Does Clean Energy Mean Green Jobs?

Vacant manufacturing facilities in Michigan, Ohio and elsewhere have been filling up with manufacturers of the raw components of solar cells or some of the 8,000 moving parts that go into a modern wind turbine. These form the foundation of the clean energy economy—and the source of so-called green jobs. Even the Chinese are getting into the act; wind turbine manufacturer A-Power recently signed an agreement to source 50,000 metric tons of steel for 300 of its turbines from remaining U.S. steel works and to build a turbine assembly plant in Nevada. That has helped them win a contract to supply wind turbines in Texas.