This guest post was written by Sarah Mazzone from Made In USA Challenge:
The winds of change are blowing in the clean energy sector, threatening to take out thousands of American jobs and a source of clean energy. A Production Tax Credit that has helped grow clean, renewable wind energy in the US is set to expire at the end of the year. We must take action now to ensure this tax credit is renewed to save American jobs, protect our environment, and safeguard our children’s health.
Wind energy has created a revolution for renewable energy in many parts of the US. Energy harvested from windmills is clean, creating no emissions that contribute to air pollution. Wind energy is also efficient, requiring no water and just a small area of land. While decreasing our dependence on foreign oil, wind energy also contributes to our economy through the creation of local jobs. In fact, during the latest recession, clean energy was one of the few employment sectors that experienced job growth.
Clean energy means cleaner air. Emissions from coal-fired plants are polluting our air with toxins like mercury and arsenic. This air pollution has been linked to a slew of health effects for our children, including asthma, pre-term labor, infant mortality and possibly childhood cancer. Children are left most vulnerable to air pollution because of their immature immune systems.
If the Production Tax Credit is allowed to expire, it is projected that 37,000 Americans working in the wind industry will lose their jobs. If the credit is extended, lower tax rates would help create an estimated additional 100,000 local jobs over the next four years. The PTC has been responsible for the creation of manufacturing facilities in the US, particularly in the states of California, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and my own home state of Pennsylvania.
With the health of our families, and the security of our jobs at stake, we must act now to protect clean energy jobs. Our country is on the verge of a manufacturing renaissance that has the potential to bring back American jobs previously outsourced.Clean energy is an important part of this revival. Giving wind energy the tax credits enjoyed by other forms of energy supports our nation’s independence, economic prosperity and environmental sustainability. Most importantly, wind energy provides a clean energy alternative that protects our air from pollution that threatens the well-being of our children.
A Senate Committee recently voted to extend the federal wind energy Production Tax Credit. To become law, it will need to pass in the full Senate and House of Representatives and be signed off by President Obama, who has expressed his support of the Credit. Please check out the American Sustainable Business Council and encourage your Congressmen to vote to extend the PTC. Cleaner energy protects our children’s health!
Thank you, Sarah!
Sarah Mazzone is a writer, nurse and Mom living just outside Philadelphia, PA. Sarah founded Made In USA Challenge with a mission to find goods made in USA and become a more conscious consumer. Made In USA Challenge features goods made in America that are safe, ethically made, eco-friendly and awesome.
TELL THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES TO TALK ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING