Let’s Foment a Green Industrial Revolution
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Leo Gerard, president of the United Steelworkers, is among several key speakers at the Building the New Economy conference Oct. 29 in Washington, D.C. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka also is among the keynote speakers. Here Gerard describes why we need a 21st century green manufacturing revolution.
We need to foment a new American industrial revolution—specifically, a 21st century burgeoning of green manufacturing in the United States.
Americans going green—manufacturing windmills and solar cells—would benefit both the economy and the environment. As the Wall Street debacle that pushed this country into the Great Recession last year showed, the United States cannot depend on trading in obscure financial products to support its economy. To survive, America must be able to manufacture products of intrinsic value that can be traded here and internationally.
A Little ‘Buy American’ Goes a Long Way
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Gee what a concept: When U.S. taxpayer money is spent on economic stimulus programs that channel the funds into U.S. jobs, America’s communities, workers and, yes, the nation benefit.
Case in point: a stimulus-funded bridge project in Hubbard County, Minn., whose construction is based on the “Buy America” provision of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. From the Alliance for American Manufacturing:
According to a Hubbard County engineer who is overseeing the project, domestically sourced inputs, including cement, plywood, and 55,000 pounds of reinforced steel, are being used because of the Buy America requirement.
Instead of using foreign inputs, which are less stimulative for job creation, domestic steel is being used to create 30-foot I-beams to support the bridge deck. Steel rebar is also used in the project. The local engineer also reports that the Buy America requirements are not burdensome and are not an impediment to the project. The project came in under budget with $600,000 allotted, but only $430,000 needed to complete the project. The bridge construction is moving quickly and is expected to be completed shortly.
Trumka Challenges G-20 Leaders to Respect Workers, Environment
Last night in Pittsburgh, at an event featuring former Vice President Al Gore and a broad coalition of environmental and union leaders, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka challenged the global heads of state attending the G-20 conference to build a new economic order that protects the dignity of workers and the planet.
The world cannot afford to continue with a globalization that works only for the very richest and leaves workers and the communities they live in behind, Trumka said. While the G-20 leaders meet, unions are issuing a declaration that calls for global action for good jobs:
Together, the labor movement and the environmental movement are a fighting force for change. This is our time—time to let the powers gathered here this week know exactly what we want, and exactly what we won’t stand for. We want a clean energy economy that creates good jobs, and we want a safe and healthy planet.
New Fuel Standards Protect Environment and Workers
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney praised today’s agreement on nationwide fuel economy standards as “a major step forward and a victory for America’s workers, consumers and the environment.”
The agreement, announced today by President Obama, requires vehicle carbon dioxide emissions be reduced by about one-third. Under the changes, the overall fleet average would have to be 35.5 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2016, with passenger cars reaching 39 mpg and light trucks hitting 30 mpg. Manufacturers also would be required to hit individual mileage targets.
Colorado Springs IBEW Hall Goes Green
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The members of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 113 in Colorado Springs, Colo., are living the union movement’s commitment to creating good green jobs and protecting our environment.
In late March, union members completed installing rooftop solar panels at the union hall. The all-union project will provide about 80 percent of the local’s electrical needs for the next 25 years.
The project will help save the environment and put money back into the union’s coffer. With an average of 330 sunny days a year in Colorado Springs, Local 113 expects to recoup the photo voltaic system’s $164,000 cost in short order. The solar energy system, which consists of 144 union-made panels, is a direct use system—meaning power is used as it is generated. And whatever surplus energy is generated can be sold back to the local utility company.
Report: China’s Lax Environmental Laws Cost Jobs and Lives
The long list of China’s unfair trade advantages and human rights violations already includes currency manipulation, failure to enforce workers’ rights and a general disrespect for human rights. Now, add global pollution to the list. A new report reveals that China is among the world’s leading polluters and putting the brakes on global warming can not be achieved unless the administration and Congress hold China accountable for its reckless environmental practices.
The report, An Assessment of Environmental Regulation of the Steel Industry in China, was released today by the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a nonpartisan, nonprofit partnership of several leading U.S. manufacturers and the United Steelworkers (USW). The report focuses on China’s rapidly growing steel industry and documents China’s ineffective enforcement of weak pollution-control standards, its failure to use adequate pollution-prevention measures, and the resulting high levels of pollution.
