Jul 18 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Gary T. Pakulski The Blade, Toledo, Ohio


Norm Johnston has an idea for shining a little sunlight on Ohio's gloomy economy.

Mr. Johnston, chairman of the nonprofit group Ohio Advanced Energy, wants the state to put laid-off workers to work covering Ohio with solar-energy fields made with Ohio-produced materials.

And he has a suggestion for where to get the money to start the project: federal stimulus funds.

"We can build solar fields all over Ohio that have 100 percent content made here," said Mr. Johnston, chief executive of Perrysburg's Solar Fields LLC and vice chairman of Germany's Calyxo GmbH, which operates locally.

Mr. Johnston has presented the proposal to Mark Shanahan, energy adviser to Gov. Ted Strickland, but the Perrysburg executive isn't sure where it stands.

Officials in the governor's office couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.

Ohio Advanced Energy, which proposed the Ohio project, is made up of firms that offer products and services in solar, wind,

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