Re: The cost of green jobs - the actual experience of Spain

2009-03-28 Thread Doc Holliday 

I remember seeing this before but not in regard and or contrast to our
current situation. This one gets 5 stars +

Thanks!

Peace,
Doc

On Mar 28, 10:47 pm, dick thompson  wrote:
>     *
>     * Gear 
>     * About 
>
>     The mirage of "green jobs"
>
>         posted at 2:54 pm on March 27, 2009 by Ed Morrissey
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> Barack Obama promised that his cap-and-trade energy policies would fund
> an explosion of "green jobs" as government pushes for
> mass-production-capable alternative energy sources.  Spain used to think
> the same thing, but Bloomberg reports that the explosion turned into an
> implosion
> 
> (via Barcepundit
> ):
>
>     Subsidizing renewable energy in the U.S. may destroy two jobs for
>     every one created if Spain's experience with windmills and solar
>     farms is any guide.
>
>     For every new position that depends on energy price supports, at
>     least 2.2 jobs in other industries will disappear, according to a
>     study from King Juan Carlos University in Madrid.
>
>     U.S. President Barack Obama's 2010 budget proposal contains about
>     $20 billion in tax incentives for clean-energy programs. In Spain,
>     where wind turbines provided 11 percent of power demand last year,
>     generators earn rates as much as 11 times more for renewable energy
>     compared with burning fossil fuels.
>
> Spain wound up paying $775,000 for every green job they created through
> subsidies since 2000.  That's almost $100,000 per year per job, and that
> cost only includes the /created/ jobs.  The cost of the 2.2 jobs lost
> would hike that cost considerably, as well as the lost tax revenues, the
> increased government assistance, and the opportunity costs for pulling
> capital out of the markets.
>
> Why did the jobs disappear?  In part because of the higher capital
> confiscation of the government, and in part because the green policies
> pushed industry out of Spain.  Actually, the study didn't count jobs
> lost through "industrial relocation", which in this case amounts to
> capital flight.  The largest stainless-steel producer in Spain directly
> linked its decision to move operations to South America to the higher
> energy costs imposed by the government.
>
> In the US, we could see a massive flight, and not just in
> manufacturing.  High-tech industries that rely on cheap energy could be
> forced to find less expensive environments.  Bloomberg's economist notes
> that Microsoft and Google have already relocated their servers once to
> get cheaper energy.  The Internet is flexible enough to allow employers
> to go almost anywhere in the world to host their servers, and in this
> economy, there will be plenty of competition for them.
>
> Before we buy into the "green jobs" argument, we'd better make sure
> existing jobs don't disappear into a wormhole at a faster rate.
>
> *Update*: I forgot to hat-tip Barcepundit.  My apologies --- I thought I
> had included his link originally.  Be sure to visit his site for his
> thoughts.
>
> Buzz up!/11/ votes
> 
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The cost of green jobs - the actual experience of Spain

2009-03-28 Thread dick thompson 
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* Gear 
* About 


The mirage of "green jobs"


posted at 2:54 pm on March 27, 2009 by Ed Morrissey
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Barack Obama promised that his cap-and-trade energy policies would fund 
an explosion of "green jobs" as government pushes for 
mass-production-capable alternative energy sources.  Spain used to think 
the same thing, but Bloomberg reports that the explosion turned into an 
implosion 
 
(via Barcepundit 
):

Subsidizing renewable energy in the U.S. may destroy two jobs for
every one created if Spain's experience with windmills and solar
farms is any guide.

For every new position that depends on energy price supports, at
least 2.2 jobs in other industries will disappear, according to a
study from King Juan Carlos University in Madrid.

U.S. President Barack Obama's 2010 budget proposal contains about
$20 billion in tax incentives for clean-energy programs. In Spain,
where wind turbines provided 11 percent of power demand last year,
generators earn rates as much as 11 times more for renewable energy
compared with burning fossil fuels.

Spain wound up paying $775,000 for every green job they created through 
subsidies since 2000.  That's almost $100,000 per year per job, and that 
cost only includes the /created/ jobs.  The cost of the 2.2 jobs lost 
would hike that cost considerably, as well as the lost tax revenues, the 
increased government assistance, and the opportunity costs for pulling 
capital out of the markets.

Why did the jobs disappear?  In part because of the higher capital 
confiscation of the government, and in part because the green policies 
pushed industry out of Spain.  Actually, the study didn't count jobs 
lost through "industrial relocation", which in this case amounts to 
capital flight.  The largest stainless-steel producer in Spain directly 
linked its decision to move operations to South America to the higher 
energy costs imposed by the government.

In the US, we could see a massive flight, and not just in 
manufacturing.  High-tech industries that rely on cheap energy could be 
forced to find less expensive environments.  Bloomberg's economist notes 
that Microsoft and Google have already relocated their servers once to 
get cheaper energy.  The Internet is flexible enough to allow employers 
to go almost anywhere in the world to host their servers, and in this 
economy, there will be plenty of competition for them.

Before we buy into the "green jobs" argument, we'd better make sure 
existing jobs don't disappear into a wormhole at a faster rate.

*Update*: I forgot to hat-tip Barcepundit.  My apologies --- I thought I 
had included his link originally.  Be sure to visit his site for his 
thoughts.

Buzz up!/11/ votes 



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Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups.
For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum

* Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/  
* It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. 
* Read the latest breaking news, and more.
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