Panel discusses ‘green economy’

WINSTED — Northwestern Connecticut Community College (NCCC) held a program entitled “Connecticut’s Future: A Panel Discussion on Our Green Economy and Clean Jobs” on Thursday, April 23.The Winchester Energy Commission and NCCC organized the panel, with science professor Tara Jo Holmberg moderating.The theme for the discussion was that clean energy, contrary to the beliefs of many, is not a job killer. Rather, the ever-increasing technology has huge potential for job creation and consumer savings.Sourcing electricity from renewable wind and solar has been a “huge game changer,” said Brian Sewell of Next Step Living, a company that provides home energy evaluations.Climate notwithstanding, Lee Grannis, of New Haven Clean Cities Coalition, said that Connecticut is way ahead of Florida in solar development, but there is plenty of room for improvement.The “tremendous popularity of solar” is despite various ploys on the parts of utilities, which have tried to fix rates in order to ensure a comparable profit, said Jeremy Brecher, from the Connecticut Roundtable on Climate and Jobs. This is obviously counterproductive to the lower energy usage and the benefits of solar energy, Brecher pointed out.Brecher said utilities have also blocked recent state bills that would allow several homeowners to pool their solar energy resources. He said that if one house had an ideal roof for collecting solar, it is still illegal for neighbors to share.“Technology is outrunning the legislators. Some are up to speed, others are far behind,” Grannis said.Asked where Connecticut stood on the question of clean energy, Grannis pointed out that transportation isn’t included in the state’s energy costs. He said this is a big omission, because, as Brecher noted, 40 percent of the state’s energy emissions come from the transportation sector.When it comes to transportation, Brecher said rural areas like Northwest Connecticut face a challenge in moving away from traditional fuels.He said that having dependable, inter-town transportation would make a huge difference. Grannis also noted that switching buses over to propane, as has been done in Torrington, has resulted in much lower emissions, though Brecher later pointed out that “natural gas needs to be treated as a bridge fuel, not a long-term solution.”“The problem is the state has no goals when it come to clean energy,” Grannis said. “Is the overall goal emission reduction? Economic change?”Brecher’s recommended priorities for the state include a combination of emission reduction and the shift to renewable sources. He called for low emission vehicles, energy efficiency, a focus on public transit, smart clustered developments and the retrofitting of buildings, which quickly “pay for themselves.”The jobs required by all of these sectors are substantial. “Companies are hiring and are desperate for trained people,” Sewell said. Grannis called for more networking between students and alumni to let students know their options.Brecher noted, “We’re all environmentalists,” Brecher said. “No one wants to breathe terrible air and drink terrible water. But for most people, it’s not their primary concern. They don’t realize it’s also a way to address economic problems.”