Here are key findings from studies of the the potential for green jobs in Ohio:
Ohio needs a job-intensive industry. From 1996 to 2006, Ohio total employment increased 2.7% while total U.S. employment increased 14%. Ohio manufacturing jobs decreased 23%, from 1.03 million in 1996 to 797,000 in 2006, a loss of 233,000 jobs (Job Creation in the Environmental Industry pdf). Highly job-intensive sectors like wind and solar manufacturing present opportunities that Ohio cannot afford to miss.
Ohio is highly equipped to become an industry leader. Several recent reports measure green-collar job potential based on established industry clusters that can support the growth of green industry with intermediate inputs, knowledge networks and labor pools. In Ohio, there are more than 551,000 jobs in a wide mix of practice areas that green industry would demand. Leading occupations for green industry include carpenters, electricians, operations managers, machinists, welders, and industrial truck drivers (Ohio Jobs Fact Sheet pdf). Northeast Ohio also has the advantage of a central location. Within a 500 mile radius, Cleveland captures more of the United States population than any other city in the country (Richard Stuebi). See our page Advanced manufacturing meets advanced energy for more on energy and Northeast Ohio’s industry cluster.
Ohio can gain well-paying jobs in a variety of fields. With so many sectors targeted for green industry improvements (for example, building retrofitting, mass transit, energy-efficient automobiles, renewable energy and cellulosic biofuels), the green economy support a wide range of occupations and skill levels. In 2006, environmental protection generated more jobs in Ohio for office clerks (5,301 jobs) and customer service representatives (2,716) than for environmental engineers (1,470), environmental scientists and specialists (2,490), plumbers (353) health and safety engineers (140), welders (385) and biochemists (43) (Job Creation in the Environmental Industry pdf).
Ohio will benefit from local economic investments in the form of job growth. Proportionately, environmental investments generate five times as many jobs in professional, scientific and technical services as the state average (Job Creation in the Environmental Industry pdf). According to New Energy for America, a 2004 Apollo Alliance report, pursuing energy efficiency is more labor intensive than energy generation such that for every $1 million invested, 21.5 jobs are created by pursuing energy efficiency compared to 11.5 jobs for new natural gas generation. Renewable energy creates four times as many jobs per megawatt of installed capacity as natural gas, and creates 40% more jobs per dollar invested than coal-fired plants.
