Energy Program News

Columbus, Ohio (July 12, 2007) – A national renewable electricity standard requiring utilities to increase their use of wind, solar and other renewable energy sources would generate 7,360 new jobs in Ohio, lower electric and natural gas bills, and slash global warming pollution, according to a new  Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) analysis released today by Environment Ohio. UCS examined the impact of a proposed national standard on the nation as a whole and on 20 states, including Ohio.

“Turning on renewables in Ohio would cut energy costs not only for individual families, but for small businesses and large energy users alike,” said Amy Gomberg, Advocate with Environment Ohio. “At the same time, increasing our use of renewable energy would help clean up air pollution and make a down payment in the fight against global warming.”

The U.S. House of Representatives may vote on renewable electricity standard legislation as early as next week. The Senate has passed a standard three times over the last five years, only to be thwarted by House inaction. The House bill (HR 969), sponsored by Reps. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Todd Platts (R-Pa.), would require that utilities increase their use of renewable energy to 20 percent by 2020.

For Ohio, UCS’s analysis found that a 20 percent national renewable electricity standard would:

• generate an annual average of more than 7,360 renewable energy jobs between today and 2020 in manufacturing, construction and other industries.

• be a financial boon of $1.2 Billion cumulatively from today until 2020 for farmers, ranchers and rural landowners who produce biomass energy and/or lease their land to wind developers.

• save Ohioans $210 million on energy bills cumulatively from today until 2020 by reducing demand for fossil fuels and lowering natural gas and electricity prices. By 2030 those cumulative savings would balloon to $720 million.

"This analysis shows clear gains for Ohio, however, without a state renewable energy standard, Ohio will miss out on our true job growth potential," said Gomberg. "Ohio needs a state renewable energy standard of 20% by 2020 to fully realize Ohio’s potential to gain jobs in the renewable energy industry."

Nationally, UCS’s analysis found that a 20 percent national renewable electricity standard would:

generate an annual average of more than 185,000 total renewable energy jobs nationally between today and 2020 in manufacturing, construction and other industries.

• be a financial boon of $25.6 billion cumulatively between today and 2020 for farmers, ranchers and rural landowners who produce biomass energy and/or lease their land to wind developers.

• save consumers $10.5 billion on energy bills cumulatively from today until 2020 by reducing demand for fossil fuels and lowering natural gas and electricity prices. By 2030 those cumulative savings would balloon to $31.8 billion.

• slash global warming pollution by 223 million metric tons a year, the equivalent of taking 36.4 million cars off the road.

For individual state reports and UCS’s projection of the benefits of a national standard, go to www.ucsusa.org.

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Environment Ohio is the new home to the environmental work of Ohio PIRG.
Environment Ohio is a citizen based, non profit, non partisan environmental advocacy organization.

For more information, visit www.environmentohio.org

The Union of Concerned Scientists is the leading science-based nonprofit organization working for a healthy environment and a safer world. Founded in 1969, UCS is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has offices in Berkeley, California, and Washington, D.C. For more information, go to www.ucsusa.org.

UCS-Ohio-Jobs-report.pdf