Clean Energy and Climate Provisions Before Congress Could Bring 676,000 Jobs
Investments in clean energy and addressing climate change are investments in our economy.
Media Contacts
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Heather Layman
The Nature Conservancy
Phone: 703-475-1733
Email: hlayman@tnc.org
The Nature Conservancy today released new data showing the economic impact of clean energy and climate provisions currently under consideration in Congress. The research found that nationally, these investments would support nearly 676,000 jobs annually for 10 years. These include skilled jobs that will also help diversify economic opportunities since they come from a mix of investments across the power, agriculture and forestry, buildings, and transportation sectors.
These jobs and the overall economic activity will annually generate nearly $6.2 billion in local, state, and federal government taxes for ten years.
“Investments in clean energy and addressing climate change are investments in our economy,” said Jason Albritton, director of North America climate and clean energy policy at The Nature Conservancy. “When combined with the long-term benefits for energy security, community resilience, and climate action, it becomes clear these investments are the right choice to put us on a path toward a brighter future. With all that is at stake, the urgent need for action and the clear benefits of doing so, this Congress must find a way to pass these provisions.”
The $138 billion in annual federal clean power incentives and investments alone would support nearly 157,000 jobs and contribute $16.6 billion to the U.S. economy each year for the next decade. These jobs trend toward well-paying professions. They are largely concentrated in construction and professional services industries, with 37% of the total jobs being characterized as installation and repair, and 28% being characterized as management and professional. The federal investments in the power sector also support the largest number of manufacturing industry jobs and induced jobs, meaning the effect of the investment is felt throughout the supply chain and broadly across the economy.
The climate policies under consideration also invest $6 billion in climate-smart agricultural practices and revitalizing forests to absorb more carbon from the air, protect drinking water and natural habitat, and support local economies. Research found these programs generate more than 201,000 jobs supported annually for ten years. These jobs range from workers in the field and forests to downstream wood products industry workers and upstream workers in nurseries and other support industries.
The Nature Conservancy commissioned BW Research Partnership to produce the analysis. The research analyzed a wide range of effective approaches in clean energy and climate investments and incentives under consideration. It included those that aim to preserve and expand the availability of clean electricity; make our factories less polluting; promote the use of clean cars, trucks, and transit; enhance the capacity of our forests and farmland for storing carbon, increase their climate resilience and reduce wildfire risk; and help U.S. companies compete when producing advanced energy technologies and utilizing cleaner manufacturing processes.
For additional information and to download the report, please visit our website.
The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. Working in more than 70 countries and territories, we use a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit nature.org or follow @nature_press on Twitter.