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The Barre Montpelier Times Argus

Monday, April 29 2013

Vermont ranks 11th in the country in solar jobs per capita, according to a report by The Solar Foundation, an independent nonprofit research and education organization.  The Solar Foundation State Solar Jobs Map (www.solarstates.org) is a Web-based tool providing the first-ever solar jobs numbers for each of the 50 states.

The top three job sectors in Vermont included solar manufacturing, installation, and sales and distribution.  Vermont is home to several national solar companies including Draker Labs, groSolar, and AllEarth Renewables, as well as a large number of smaller installation companies.  The report builds upon TSF’s National Solar Jobs Census 2012 (thesolarfoundation.org/research/national-solar-jobs-census-2012), which found that the U.S. solar energy industry employs 119,016 Americans and that solar employment grew 13.2 percent over the prior year, making it one of the fastest growing industries in the country.

The top 10 states for solar jobs in 2012 were California, Arizona, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Colorado, New York, Texas, Michigan, and Ohio.  In comparing solar employment estimates with previous state figures that examined solar jobs in only a few states, six states — California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Texas, Colorado, and New York — are in the top 10 for the third year in a row.  Many of the highest-ranked solar jobs states are also those with the greatest cumulative installed capacity in the nation.

 

Source: www.timesargus.com