By 2023, clean energy jobs will grow at more than twice the rate of the overall economy—and every state has its own story to tell.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy's 2024 U.S. Energy and Employment Employment Report, there will be more than 500,000 jobs in the U.S. wind, solar and energy storage fields by the end of 2023. Work in these sectors includes the design, manufacturing, trading, construction and operation of energy systems.
Only two states account for one-third of clean power generation jobs: California and Texas. The remaining jobs are distributed throughout the rest of the country in unequal and sometimes unexpected ways.
Get a comprehensive look at the latest clean energy employment data in the interactive map below. Each state is ranked based on total employment in solar, wind and energy storage. Hover or click on any state to see data broken down by sector and per capita.
Read on for key takeaways from the new data, including where states are doing well and underperforming.
Clean power work by the numbers: The highs, lows and surprises along the way
Clean energy jobs are a powerful opportunity for communities. Energy jobs tend to pay higher than the national average, and the transition to less polluting energy sources is driving a surge in innovation, investment and infrastructure development.
Some states are benefiting, while others appear to be lagging behind.
california It leads the nation in clean power work, creating 145,000 jobs in the industry. That's not surprising, given the Golden State's strong economy, large workforce, huge energy needs, abundant sunshine, extensive experience in technology development and deep interest in clean energy. Even taking into account the state's massive population, the state ranks third in clean energy jobs per capita.
Texas It ranks second in total clean power employment, with 53,000 jobs, but ranks 20th in the nation in terms of clean energy jobs per capita. One bright spot for the Lone Star State: It ranks No. 1 for wind power jobs.
Nevada and Vermont Leads the nation in clean power job creation per capita. Nevada has converted its vast solar potential into 9,000 jobs, with a similar number of energy storage jobs. Vermont has a small population but relatively large demand for solar energy, so the Green Mountain State ranks second in green power jobs per capita.
Massachusetts Despite the dominance of gray flannel weather, solar jobs ranked second. On the other side, the sun is shining brightly New Mexico It ranks only 29th for solar jobs, in part because of its smaller population. The state ranks 11th in clean energy employment per capita.
this dakota When it comes to wind energy jobs, these rural states rank eighth and ninth in clean power jobs per capita. adjacency Montana has equally strong wind energy potential but has failed to convert that potential into jobs. The Big Sky State ranks 49th in wind power jobs and 46th in clean energy jobs per capita.
It’s surprising how far behind the rest of the country the states at the bottom of the rankings are. Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, West Virginia, Mississippi, and delaware Clean power technologies have the lowest employment rates. In fact, if you add up the total employment in these five states, it still only ranks 32nd, a close second. Oklahoma.
Work on wind and sun can happen anywhere, but some places are missing out.
The geopolitics of fossil fuels has dictated a completely uneven geographical distribution of winners and losers in the energy sector. As the energy economy shifts toward renewables, these gaps close, allowing people almost anywhere to get energy from wind and solar. Furthermore, the components required for modern energy can be built in any state. For example, areas without stable winds can still engage in wind power work by manufacturing wind turbine parts.
But there is an interesting fossil fuel signature in these data. Of the five states with the fewest clean power generation jobs, four are major fossil fuel producers: West Virginia, Montana, Wyoming and Alaska. In these cases, the lack of clean energy jobs may be related to a lack of political will. Montana and Wyoming, for example, have large wind energy resources, but state legislatures in those states have repeatedly tried to slow the development of renewable energy while protecting fossil fuels.
Texas, however, breaks the mold and shows there is no need to choose one energy source over another. Texas is pursuing an “all of the above” strategy while using fossil fuels, wind, solar and batteries to advance its energy industry.
That is, the amount of wind and sunlight that occurs naturally in an area has a lot to do with how much energy can be produced. This well-researched article looks at wind and solar jobs per state’s wind and solar potential per terawatt hour. A series of maps show each state's use of the renewable energy available to it to power its economy.
New developments in clean energy are unfolding at a rapid and encouraging pace. The industry is booming, helped by federal investments from the Inflation Lowering Act, battery chemistry innovation and grid modernization. There have never been so many different options for growing and growing the energy economy. As clean energy adoption accelerates, it's becoming increasingly clear that a cleaner environment and a thriving economy are natural partners. There’s no need to sacrifice one for the other when you can have both.
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