A New Roadmap for a Clean Energy that Prioritizes PA Union Workers

by Danielle Smith, Keystone State News Connection

A new report is providing a roadmap for policymakers and industry leaders to shape the future of Pennsylvania’s clean energy landscape.

The findings from the new Union Energy coalition examine various programs to create high-quality union jobs in areas such as transportation, industry, agriculture, and infrastructure while addressing climate change.

Rob Bair, president of the Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council and secretary-treasurer of Union Energy, said Pennsylvania is a major energy producer and leading the way in the clean energy transition. He added there are opportunities beyond wind and solar.

“We can spur hydrogen production and create construction jobs and permanent jobs,” Bair asserted. “We can start utilizing the 435 low head dams in Pennsylvania for hydropower that are sitting doing nothing. We have 28,000 abandoned wells and a lot of them could be used for geothermal power.”

Some of the report’s recommendations include developing high-speed rail infrastructure, which could create more than 173,000 jobs in the Mid-Atlantic north region by 2035.

Union Energy collaborates with other unions on apprenticeship programs, and Bair noted they assist in establishing programs to accelerate the process of workforce development.

“An apprenticeship is a fantastic way to train young men and women,” Bair explained. “Because you’re getting paid while you’re learning, but you’re not just getting thrown into a job saying, ‘OK, we hired you. Here it is.’ So we’re helping them learn how to build really good registered apprenticeship programs.”

Union Energy is a two-year project with the AFL-CIO and the Pennsylvania Building Trades. The report was commissioned by Cornell University’s Climate Jobs Institute and showed funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the Build Back Better plan is available to create permanent union jobs to set up the next generation of workers to be middle class.

The post A New Roadmap for a Clean Energy that Prioritizes PA Union Workers appeared first on BCTV.

Source: bctv