Nov 11 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Jay Fitzgerald Boston Herald


The emerging "clean energy" industry won't be a major engine of economic growth over coming years, experts warn, contradicting Gov. Deval Patrick's past upbeat assertions about the sector.

Economists at the New England Economic Partnership praised efforts to develop new clean-energy technologies and companies, saying it will help economic activity and the environment. But green jobs probably won't be produced in massive numbers that would significantly change the nature of Massachusetts' economy.

In a presentation yesterday at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the partnership bluntly warned that clean energy "can not be relied upon as the next 'growth engine' " for the region.

There are opportunities to take advantage of new investments in green energy, said Ross Gittell, an economist at the University of New Hampshire and the forecast manager for the partnership. "But it can't be counted on as a single source" of new growth, he said.

Even the most broad definition of "green economy" accounts for about 4 percent of the region's employment, he said.

The Patrick administration, which has pumped millions of dollars into the industry, countered that the sector has a bright long-term future.

"Clean energy is an emerging industry with a lot of start-up and medium-sized companies, so it will take some time before it reaches scale," said Ian Bowles, Patrick's secretary of energy and environmental affairs. "But the environmental imperative to reduce carbon emissions will mean trillions of dollars of energy infrastructure getting replaced over the coming decades, creating large markets, both locally and nationally, for Massachusetts companies."

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