ALTERNATIVE ENERGY COMPANIES ARGUE FOR CLIMATE CHANGE BILL
Posted on 27 October 2009
Arkansas business leaders released details of a new economic analysis that they contend would create up to 25,000 jobs in Arkansas if Congress approves climate change legislation contained in the Waxman-Markey bill.
Arkansas Business Leaders for a Clean Energy Economy, an informal network of alternative energy companies, also said that energy legislation under debate in Congress could increase Arkansas incomes by $1,230 annually and add $1.2 billion to the state’s economy.
The group based their findings on the Environmental Assessment in General Equilibrium (EAGLE) model, a peer-reviewed economic model developed by the University of California, the University of Illinois and Yale University. It details patterns of supply, demand, employment, incomes, resource allocation, energy use, and emissions across the nation and within each of the 50 United States. You can read the group’s Arkansas fact sheet at this link.
“This study shows that the stronger the federal energy and climate policies, the more Arkansas stands to gain economically,” said Eddy Moore, coordinator of Arkansas Business Leaders for a Clean Energy Economy.
In recent years, Arkansas has landed four wind-related energy manufacturers and has several biomass and biofuel plants under construction.
Energy companies including Murphy Oil Corp. and Lion Oil Co. have voiced opposition to changes contained in the Waxman-Markey bill.
In our last issue of Talk Business Quarterly, former Murphy Oil CEO Claiborne Deming outlined his opposition to the Waxman-Markey bill. As a sneak preview of our upcoming issue of TBQ, Congressman Vic Snyder offers his thoughts on the need for predictability for American businesses in a guest op-ed. We’ll share that column with you later this week.