuffner atProjo.com reports:

"The eight-week program created by Groundwork Providence and the Providence Housing Authority will train 30 unemployed or underemployed workers in sustainanable landscaping free of charge. The trainees will be able to take math and English classes in addition to courses in workplace safety and hazardous materials handling. "Groundwork is committed to providing low-income residents with the resources and skills they need to make a difference in their own communities," said Joe Vaughan, director of Groundwork Providence, a nonprofit environmental group." See full article:

Governor and Energy Secretary Hear About Significant Green Job Growth In Delaware

To learn more about the reality of green job growth nationwide and in the State of Delaware, the U.S. Energy Secretary participated in a town meeting with Delaware's governor.

The Susssex Countian reports:

"Delaware companies talked face-to-face with U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and other White House officials Thursday at a town meeting co-hosted by Gov. Jack Markell.

Executives from White Optics, Delawind, Solarport, Flexara and W.L. Gore explained how their companies have succeeded at putting Delaware on the leading edge of the Green Economy. Success of companies like these is critical to getting our economy going again and protecting the environment from global warming and other harmful impacts of climate change.
“We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to strengthen our local and national economy,” Markell said. “We’re making solid progress in Delaware and I believe we’re well on our way to emerging as a leading example of a green economy.” See full article.

Green Jobs May Help California Out Of The Recession

The discussion about how much emphasis the U.S. should put on green job development and the role of government stimulus funds in that continues. Part of how California looks towrd its future is being discussed -- whether it will be able to compete in world markets and the quality of the jobs being created.

Lyanne Melendez and ABC San Franciso reports:

"Devon Swezey is with The Breakthrough Institute, an Oakland-based think tank group on energy and climate issues. "The Chinese government is offering substantial support in terms of credit guarantees, loan guarantees, low cost financing to directly grow their solar manufacturing industry. The chinese government is engaged in the productive policy of support for this industry in the way the US is not or has never been," said Swezey.

According to the Governor's Office, since 2005 so-called green jobs have grown 10 times faster than the total job growth in California. But critics says that comes at a price because the green industry is heavily subsidized and many believe when tax payer money supports some jobs, other jobs in businesses paying those higher taxes are likely to be lost." See full article.

New York Lawmakers Approve Green Job Creation Bill

The New York Senate passed a bill to create jobs by making a million homes more energy efficient. The legislation is now headed for the governor's signature.

BizJournals.com reports:

"The “green jobs” program, ... passed by a 52-8 vote. Its goal is to make 1 million small businesses, nonprofits and residential homes more energy-efficient over the next five years. Legislators say “thousands” of jobs would be created to perform the energy retrofitting work; the bill creates a training program for potential workers. The bill unanimously passed the Assembly earlier this year. The bill now goes to Paterson for his signature. See full article.

Iowa's Governor Creates New Green Jobs Task Force

Governor Chet Culver has come out strongly in support of green jobs for Iowa.

MidwestAgnet.com reports:

"The fifteen member task force is to help focus state government's efforts in creating high-paying, green-collar jobs, as well as coordinate the state's efforts to secure federal green initiative grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Roya Stanley, Executive Director of the Iowa Office of Energy Independence, will serve as chair, and Lis Buck, Director of Iowa Workforce Development, will serve as Vice Chair. Executive Order 16 charges the task force with creating jobs and training workers in the renewable energy industry. They are to prepare a report and present it to the Governor by October 1st on their activities, and provide recommendations on ways we can expand the number of green-collar jobs in Iowa." See full article.

Detroit: Ford Plant Will Reopen With 4,000 Green Jobs

Ford's Wixom assembly plant near Detroit was shut down but will reopen as a green energy manufacturing center.

WWJ.com reports:

"Ford has reached an agreement in principle to sell Wixom Assembly to Xtreme Power of Austin, Texas, and Clairvoyant Energy of Santa Barbara, Calif. Xtreme Power will manufacture its large-scale energy storage systems at the site, while Clarivoyant will build high-efficiency solar panels there with partner Oerlikon Solar.

Initially, Clairvoyant will create 270 new jobs and make a $250 million investment in the plant. It may hire 700 more later depending on demand. The more labor intensive Xtreme will create 2,500 new jobs and make a $450 million investment. Eventually, state officials say, the plant will house upwards of 4,000 green energy jobs -- nearly as many as it had at its peak as an auto assembly plant." See full article.

Wind Power Market Growing Faster Than Other Sources

Estimates are that wind power will grow at 19.75% this year and is expected to reach 425 GW by 2015.

Trading Markets.com reports:

"Wind is the world's fastest-growing source of power generation with an average annual growth of 29% over the last ten years. At the beginning of 2009, the global wind power generating capacity stood at almost 121 gigawatts (GW), representing a twelve-fold increase from a decade ago when world wind power generation capacity was just over 10.2GW. Being an emerging fuel source a decade ago, wind energy has grown rapidly into a mature and booming global industry, primarily due to global concerns over climate change, energy security and declining costs of wind power generation. The future prospects of the global wind industry are very encouraging and it is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 19.75% between 2008 and 2015 to reach 425GW by 2015." See full article.