Green Energy Movement Sluggish But Gathering Second Wind
Have President Obama’s federal investments in the
green energy movement succeeded in lifting the
nation out of recession while at the same time,
ushering in whole new enterprises? Not surprisingly,
the answers to this question depend on one’s
philosophical bent.
But for anyone sitting on the fence, a government
watchdog agency has weighed in and concluded that
the administration needs to dig deeper and apply the
lessons learned to the monies spent so far. That is,
to what extent have totally new occupations formed
and to what extent has additional training broadened
the role of current jobs, giving them green
credentials, so to speak.
According to the
Government Accountability Office, the 2009
federal stimulus act allocated $595 million into the
creation of green jobs. The primary goal had been to
equip the current and emerging workforce so that it
could work in jobs geared toward a 21st economy.
Defining such positions, though, has been given wide
leeway and could include anything from working on a
wind farm to manufacturing equipment that is used to
make coal cleaner.
At the same time, the structure of the green jobs
programs means that anyone who is re-trained and who
adds new skills to their resume is therefore a
worthy investment. That might include a carpenter
who learns how to weatherize homes. The U.S.
Department of Labor has been tasked with trying to
analyze and quantify the economic impact of those
public investments.
“The outcomes of Labor’s green jobs train programs
remain uncertain, in part because data on final
outcomes were not yet available for about 40 percent
of the grantees, as of the end of 2012,” says the
watchdog agency’s report. “Analysis of grantees with
final outcome data shows they collectively reported
training slightly more individuals than they had
projected, but job placements were at 55 percent of
the target.”
The restraining factors include the reliability of
data regarding green jobs and insufficient time to
meet the grant requirements. Difficulties also exist
as to what constitutes a green job in changing
energy culture as well as the hardships associated
with placing participants in modern jobs because of
a poor economy.
Federal Pie
Altogether, the stimulus plan plowed in $1 trillion
to the American economy. Three separate causes each
received about a third: Tax cuts, block grants to
state and local governments and investment in the
nation's infrastructure to modernize electric
utilities and fuel supplies.
The president’s supporters are saying that without
the stimulus program the nation would have gone into
depression. Certainly, since the Obamas rode to
Washington, green energy has received most of the
government subsidies. But, over the last couple
decades, green tech enthusiasts will point out that
the traditional electric generation fuels have
received the healthiest portion of federal benefits.
Skeptics of the president counter by saying that
green jobs highlight the notion of government’s
inherent inefficiencies. Witness the failures of
three major solar manufacturers: Evergreen Solar,
SpectraWatt and Solyndra, which collected a $535
million loan guarantee.
When one examines the share of the federal pie
allocated to those nouveau enterprises, along with
others, and then compares that to the number of jobs
created, the results are staggering, critics say.
That’s because hundreds of millions in taxpayer
money has been used to form relatively few jobs --
jobs that may well have been taken from other
industries, they add.
Several clean technology enterprises have grown
nicely, however: Renewable electricity generation
doubled from 2006 to 2011, say the think tanks that
authored the report called
“Beyond Boom and Bust.” Wind and solar equipment
prices fell, enabling those energies to make headway
into the market. Other entities also grew and
include advanced batteries and vehicles. Altogether,
employment in the clean tech sector jumped by 12
percent from 2007 to 2010, adding 70,000 jobs.
Now, many of the federal programs that have given
life to such businesses will expire, or be
significantly curtailed. And while some programs may
get renewed, the uncertainty is building.
“Without timely and targeted policy reform, several
sectors are likely to experience more bankruptcies,
consolidations, and market contraction,” say the
Breakthrough Institute, Brookings Institution and
World Resources Institute.
The nation’s long, painful recession only
underscores the difficulties with creating new jobs,
much less those tied to fledgling industries. As to
whether the federal stimulus aided that economic
effort: Well, it depends on where one sits, with
“definitive” answers years away as the anecdotal
evidence rolls in.
EnergyBiz Insider has been awarded the Gold for
Original Web Commentary presented by the American
Society of Business Press Editors. The column is
also the Winner of the 2011 Online Column category
awarded by Media Industry News, MIN. Ken Silverstein
has been honored as one of MIN’s Most Intriguing
People in Media.
Twitter: @Ken_Silverstein
energybizinsider@energycentral.com
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