Here’s the press release from Environment North Carolina:
Raleigh, NC—North Carolina has more than 3,100 people employed manufacturing and installing pollution-free solar energy, according to a national Solar Jobs Census released today by The Solar Foundation. According to the analysis, North Carolina more than doubled the number of solar jobs from 2012, and added more jobs than every state except California, Massachusetts and Georgia.
“The sun is an unlimited energy source that could provide all of our energy without the air and water pollution associated with coal, oil and gas,” said Dave Rogers, Field Director with Environment North Carolina. “This report shows that the solar industry is putting people to work to meet a growing percentage of our energy needs with a pollution-free energy source that has no fuel costs.”
Solar is on the rise in North Carolina, ranking second in overall capacity added in 2013. This progress is directly attributable to the commitment by North Carolina’s leaders to the development of solar energy. Policies like the state’s renewable energy portfolio standard (REPS), and net metering standard have encouraged the development of solar across the state.
“The sky’s the limit on solar. But, right now only a small fraction our energy comes from solar,” said Rogers. “To take it to the next level, we need to rally around a bigger vision on solar while defending and improving the programs that work today.”
Environment North Carolina is a statewide, citizen-funded advocacy group, working to protect the places we love and the values we share.
The Solar Foundation (TSF), an independent nonprofit solar research and education organization, today released its fourth annual National Solar Jobs Census, which found that the U.S. solar industry employed 142,698 Americans in 2013. That figure includes the addition of 23,682 solar jobs over the previous year, representing 19.9 percent growth in employment since September 2012. Solar employment grew 10 times faster than the national average employment growth rate of 1.9 percent in the same period. Statistics on all 50 states can be found on TSF’s interactive map, available at www.SolarStates.org. The National Solar Jobs Census 2013 and separate reports for CA, AZ and MN, including employment by legislative district, are available at www.tsfcensus.org
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