Buses represent 25,000 to 33,000 domestic jobs, many overlapping with the heavy truck industry. U.S. firms are leading the development of hybrid, all-electric and other “green” buses-the future of the industry. This topic is covered in-depth in this report by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Marcy Lowe spoke at a Capitol Hill briefing on January 14, 2010 in Washington, DC on the topic of job creation and economic development impacts of public transportation. It was organized by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. View event website: http://www.eesi.org/briefings/view/public-transportation-jobs-and-a-clean-energy-economy?/public-transportation-jobs-and-clean-energy-economy-14-jan-2010. Her presentation was entitled U.S. Transit Bus Industry: A Value Chain Analysis.
U.S. employment in wind power is estimated at 85,000 jobs and growing quickly, with opportunities to employ workers and capacity from other industries like automotive and aerospace. Opportunities to expand wind power in the United States are explored in this report; the 11th chapter in a series on Manufacturing Climate Solutions written by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
With 46 million underinsulated homes in the United States, an expanding re-insulation market could save energy and create U.S. jobs for contractors, insulation installers, distributors, manufacturers, and material suppliers. This topic is explored in this report by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) Manufacturing Climate Solutions series.
The United States is well positioned to take the lead in hybrid commercial trucks, a new, fast- growing market that promises future U.S. jobs in truck manufacturing, advanced energy storage, electronics, and software. This report was prepared by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) as part of the Manufacturing Climate Solutions series. Duke Today published an article, “Duke study: U.S. positioned to lead hybrid commercial truck industry” on June 12, 2009 regrading the report.
Chapter 8 of the Manufacturing Climate Solutions prepared by Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) focuses on carbon dioxide capture and storage technologies. These technologies will allow the U.S. to continue using fossil fuel for power generation while also achieving national goals to reduce CO2 emissions. These billion dollar projects also present huge U.S.-based employment opportunities in fields ranging from R&D to manufacturing and construction.
Many industrial processes discard exhaust heat, combustible gases, and other “waste” energy. These highly recoverable resources can be harnessed to generate electricity, thus saving energy costs, reducing CO2 emissions, creating new jobs, and protecting existing jobs by increasing productivity and competitiveness. This report by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) explores this topic.
Current residential heat pump water heater products are add-on units used in conjunction with conventional storage tanks and they are produced by a handful of very small U.S. companies. The recent introduction of ENERGY STAR water heater criteria appears to be incentivizing some larger appliance manufacturers to develop new heat pump water heater products that will be more widely available. If consumer interest in heat pump water heaters increases, the market would need to scale up significantly to meet greater demands, opening greater opportunities for U.S. component manufacturing in the value chain. This topic is explored in-depth in this report by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
Super Soil is not yet commercially available, but it is an example of a technology that could potentially be widely adopted. The adoption of this or similar technologies would involve manufacturing jobs producing large tanks. Additional manufacturing jobs would be needed to make the equipment, along with the associated requirements for steel, glass, concrete, and other materials, and construction jobs to build the facility. This new technology for treating hog waste could allow the United States to become a global market leader in a sector where, until now, no adequate alternative has been available. This report was prepared by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
This report by the Duke Global Value Chains Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) explores light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for lighting applications. LEDs are a semiconductor technology whose application to general-purpose lighting is rapidly growing, with significant potential for energy savings. The market for general-purpose LED lighting is currently very small, but it is growing rapidly as the technology improves and costs go down. Leading U.S. manufacturers find it crucial to ensure high quality and to protect their innovations–two good reasons to keep the manufacturing close to home.
This report by the Duke GVC Center for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) explores high-performance window technologies. The U.S. industry faces new, more stringent efficiency criteria that may spur manufacturers to retool production lines and further innovate. Over the course of criteria changes, jobs may have to develop more efficient products. The ability of companies to respond to criteria changes may determine which companies will benefit and which will struggle to compete.
