Economics
States that import electricity, or utilities that import fuel for power plants from other states, lose vital financial resources because those payments leave the state and local economies. Renewable energy and energy efficiency tend to be labor-intensive and local. They can mean promising, quality job growth in manufacturing, construction, operation, and maintenance. In addition, studies indicate that dollars saved through energy efficiency tend to be spent locally and then respent multiplying the benefits
Renewable energy and energy efficiency also can help revitalize rural communities. Biomass energy crops or wind turbines — or both — can provide energy, create new cash crops for farmers, and provide rural communities with new tax revenue. Especially in Rocky Mountain and Plains states, farmers are "harvesting" the wind, as well as both plant and animal biomass. Farmers on windy lands can lease space to wind developers, earning thousands of dollars for each turbine every year. The footprint of a utility-scale wind turbine is minimal, so farming and ranching operations continue uninterrupted. Rural counties receive tax revenues to support their operations, as well as local schools.
Renewable energy technologies can be an economical addition to an energy supplier's resources. Examples include providing solar-generated electricity during peak sun times or shifting from purchased fuels to wind-generated electricity on windy days. Even though wind is an intermittent resource, it is predictable and can be planned by utilities as part of their generating portfolios. Small wind turbines can generate electricity in homes or on farms, offsetting the need for the equivalent amount of purchased electricity.
Sometimes using a technology that is not grid-connected is cheaper than extending a utility line to a new site. For example, the cost of trenching to connect to the utility pole across the street can exceed the cost of stand-alone solar electric.
Energy efficiency investments start saving energy immediately and have short paybacks. Reducing usage lowers operating costs and can help make industry, farms, and merchants more economically competitive. Energy efficiency also helps minimize the need to build new and expensive power plants. Studies indicate that energy efficiency technologies cost substantially less than building or purchasing new energy supply.
Since the 1970s, the United States has reduced its energy use per unit of gross domestic product by about one-third, even though the economy grew by 160%. Energy efficiency initiatives such as building codes and appliance and equipment standards were important contributors to this remarkable increase in energy productivity.
For more information on job creation with renewable energy projects, see the Renewable Energy Policy Project's 2001 Report "The Work That Goes Into Renewable Energy." (PDF 340 KB) Download Adobe Reader.