More than 85,000 New Yorkers work in clean energy jobs, with New York City being the largest hub, with 57,400 people who work in energy efficiency, renewable energy and other fields.
The Albany-Schenectady-Troy metro area employs the second largest number of those workers in the state, according to a new study— "Clean Jobs New York."
The study was conducted by the national nonpartisan business group Environmental Entrepreneurs, as well as several advocacy groups, including the Alliance for Clean Energy New York, the New York State Sustainable Business Council and New Yorkers for Clean Power.
Albany-Schenectady-Troy metro area is No. 2 for clean energy jobs in the state, employing about 5,000 residents, according to the report. In the Buffalo-Niagara Falls area, there are more than 4,000 jobs.
The majority of clean energy jobs are in energy efficiency, with about 12,400 New Yorkers working in renewable energy, including solar.
AWS Truepower, based in Albany, was cited in the report as a case study for the industry.
AWS is a renewable energy consultancy with 120 employees who advise on wind and solar projects worldwide. It started in the 1970s when CEO Bruce Bailey watched global energy prices fluctuate with the OPEC oil embargo.
The company has offices in Albany, as well as Mexico, Canada, Spain, India, Brazil and San Diego. The majority of AWS Truepower’s workforce — about 70 people — is based in Albany, with 120 people worldwide.
The study comes at a time when Gov. Andrew Cuomo is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to grow the state's clean energy industry.
At the center of Cuomo's economic development program in Buffalo, the Buffalo Billion, is a $750 million factory being built for Elon Musk's public company SolarCity. That program is under investigation by Cuomo's office and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. The project is meant to create almost 1,500 clean energy jobs in Buffalo.
