Local small-business leaders and residents of Hampton Roads gathered at Solar Services Inc. in Virginia Beach to learn more about the potential for expansion of their businesses and further job creation as a result of investment in a clean energy economy, as could be provided with passage of a strong American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act.

The event was organized by MoveOn and the local Sierra Club group. Participants also included a representative from Congressman Glenn Nye’s office. Hampton Roads citizens are calling on Senators Warner and Webb and Rep. Nye to pass a strong clean energy jobs bill.

As I pointed out in my remarks, the ACES Act presents an opportunity to not only clean up global warming pollution by holding polluters accountable, but to also simultaneously and very quickly drive a shift in U.S. energy production toward cleaner, cheaper sources, like wind and solar, which are key to solving both our environmental and economic crises.

More specifically we here in Hampton Roads stand to reap a tremendous amount of benefit with passage of a strong ACES Act with both its investment in renewable energy production and its curbing global warming pollution. Hampton Roads is blessed with ideal offshore wind energy potential. Meanwhile, of all the places in the U.S., the effects of climate change are felt hardest here in Hampton Roads with $ billions of our assets vulnerable to sea level rise and greater and greater storm surges battering our coast.

I also spoke about the tremendous potential for a robust clean energy economy here in Hampton Roads with investment in offshore wind energy development as provided by the ACES Act:

- Researchers with the Virginia Coastal Energy Consortium predict that a wind farm with the footprint size of Virginia Beach, could provide enough power to light up over 20% of the Commonwealth.
- There are over 8,000 parts in any one wind turbine. That translates to a lot of jobs.
- Investment in clean energy such as offshore wind would create four times the number of jobs - triple the number of jobs paying at least $16 per hour – as the same investment in the oil industry.
- Investment in clean energy would provide far more power than that produced at dirty coal plants such as the massive $6 billion proposed in Surry Virginia, and would emit five times less pollution and cost less per kilowatt-hour.

Click here, www.VA4Wind.com, for additional fact sheets on Virginia offshore wind development.

We also heard from Arthur Edwards with Solar Services about the great opportunities awarded our Hampton Roads community with investment in solar energy. Just like in Europe, so many of our homes and commercial buildings could be very affordably outfitted with solar energy systems if only for the investment in greater manufacturing of their various parts in the U.S. and not elsewhere in the world. These parts manufactured here in the U.S. would not only create good paying jobs, but also drive down the costs for the average solar system. American companies hold many of the patents in the solar energy industry yet that great potential for manufacturing the product we hold patents on is lost elsewhere. Increased design and production of solar energy systems here in the US also spins off more demand for solar installation specialists, which provides a shot in the arm to the construction industry (plumbers, electricians for example) who have suffered huge job losses due to the economic downturn.

Back in the 1970’s, folks had grand plans for how renewable energy would provide the answer for our increasingly polluted world. The $ investment wasn’t made and our hopes dashed. We can’t let that happen again. The ACES Act provides an opportunity for energy providers to say “I’m a partner, not a polluter”, as they cap their carbon emissions and plunge into providing their customers with tons of clean renewable and affordable energy that in turn requires creation of tons of good paying American green jobs.

As a final note on just how serious we are about a clean energy economy, know too that in the past month, over 15,000 small business leaders nationwide (to include 400 small business leaders from the Hampton Roads area) have signed a pledge to support a clean energy economy. That pledge has been delivered on our representatives in Congress.

This is it, people. It’s history-making time!

Click here to urge Congress to make that investment NOW and support the American Clean Energy and Security Act!

(Crossposted at Article XI.)