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The Appalachian Ohio Solar Jobs Network
Renewable energy is one of America’s fastest-growing industries.
Vision
There is a critical need to develop responsible plans for diversifying coal-dependent regions into more sustainable economies. This initiative creates a roadmap for not just bringing solar energy to the region’s homes and businesses, but for also making Appalachian Ohio a renewable energy industrial hub. The region’s rivers, ports, and rail systems, when combined with a ready workforce, make Appalachian Ohio attractive for this development plan. The result will be significant economic development and a multiplying job creation effect throughout Ohio’s Appalachian region.
Turning the Vision Into Reality
To make this vision a reality, diverse political, environmental and economic development interests will need to coordinate to create the ecosystem capable of attracting, supporting and retaining the jobs associated with this new energy economy. This includes both providing vocal support of the project and aiding in the strategic development of job training and transition programs focused on military veterans and displaced utility workers.
Health and Environmental Benefits
Policies that encourage clean energy production and energy efficiency that include solar are critical to Ohio’s energy future. As we move to cleaner and healthier sources of energy, this initiative represents a long-term breakthrough for Ohio’s growing clean energy economy and is an important step towards reinvigorating Ohio’s clean energy future.
Economic Benefits
A clean energy economy provides real opportunities for long-term economic development and sustainable jobs and industry for Ohio’s Appalachian region. This project provides an opportunity to develop healthy communities and a healthy economy in one of America’s fastest growing industries, clean energy. In addition to representing significant economic development for the region, this plan has also been developed in a fiscally responsible fashion to seek the best cost option for development of the project and preference for using local goods or services sourced from Ohio businesses and helping to contain costs for Ohio’s electricity customers. This initiative responsibly transitions coal-dependent communities to a more sustainable economy, allows for investment in energy efficiency programs for low income customers, and creates a roadmap for not just bringing clean energy online in Ohio but also for making Appalachian Ohio a clean energy industrial hub. This will help offset the loss of mining and manufacturing jobs in Appalachia and provide a welcomed economic stimulus by tapping into the rich resources in the region for training and workforce development and encouraging research and development in the solar industry.
"We have an opportunity to bring the growing clean energy economic benefits to southeastern Ohio.”
