that GREEN blog

The clean energy industry may not be popping the champagne cork, but it is at least holding the bottle in hand. While not unscathed by the recession, the industry sees growth in several sectors, according to recent reports.

For example, use of smart meters—a key technology for better energy management and efficiency – is increasing at a rapid clip. A study by ABI Research, “Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMM and AMI),” forecasts that the number of smart meters installed worldwide will reach 76 million this year, up from 49 million in 2007. Smart meters will benefit from an estimated $4.5 billion that the US plans to spend on smart grid initiatives as part of the federal stimulus package.

“We don’t think that the economic crisis is having a significant effect,” says Sam Lucero, senior analyst for ABI Research. “Utilities’ smart metering deployments are typically multi-year plans developed in the context of regulated market environments, and not terribly susceptible to short-term economic fluctuations.”

Press reports indicate that two other energy-cutting products are poised for significant growth this year. Moneynews.com quotes analysts who say demand response companies are likely to see recovery in 2009 following a dramatic fall in stocks of some leading companies. Meanwhile, industry insiders say they expect continued expansion for combined heat and power, a resource that has won new federal tax incentives and state support. See my article in the January/February issue of Cogeneration and Onsite Power Production magazine for more details.

Not all the news is good though. Greentech Media and the Prometheus Institute for Sustainable Development project that the global market for photovoltaics will shrink 15% this year to $12 billion. This is solar energy’s poorest performance since 1994, according to the report. At the same time, Lux Research says this year’s solar shakeout – caused by oversupply of cell and module capacity – will push solar prices closer to grid parity and precipitate expansion.

Meanwhile, expect to read a lot more about the clean energy sector in the coming year. William Brent’s Search for Cleantech reports that members of the media foresee heightened coverage of the cleantech sector in 2009 (and it certainly wasn’t light coverage last year.) Seventy-five percent of bloggers, mainstream newspapers, magazines and broadcasters surveyed say readers and editors will demand more coverage of the sector. So while the champagne may not be flowing yet, the information certainly is.

Visit Elisa Wood at www.realenergywriters.com and pick up her free Energy Efficiency Markets podcast and newsletter.

Article Source: http://www.alternativeenergybase.com

Nonpartisan Campaign Aims to Put Clean Energy, Green Jobs on the Agenda in 2008 Election

Spearheaded by the Energy Action Coalition, “Power Vote” is a national non-partisan initiative to elevate the issue of the climate crisis this election season. Power Vote aims to unite one million young “climate voters” behind a platform centered on combating global warming pollution, creating millions of new green jobs, and ensuring our nation’s energy independence by transitioning to a dynamic new clean energy economy. For more information about the platform go to www.powervote.org/platform.

“Young people recognize that the 2008 election is critical for the planet.. They are the ones standing up and demanding that Washington act swiftly before climate change spirals out of humanity’s control,” asserts James Hansen, a leading scientist on climate change. “Power Vote represents hope for our future at a time when our climate is at an ominous tipping point.”

The November election looms large for college students returning to school this month. As they head to the polls in record numbers, many for the first time, it is the global climate crisis, the country’s increasing economic insecurity, and a war with no end in sight that rank as their highest voting priorities.

By the November election, the Energy Action Coalition and its more than forty partner organizations will mobilize young ‘climate voters’ to take the Power Vote Pledge to “vote for clean and just energy” when they go to the polls. The campaign kicks off with organizers working on over 300 college campuses in at least 37 states and 123 congressional districts.

“Students nationwide are rising to the challenge of climate change and transforming our campuses into models of sustainability,” says Reagan Richmond, a senior at University of Tennessee- Knoxville. “It’s past time policymakers followed our example! With Power Vote, we’re putting Washington on notice that we’ll be holding them accountable for addressing this crisis at the ballot box and beyond.”

The next eight weeks will see an intensive grassroots effort as organizers engage in millions of face to face conversations with young people across the country – storming campuses, addressing thousands of classes, meetings students at bars and concerts – and showing up at candidates events making the youth position on climate clear. Power Voters will mobilize young people for the Green Jobs Now National Day of Action on September 27th, make their presence felt at the Presidential and Vice Presidential debates, and work around the clock getting out the vote in the days leading up to the election.

“Young people are successfully fighting for a clean energy future on their campuses and in their communities,” says Jessy Tolkan, Co-Director for the Energy Action Coalition. “As we head to the polls in record numbers this November young people want an economy that moves us beyond dangerous, dirty energy, creates green jobs for all, and secures our climate—that’s what we’ll be voting for.”

“Youth in our community need the opportunity to better their futures through the development of Green Jobs and Green Careers,” notes Desire Grover, a community organizer in Chester, PA. “A new clean energy economy has the potential to lift people out of poverty and into the middle class. We’re reaching out to young workers in our community to take the Power Vote Pledge and tell Washington that we want green jobs now!”

For more information, contact Brianna Cayo Cotter at 415.305.1943 and visit PowerVote.org.

The Energy Action Coalition unites 48 organizations, over 600 local groups, and tens of thousands of young people in 56 states and provinces in an alliance that supports and strengthens the clean energy movement among students and young people in the United States and Canada. The partners of Energy Action work together to build a clean, efficient, just and renewable energy future.