The Volokh Conspiracy - Green Jobs: Creating a New Bubble?

No one can question President Obama's commitment to green jobs. He is proposing to create 5 million green jobs (about 3% of the US employed workforce) through new programs such as the Green Job Corps, the Clean Energy Corps, and the Global Energy Corps.

It is a matter of faith, not evidence, that the government is so wise that it can anticipate what green jobs will be needed in several years and train people to do them. Unless energy at least triples in price (which is entirely possible), there are likely to be few jobs for the new green-collar workforce that are mandated, not by the needs of the market, but instead by government.

Nonetheless, the leading advocate of a green economy, Vann Jones, is in the White House pressing his vision on the American economy.

In the London Times, Dominic Lawson opines:

The key to a successful, wealth-generating economy is productivity. Saving energy is what businesses have done already, because it lowers their production costs. The problem with any form of subsidy is that it makes the consumer (through hidden taxes) pay to keep inherently uneconomic businesses "profitable". Meanwhile, diversified energy companies such as Shell, with plenty of speculatively acquired wind-farm acreage, are salivating at the plans by Obama to introduce cap-and-trade carbon emissions targets for American industry.

Obama's energy secretary, Steven Chu, had some soothing words for US manufacturing companies that complained that the new policy will make them even less competitive with Chinese exporters, since the people's republic has indicated that it has no intention of inflicting a similar increase in energy costs on its own producers. He suggested that America might have to introduce some sort of "car-bon-intensive" tariff on Chinese goods. One of China's envoys, Li Gao, immediately retorted that such a carbon tariff would be a "disaster", since it could lead to global trade war.

Actually, Mr Li is right: and this is how an achingly fashionable and well-intentioned plan to create "millions of new green jobs" could instead end up making the global economy even sicker than it is already.

The London Times article in effect asks: Are green jobs the new sub-prime (tip to Instapundit)?

Further, do efforts to create green jobs even work to create more jobs than they destroy?

	[Jim Lindgren, April 20, 2009 at 8:18pm] Trackbacks Green Jobs: Creating a New Bubble? No one can question President Obama's commitment to green jobs. He is proposing to create 5 million green jobs (about 3% of the US employed workforce) through new programs such as the Green Job Corps, the Clean Energy Corps, and the Global Energy Corps. It is a matter of faith, not evidence, that the government is so wise that it can anticipate what green jobs will be needed in several years and train people to do them. Unless energy at least triples in price (which is entirely possible), there are likely to be few jobs for the new green-collar workforce that are mandated, not by the needs of the market, but instead by government. Nonetheless, the leading advocate of a green economy, Vann Jones, is in the White House pressing his vision on the American economy. In the London Times, Dominic Lawson opines: The key to a successful, wealth-generating economy is productivity. Saving energy is what businesses have done already, because it lowers their production costs. The problem with any form of subsidy is that it makes the consumer (through hidden taxes) pay to keep inherently uneconomic businesses "profitable". Meanwhile, diversified energy companies such as Shell, with plenty of speculatively acquired wind-farm acreage, are salivating at the plans by Obama to introduce cap-and-trade carbon emissions targets for American industry. Obama's energy secretary, Steven Chu, had some soothing words for US manufacturing companies that complained that the new policy will make them even less competitive with Chinese exporters, since the people's republic has indicated that it has no intention of inflicting a similar increase in energy costs on its own producers. He suggested that America might have to introduce some sort of "car-bon-intensive" tariff on Chinese goods. One of China's envoys, Li Gao, immediately retorted that such a carbon tariff would be a "disaster", since it could lead to global trade war. Actually, Mr Li is right: and this is how an achingly fashionable and well-intentioned plan to create "millions of new green jobs" could instead end up making the global economy even sicker than it is already. The London Times article in effect asks: Are green jobs the new sub-prime (tip to Instapundit)? Further, do efforts to create green jobs even work to create more jobs than they destroy? Related Posts (on one page): More on the Myth of "Green Jobs": Spanish University Study Questions Green Jobs. Green Jobs: Creating a New Bubble?