Going Green Will Boost California's Economy

Increase in jobs and income by reducing greenhouse gas emissions
Jane Kay, SF Chronicle, September 18, 2008

Taking strong measures to reduce greenhouse gases to combat global warming would help California's economy, boost employment, and increase household savings and personal income, according to a new analysis. Under the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32), the state must impose a limit on the amount of pollutants companies emit and expand renewable energy.

The Economic Evaluation Supplement to CARB's Draft Scoping Plan, released Wednesday, predicts that implementation of the Scoping Plan will benefit California’s economy above and beyond the business-as-usual projections by:
- Increasing production activity by $27 billion
- Increasing overall Gross State Product by $4 billion
- Increasing overall personal income by $14 billion
- Increasing per capita income by $200
- Increasing jobs by more than 100,000

Mary Nichols, chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board (CARB), said the analysis shows that going ahead with the state plan is good for the economy and the environment. "Our historic effort here in California to deal with the crisis of global warming will also have the benefit of saving families and citizens money," she said.

So far, investors have shown an interest in creating new technologies that would replace outdated fossil-fuel plants and inefficient buildings and appliances, the study says. The new analysis shows an increase in venture capital investment in the state over the last decade. In 2007, there was $1.2 billion in investments for energy innovation.

A separate analysis showed that the measures designed to curb greenhouse gas and save energy also would improve public health. In 2020, the measures would avoid an estimated 300 premature deaths, nearly 9,000 cases of asthma and other respiratory symptoms and the loss of 53,000 workdays.

Read the complete article here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/18/MNVQ13000N.DTL

Read the Economic Evaluation Supplement to CARB's Draft Scoping Plan here: http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/scopingplan/document/economic_analysis_supplement.pdf