中國儲能網(wǎng)訊：紐約時報最近報道，太陽能行業(yè)從業(yè)人數(shù)已經(jīng)超過了煤炭行業(yè)。去年，煤炭行業(yè)創(chuàng)造的就業(yè)崗位為398,235個，而太陽能行業(yè)為373,807個，二者已經(jīng)基本持平。但是更為有趣的是，能源效率行業(yè)創(chuàng)造的就業(yè)崗位為2,200,000個，遠遠超過兩者之和。在基礎能源服務交付過程中，提取、轉換、運輸、傳輸和終端使用各個環(huán)節(jié)都會產(chǎn)生潛在的損耗。提升整體系統(tǒng)能源效率的機會存在于每一環(huán)節(jié)之中。如果能源服務交付更加高效，可再生能源便能夠在一次能源供給中發(fā)揮更大的作用。隨著可再生能源的比例增加，提供同等水平的能源服務所需的一次能源就相應減少，從而最大程度地降低了整個系統(tǒng)的環(huán)境和經(jīng)濟成本。
The New York Times recently reported that the solar industry now employs more people than the coal industry. It made the point well by featuring the accompanying graphic, based on Department of Energy data that track employment in various energy sectors:
This finding is interesting for a number of reasons, not least of which is the fact that the administration has been emphasizing its intention to revitalize the coal industry. If the number of people employed in a sector is the measure of how much attention it should receive, the implication of the Times piece is that solar should be getting more.
As big as the solar vs. coal story is, the Times missed the even bigger story. Because, while it’s true that the solar industry employs more people than coal, it’s also true that energy efficiency employs more people than both of them combined.
In fact, as our updated graphic shows, energy efficiency employs more people than all the other energy sectors combined. The DOE numbers, derived from a methodology similar to the one used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for official employment reports, are the best estimates we have for employment in energy efficiency. As we noted in a prior post, such tracking is much trickier for efficiency than it is for traditional and alternative energy sectors, because energy efficiency is not a sector in the way that steel or auto manufacturing is. This makes it difficult to estimate energy efficiency employment, so we greatly appreciate DOE tracking these numbers so rigorously.
Solar power has always had a certain cachet to it: it’s often what comes to mind first when people think about emerging energy technology. But energy efficiency, doing more with less, has long been one of the largest, if largely invisible, sources of energy we have.
In that sense, there’s nothing new about how important the efficiency industry is, so the Times may not think it’s newsworthy. But if we are going to talk about how large the various energy industries are, it makes sense to include the largest one.
