ARIZONA DAILY STAR
October 18, 2011
Arizona ranks third among the states for the number of solar-energy jobs, up from eighth last year, says an industry survey released Monday.
Arizona had an estimated 4,786 solar jobs and 980 solar establishments as of August, says a survey conducted for The Solar Foundation, a nonprofit solar energy promotion group.
That’s up from an estimated 3,800 solar jobs in Arizona in last year’s inaugural survey.
California had the most solar jobs – more than 25,500 – and the most establishments, 3,550, according to the study by BW Research Partnership’s Green LMI Division and Cornell University.
Arizona ranked sixth in solar jobs per capita, with about one job per 1,336 people.
The survey likely undercounts jobs and establishments, because it does not include academic institutions, nonprofit agencies and ancillary employers such as some accounting, legal and research firms, The Solar Foundation said.
Arizona solar jobs
Installation 36%
Sales 27%
Manufacturing 17%
Research and development 12%
Other 8%
Solar jobs by state
1. California 25,575
2. Colorado 6,186
3. Arizona 4,786
4. Pennsylvania 4,703
5. New York 4,279
6. Florida 4,224
7. Texas* 3,346
8. Oregon 3,346
9. New Jersey 2,871
10. Massachusetts 2,395
*Texas was ranked ahead of Oregon because it has more solar establishments
By the numbers
100,237
Solar-energy jobs nationwide as of August
6.8%
Growth in solar jobs from August 2010 to August 2011
24%
Expected nationwide growth rate for solar jobs in the next year
Source: The Solar Foundation
More information
To view the complete report, go to: thesolarfoundation.org
PICOR Editor’s note: For more information on Tucson’s Solar Zone, visit SolarZone on Facebook and the UA Tech Park website.
Read more: http://azstarnet.com/business/local/article_3741e35c-77ee-5023-90b1-cd1e8e03d73f.html#ixzz1b9rsomIi
