Our friends at Climate Solutions have a big new report out today. It’s called “Carbon-Free Prosperity 2025: How the Northwest Can Create Jobs, Enable Energy Independence, and Be a Global Clean-Energy Leader.”
From the press release:
A new study concludes that five emerging clean-tech industry sectors offer the Pacific Northwest one of the best opportunities for sustained economic vitality and job growth. It also charts the course for private and public investment and leadership to capitalize on the opportunity.
The study focuses on five clean-energy sectors that provide the best opportunities for Oregon and Washington to build a leadership position in intellectual capital and job creation. They are:
- Solar PV Manufacturing, which is projected to provide up to 22,560 new jobs in the region by 2025;
- Wind Power Development, expected to reach up to 6,000 new jobs;
- Green Building Design Services, creator of up to 16,834 new jobs;
- Sustainable Bioenergy, which could account for 10,419 new jobs; and
- Smart-Grid Technologies, an industry that could create up to 7,000 new jobs.
In all, the study find these industries have the potential to create more than 63,000 new jobs in the Pacific Northwest by 2025—a figure that matches the employment in Silicon Forest during its height as a chip manufacturing center. The growth of these clean-tech sectors would position the region as a leader in the dramatic global shift toward cleaner and more efficient forms of energy, transportation, and building systems that reduce pollution and reliance on volatile imported fossil fuels.
