Posted April 28, 2010, at 9:03 a.m. CST
The advanced biofuel industry can create thousands of green jobs, if sustained political commitment and diverse federal programs support industry efforts to secure project financing. The Biotechnology Industry Organization April 27 thanked Reps. Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa., Mark Schauer, D-Mich., and Brian Bilbray, R-Calif., for introducing the Grow a Renewable Energy Economy Now-Jumpstart Other Biofuels (Green Jobs) Act of 2010, H.R. 5142.
Jim Greenwood, president and CEO of BIO, stated, "Rapidly increasing U.S. production of advanced biofuels is a sound way to create truly green jobs, contribute to economic growth, and significantly reduce reliance on imported petroleum. Enduring federal commitment to the goal of increasing advanced biofuel production is vital to maintaining investment and progress in building biorefineries and infrastructure. The technology for cellulosic and advanced biofuels is ready, even though commercial development has been slowed by economic conditions."
The Green Jobs Act is intended to support industry efforts to secure project financing by strengthening and expanding federal tax incentives for next-generation biofuels, thus accelerating the development of biorefineries and high-wage American jobs. The legislation would open existing cellulosic biofuels tax credits to algae-based fuels and extend the credits for four additional years. The proposed legislation would also provide cellulosic and algae-based biorefineries an option to choose a refundable 30 percent investment tax credit in lieu of production incentives, greatly enhancing the ability of pioneering producers to build their first commercial plants. Businesses would not be allowed to claim both the production and investment incentives but would be granted the flexibility to choose the incentive best suited to their business condition.
Brent Erickson, executive vice president for BIO's Industrial and Environmental Section, said, "If enacted, this legislation would provide the consistent, sustained and diverse federal support necessary to enable rapid growth of a sustainable advanced biofuel industry. This targeted, cost-effective public policy can help the industry translate innovation into economic growth, generate green jobs, and lower greenhouse gas emissions."
A recent report commissioned by BIO, "U.S. Economic Impact of Advanced Biofuels Production," projects that development of advanced biorefineries could create as many as 29,000 jobs over the next few years and hundreds of thousands by 2030, contributing more than $140 billion in economic growth. Further, BIO's white paper, "Biobased Chemicals and Products: A New Driver of U.S. Economic Development and Green Jobs," shows that projected growth in the biobased chemicals and plastics industry, which are also produced in advanced biorefineries, can create thousands more jobs. This sector, which accounts for 4 percent of the market, already generates 5,700 direct jobs and is likely responsible for more than 40,000 jobs economy wide.
For copies of "Biobased Chemicals and Products: A New Driver of U.S. Economic Development and Green Jobs" or "U.S. Economic Impact of Advanced Biofuels Production," contact Paul Winters at
pwinters@bio.org or (202) 962-9237, or visit
http://BIO.org/ind/.
SOURCE: BIO