Portsmouth event shares research on green jobs in New Hampshire

You don’t hear very much good news regarding the economy these days. But according to UNH Professor Ross Gittell, there is “an economic bright spot.” He was referring to the “green economy”—a relatively new sector of the nation’s workforce employed with jobs that benefit the environment.

Although the green economy currently only accounts for slightly over 3 percent of the nation’s workforce, Gittell said that percentage is rising. And, if local communities take advantage, it could provide a window for significant economic growth in the region.
“There’s a real future if you focus some of your studies and your entrepreneurship in this area,” he said. “It really is growing in a lot of traditional industries,” including construction and real estate.

Gittell and research scientist Matt Magnusson have been studying the green economy in New Hampshire and around the country and assessing opportunities for future growth. They discussed their findings during a presentation at Portsmouth Public Library on Nov. 12. Hosted by the Rockingham Economic Development Corporation, along with Portsmouth’s Economic Development Commission and the Committee on Sustainable Practices, the presentation was titled “New Hampshire’s Green Economy: Current Employment and Future Opportunities.”

Gittell and Magnusson divided the nation’s green jobs into five categories: energy efficiency, which includes certain fields of construction and home heating; environmental services; green transportation; renewable energy; and smart tech, which includes the development of green technologies.

Based on these categories, the pair determined that there were approximately 3.64 million green jobs in the United States in 2007, which represents about 3.2 percent of employment nationwide. That percentage was nearly identical in New Hampshire, where there are about 17,000 green jobs. The percentage was also the same in Rockingham County, where about 3,700 workers have green jobs.

Approximately half of the green jobs in New Hampshire—about 8,400—fall into the smart tech category. About 4,300 (26 percent) are in the energy efficiency category, while about 3,300 (20 percent) are in the environmental services category. Only 600 (3 percent) of the jobs are in green transportation, and only 200 (1 percent) are in renewable energy.

Although there is room for growth in green transportation, it will probably never make up a significant portion of the state’s employment. Gittell said there is talk of extending commuter lines from Newburyport, Mass., to Portsmouth, and from Lowell, Mass., to Concord, but the population density in New Hampshire is only high enough for a limited number of jobs in public transportation.

There are also challenges with creating jobs in the field of renewable energy. Gittell pointed to the example of wind turbines. In order to be cost competitive, most wind turbines are designed to require minimal labor, with built-in equipment for self monitoring and maintenance.

But the region’s highly educated workforce creates considerable growth in the categories of energy efficiency and smart technology. As an example of smart tech, Gittell pointed to programmable thermostats that conserve energy by lowering the temperature when people are not present. “That’s where the jobs are, in energy efficiency and smart tech that you can export,” Gittell said. 

In Rockingham County, there are 1,503 jobs in smart tech, 1,245 in energy efficiency and 961 in environmental services. Green transportation and renewable energy combine for less than 1 percent of the county’s green jobs.

Environmental services and smart tech jobs offer high wages in Rockingham County, averaging $64,700 and $61,800 per year, respectively. Many of the jobs in energy efficiency, however, offer lower wages, especially in industries like construction, Gittell said.
Green jobs across the nation paid an average annual salary of $57,000, which is 25 percent above the industrial average. In New Hampshire, green jobs pay an average of $54,400 per year, which is 23 percent above the state average.

Rockingham County is one of only two counties in New Hampshire that meets or exceeds the national average for percentage of green jobs, the other being Hillsborough County. Green jobs account for slightly over 2 percent of Strafford County’s employment, and just over 1 percent of York County, Maine’s workers.

Of all the counties Gittell and Magnusson looked at, Boulder County in Colorado had the highest concentration of green jobs, representing 6.1 percent of its workforce. Cities like Boulder, Colo., Cambridge, Mass., and Burlington, Vt., appear to be at the forefront of the nation’s green economies.

President-elect Barack Obama has proposed a plan to invest $150 billion over 10 years into green economy activity, which is expected to generate 5 million new jobs nationwide. Gittell said that would translate to about 25,000 new jobs in New Hampshire, which would bring the state’s total to more than 40,000. That would account for 8 percent of the state’s workers—about the same percentage currently seen in financial services.

Gittell admitted that his research failed to account for several industries that could offer green jobs. Pointing to the Seacoast’s local food movement, he said there is potential to expand green opportunities in the fields of food and agriculture. His report also did not include jobs in training, which is crucial to implementing many green technologies.

In order to foster growth in the green economy, Gittell said the community must offer better training and encourage direct communication between people and businesses with varying areas of expertise.

The Rockingham Economic Development Corporation is partly responsible for generating the region’s annual Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy. The green economy research was conducted as part of ongoing work on the CEDS. The 2008 CEDS can be viewed at www.redc.com/ceds.