Business & Economy
Clean energy can produce jobs, economic growth, study says
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By JASMINE WATTS
Capital News Service
LANSING — Thousands of Michigan jobs in the clean energy industry could be created in coming years, according to a recent report. The Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council and Clean Energy Trust report that more than 87,000 Michigan residents already work in that industry. And Michigan leads 12 Midwestern states in clean energy transportation jobs, is second in renewable energy jobs and third in overall highest number of clean energy jobs, according to the study. “These findings are a good indication that, contrary to the sky-is-falling rhetoric we often hear from the fossil fuel industry, the transition from dirty fuels to clean sources of energy is an opportunity for economic growth,” said Andy McGlashen, communications director for the Michigan Environmental Council, a statewide coalition of environmental groups. It is critical that state lawmakers put policies in place to continue that growth, he said.