U.S. Can Grow Jobs With Energy Efficiency
Robert Pollin, Univ. of Massachusetts – Amherst Economics Professor:
To the house committee on pensions and jobs:
Energy efficiency (government) investments… Seems to be no brainers. We are dealing with known technologies. An example is retrofitting existing buildings… We can invest in retrofitting the public sector buildings starting tomorrow. There are 800,000 construction workers who have lost their jobs. We can put them back to work. We can get these projects going. They are relatively short term projects. And they will pay for themselves… on average, you’ll see a full return on your investment within about 5 years.
With respect to renewable energy. In regards will tax credits. We do know that renewable energy tax credits which you had stalled and now you’ve restored* are very effective. The market is very responsive… the last time you held back on the renewable tax credits and then increased them we saw a doubling, for example, in investments in wind energy. So those things are there before us.
I do think that the first priority… in the energy area … is energy efficiency. And you’ll get the most jobs. It will be done fast. The technologies are there. And you will fight global warming. You will increase energy independence. You will create a lever against future rises in the price of oil.
* He’s referring to the Renewable Energy Tax Credits extension that were blocked in the Senate after a republican filibuster.
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Sustainable Construction, Sustainable Economy, Green Jobs
Tags: Energy Efficiency, government jobs, jobs, renewable energy, retrofit government buildings, short term public works projects
October 24th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
[...] Economics suggests Energy efficiency (government) investments… Seems to be no brainers. We are dealing with known technologies. An example is retrofitting existing buildings… We can invest in retrofitting the public sector buildings starting tomorrow. … [...]