Two Governors, Amazon Consultant, Foundation Leader Tell Local Chambers the Economic Outlook for Clean Energy is Strong

The transition to the clean energy economy is happening now. States are making it happen. Local communities are making it happen. And corporations are making it happen.

This was the message on last week’s special briefing call for local chambers from guest speakers Gov. Rick Snyder (R-MI); former Governor Bill Ritter Jr. (D-CO); Rich Powell, Executive Director of the ClearPath Foundation; and Theresa Kostzrewa, Consultant for Amazon.

“We had strong bipartisan support [for Michigan’s recent landmark clean energy legislation],” said Gov. Snyder, “because it was based on good science, good economics, and good substance as opposed to the winds of Washington.”

Today’s clean energy transition “is not being driven by mandates. It’s being driven by the market,” said former Gov. Bill Ritter, Executive Director of the New Energy Economy at Colorado State University.

“Renewable energy,” said Theresa Kostzrewa, Consultant for Amazon and Founder of Capital Advantage, “is going to continue growing. It’s not going to stop or slow down.” One reason is that many corporations are demanding it. “It’s not just the Amazons and Googles and Facebooks,” she said. “It’s Smithfield Foods, the largest pork procurers in the world. It’s everybody.” 

Continue reading for more highlights from the call that attracted nearly 90 local chambers of commerce and member businesses from across the nation. The briefing was co-hosted by the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce, the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, and Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy.

Read: A Who's Who of Chamber Members... Who Are the Top Clean Energy Users.

Gov. Rick Snyder (R-MI):

• “We had strong bipartisan support [for Michigan’s clean energy legislation] because it was based on good science, good economics, and good substance as opposed to the winds of Washington.”

• “When the Trump Administration came in and went the other way [on renewable energy], we said we are not changing course because we have good, smart policy.”

• “Our utilities were supportive and understood that coal’s days were numbered and that the faster they could make a transition in a smart way, it’s good for them.”

• “I think we’re well positioned for the future. I’m very proud of what we’ve done.”

The Honorable Bill Ritter, former Governor of Colorado (D), Director of the Center for the New Energy Economy at Colorado State University:

• “If you read only about Congress, you would assume there is nothing but [clean energy] rollbacks being done in Washington, D.C.

• “Nothing can be further from the truth because of the activity that is happening with states, local governments, and corporations.”

• “The cost of natural gas is making coal less attractive. And with the cost of renewable energy coming down we are seeing that coal plants are being replaced by renewables; and I think we will see that continuing as we go forward.”

• “This is not being driven by mandates. It’s being driven by the market.”

Rich Powell, Executive Director of the ClearPath Foundation

• “I joined a [U.S.] Chamber Foundation debate recently. In the past, it might have been between someone for and someone against clean energy. Now we were debating what is the right way to transition the economy to cleaner sources of energy.”

• “Mary Barra, CEO of GM, just spoke today in front of a largely oil and gas crowd about electric vehicles and how the future for GM’s fleet will be a gas-free future.”

Theresa Kostzrewa, Consultant for Amazon and Founder of Capital Advantage

• “Corporations are demanding renewable energy to power their operations. It’s not just the Amazons and Googles and Facebooks. It’s Smithfield Foods, the largest pork procurers in the world. It’s everybody.”  

• “Eighty-six percent of millennials want renewable energy.”

• “If elected officials want their communities to be attractive [to corporations, millennials, and others] over the next 20 or 30 years, they need to provide access to renewable energy or be left behind.”

• “Renewable energy is going to continue growing. It’s not going to stop or slow down.”

Kent Wood, Director of Government Relations for TraverseConnect and the Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance

• “Our members understand the value and economic benefits of renewable energy and energy efficiency.”

• “And we actively supported Governor Snyder’s efforts to have more renewable energy and more energy efficiency.”

• “At our chamber, we created an energy efficiency loan program for our members that helped dozens of them save money through energy upgrades.”

Steve Clark, President and CEO of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce

• “We settled on renewable energy as an important part of who and what we are because we think talent and a sense of place are two critical ingredients in economic development; and talent wants to be a part of a renewable energy community.”

• “Fayetteville became the 54th city to commit to 100 percent renewable energy and the first in the state of Arkansas.”

• “Our largest employer, Walmart … and all employers are looking to us to grow our community with renewables.”

Ohio’s Local Chamber Leaders Share Story of Wind Benefits with State Legislators

Local chamber, economic development, and community leaders traveled to the state capitol on multiple occasions in 2017 to share their front-line stories about the benefits of wind energy. 

“Wind energy has been one of the biggest investments in Ohio and has the potential to contribute much more to Ohio’s future economic prosperity,” said Susan Munroe, President and CEO of the Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce, home to the Blue Creek Wind Farm. “We want to work with legislators to encourage further investment and job growth created with wind energy development.” 

Wind energy has resulted in investments of more than $775 million in Ohio. This new “cash crop” delivers significant tax benefits to schools and other institutions, income to landowners and local supply chain businesses while supporting county services in communities able to host these wind farms. 

In 2014, however, the Ohio legislature tripled the setback provisions, which determine how far a wind turbine must be situated from the nearest property line—resulting in a near moratorium on wind farm development and investment. 

In one example of the economic benefits of wind investments: Iberdrola Renewables is, by far, the single largest taxpayer in Van Wert County. It contributes more than $2 million a year in tax payments, and nearly as much to the country’s landowners who allow wind turbines to be placed on their property. 

Much of the tax money benefits local schools, which at least one superintendent  (Jeff Synder of Lincolnview) has called a “godsend.” 

Meanwhile, major corporations such as Amazon have recently announced increased demand for wind energy to power their data centers in the state.  

And, in 2015, the Toledo-based Owens Corning signed the largest wind power purchase agreement by an industrial company in the world—though it must source wind energy from Texas. 

Munroe and Seneca County Commissioner Shayne Thomas recently addressed the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to describe the value that tax base increases, property owner payments, and increased economic activity deliver to their economies when utility scale wind farms are constructed. Read their testimony here and here.

Pictured at top from left to right: Tom Bullock, Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy; Jim Hoops, Northwest State Community College; Peggy Emerson, President & CEO Paulding Chamber of Commerce; Susan Munroe, President & CEO Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce; Senate President Larry Obhof; Jeff Snyder, Superintendent, Lincolnview Schools, Van Wert County; David Zak, President & CEO Seneca Industrial & Economic Development Corp.

Greater Memphis Chamber Seizes “Clean” as an Opportunity for Business Growth, Cost Savings

The Greater Memphis Chamber is no stranger to creating a brighter, cleaner future.

Since 2014, the 2,200-member organization has taken the lead in an initiative known as “Memphis Clean by 2019” in partnership with the non-profit, Clean Memphis, which has a goal of making Memphis the cleanest city in the nation. 

More recently, after Amazon—one of the world’s top renewable energy purchasers—announced that they were accepting proposals for a new $5 billion headquarters, Memphis jumped at the opportunity to apply.

And, increasingly, the Chamber is working to help member businesses save money through energy innovation.

Phil Trenary, President & CEO, Greater Memphis Chamber

“At the Greater Memphis Chamber, we have a commitment to economic growth for all,” said Phil Trenary, President and CEO. “And we recognize that the growing opportunities in clean energy are an important part of that mix for our members.”

One way they have done this, for example, is by working closely with the local utility, Memphis Light, Gas and Water, to promote energy workshops for member companies to learn how they can make their workspaces more energy efficient.

One well-known member company, IKEA, also recently installed the largest solar panel array in state of Tennessee. Companywide, IKEA plans to invest $2.5 billion in renewable energy by 2020, reflecting growing corporate demand for clean energy across the nation.

With the work being done to seize the economic development opportunities in renewables by the Memphis, Bartlett and Chattanooga Chambers, Tennessee could soon be a hub for clean energy development in the South.

Local Chambers Honor Amazon, Google, NC Rep. Steinburg and More

Local chambers of commerce in North Carolina have first-hand experience with the benefits that come from the rising demand for, and investments in, clean energy.

So when Amazon was named as a 2017 Clean Energy Champion at this year’s annual Clean Energy Awards event hosted by Conservatives for Clean Energy and Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy, it was welcome news for one of the chambers that has already benefited from North Carolina’s first wind farm: Amazon Wind Farm US East.

“This hugely successful project has brought major economic benefits to northeastern North Carolina,” said Win Dale, Executive Director of the Edenton-Chowan Chamber of Commerce. “And we hope that we’ll see other wind projects in various stages of development in the area come to fruition to benefit a region that so greatly needs these types of investments.”

The Amazon Wind Farm, which became operational in February, is a $440 million project that employed 500 people during peak construction and has a permanent crew of 17 on-site technicians. Landowner payments and taxes will inject $1.1 million into the local economy each year.

Other business award winners included:

• Google, which owns and operates a $1.2 billion data center in Caldwell County and purchases power from a solar project in Rutherford County;

• Sierra Nevada, whose Mills River brewery uses 100 percent renewable energy;

• Weyerhaeuser, the state’s largest private property owner, which leases land to the Amazon Wind Farm and plans to lease additional property for wind projects under development in Chowan and Tyrell Counties; and

• New Sarum Brewing in Salisbury for its focus on energy efficiency.

“The nation’s leading companies have made access to renewable energy a key factor when deciding on site-selection and where to invest,” said Jennifer Behr, Senior Organizer for Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy.

“To stay competitive with the rest of the country for these businesses and jobs, we must meet this growing corporate demand for renewable energy by having strong pro-business and pro-renewable policies,” she said.

Rep. Bob Steinburg

Rep. Bob Steinburg Award

Rep. Bob Steinburg (R-1) also received the 2017 Clean Energy Legislative Champion award.

“Rep. Steinburg is one of the most outspoken advocates for renewable energy and the economic benefits that accompany it,” said Behr.

In a briefing call with local chambers across the state last month, Rep. Steinburg talked about the importance of keeping up with the growing clean energy market.

“We need to take the long-range view,” he said. “Where is [renewable energy] going to place us for economic development over next 10 to 20 years? I hope we continue to move forward and embrace renewable energy in our state.”

For more information about how your chamber can engage in the economic development opportunities in clean energy, contact Jennifer Behr at Jennifer@ChambersforInnovation.com.

Pictured at top: Jennifer Behr, CICE, and Cheri Chastain, Sierra Nevada.

Local Chambers Discover Something New about Their Members

“A lot of these businesses are members of my chamber, and I never knew they were big clean energy users. Can I have that list?” 

That was one of the most frequent comments heard during this year’s annual American Chambers of Commerce Executives meeting in Nashville, TN., at the Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy (CICE) booth.  

“A Who’s Who of Chamber Members: Who Are Top Clean Energy Users” was a surprise hit for many chamber leaders who discovered a wide range of mainstream businesses that have joined the ranks of the nation’s top clean energy users.  

Gone are the days when clean energy was of interest primarily to wind and solar energy companies. Now businesses across almost all sectors are purchasing clean energy, as price declines make clean energy the smart economic choice. 

Among them: Amazon, Avon Products, Best Buy, Campbell’s Soup, Dow Chemical, Ford Motors, General Mills, Home Depot, Smuckers, McDonalds, UPS, and Verizon, to name just a few. See the list here to learn if any of your chamber’s member businesses are among the top clean energy users.  

Reflecting a growing recognition that clean energy is also delivering jobs and investment income to communities large and small, 100 percent of local chambers surveyed also agreed that renewable energy and energy efficiency “make good economic sense and should be supported by good clean energy policies.”  

And check out this video of CICE’s Tom Bullock to learn more about the CICE network.  

Two Mid-Atlantic States See Close to Half-a-Million in Revenue from Onshore Wind Farms

“It is really exciting to be on the cutting edge of renewable energy and to be involved with Apex [Clean Energy.]” That’s what Botetourt County Chamber of Commerce Board President Peter Pearl recently said about a proposed wind farm that is planned as Virginia’s first onshore wind farm.

The Rocky Forge Wind Farm, a project of Apex Clean Energy, will represent a significant private investment in Botetourt County, which lies in Virginia’s Roanoke Region. In addition to adding new jobs, it is expected to generate $20 to $25 million in state and county tax revenue over the life of the project as well as drive decades of increased local purchasing, employment, and investment.

“This project is just another indicator of Botetourt’s focus on economic development and follows on the heels of several substantial announcements in the last year,” said Botetourt County Chamber Executive Director Doloris Vest. “Focusing on the energy of the future is just one way support the business of the future.”

Virginia’s southern neighbor recently launched its first wind farm, which the local chamber President and board President said they were thrilled to see operational. North Carolina’s Amazon U.S. East wind farm in Elizabeth City put to work more than 500 North Carolinians and brought in $18 million in investments. The project also will inject more than $1.1 million in landowner payments and taxes a year.

“Growing renewable energy in Virginia is not just about a healthier environment or a broader energy mix; it is also about economic growth and diversification,” Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe said early this year. “We are committed to giving innovative companies the tools they need when deciding where to locate and grow their operations.” The Governor toured the proposed farm site prior to construction.

Across the U.S., corporations and utilities are increasingly demanding wind energy because it has become one of the nation’s most affordable sources of electricity. In fact, in many parts of the country, it is cheaper to install a new wind energy generation facility than any other type of generation facility. It is also not subject to price fluctuations as many other forms of energy are.

$400 Million Project Delivers Jobs, Investments, and Tax Payments

When it comes to big new economic development opportunities, it’s no secret that rural communities sometimes feel left behind. But with the rise of wind energy, that has been changing. And this trend has not been lost on local chamber leaders and others focused on economic development.

In recent years, local chamber leaders in Ohio, Michigan, and Virginia have been speaking up about the benefits of wind energy to their communities. Now, local chamber leaders in North Carolina are joining their ranks with the opening of the state’s first large-scale wind farm, Amazon Wind Farm U.S. East.

“As representatives for the business community, it’s our responsibility to advocate for jobs and economic development in northeast North Carolina and the Elizabeth City region, and we are thrilled to see the [Amazon] project operational,” the Elizabeth City Chamber of Commerce President and Board President recently wrote in a letter to North Carolina’s Speaker, Tim Moore.

“The Amazon project has a significant impact on the local economy and our Tier 1 [North Carolina’s most distressed] counties, as well as to our region’s economic growth and the ongoing expansion of the clean tech sector in the state,” Mike Hindenach and Doug Gardiner added.

“Everyone will benefit.” Amazon’s latest wind farm was built to power data centers outside Washington, D.C. But North Carolina’s local communities spanning Pasquotank and Perquimans counties are reaping direct economic benefits. Among them:

• More than 500 workers and 30 North Carolina companies were put to work

• More than $18 million was spent locally by Avangrid Renewables

• More than $1.1 million in landowner payments and taxes will be injected into the local economy each year, according to a report in Electric Light & Power.

“Almost everyone in the community knows someone who worked on the wind farm, sold or rented something that helped build the wind farm, or owns land where the project was built,” Cecil Perry, Chairman of the Pasquotank County Board of Commissioners, was quoted as saying.

“These jobs, and this nearly $400 million investment in a rural part of North Carolina, are welcome — everyone in the county will benefit from the long-term property tax payments,” Perry added.

Benefits to More NC Communities. But it is not only the communities that house wind farms that benefit from the development of wind energy. North Carolina, for example, has more than 70 companies across the wind supply chain, such as the making of blades, towers, generators, and turbine assembly.

Meanwhile, a second wind farm, Timbermill Wind, is eyed for development in North Carolina that could bring in between $600,000 to $800,000 a year for each of the counties it would span. Chowan County unanimously approved conditional use permits, but Perquimans County did not. The developer, Apex Clean Energy, is moving forward with the project in Chowan County while it appeals the decision in Perquimans County.

The Edenton-Chowan Chamber adopted a resolution in support of wind energy and the proposed project, then helped lead the charge to co-host a briefing call for other chambers.

“What does wind energy mean to little Chowan County?” asked Win Dale, Executive Director of the Edenton-Chowan Chamber of Commerce, a place that struggles to maintain its tax base and provide jobs that will be home to the state’s second planned wind farm, Timbermill Wind. “It means increasing our revenue by $250,000 a year,” he said.

The Outer Banks Chamber, home to a strategic spot for offshore wind development, has also publically expressed their support for wind development. Offshore wind could lead to 48,145 jobs in North Carolina—approximately 25,000 more than from offshore drilling.

Pictured above from left to right: Rep. Howard Hunter; Rep. Chuck McGrady; Speaker Tim Moore; Rep. Holly Grange; Rep. Sam Watford; Rep. Bob Steinburg; Rep. John Bell; Rep. Chris Malone; Rep. John Szoka.

In VA, Roanoke Chamber Hosts Governor, Clean Energy Business Roundtable

The Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce hosted Gov. McAuliffe at a Clean Energy Business Roundtable in September to highlight the economic benefits clean energy is delivering to the businesses and communities of Southwest Virginia—and how to continue to grow clean energy investments and jobs.

“In Virginia, our investment in clean energy has quadrupled,” Gov. McAuliffe said. “I want the solar panels, the turbines, and the wind blades to all be manufactured in Virginia. We need to be a clean energy leader, and we’re just starting to kick that barn door wide open.”

In a Roanoke Times op-ed, Roanoke Chamber President and CEO Joyce Waugh underscored the chamber’s commitment to attracting clean energy investments. In a piece co-authored with with Larry Cummings of Trane, a global leader in air conditioning and innovator in energy efficiency, Waugh wrote:

“Here in Virginia, companies like Amazon and Microsoft have shown their commitment to renewable energy by procuring energy from solar installations. To continue to attract companies like these that care about clean energy, we need to ensure that policies are in place that support energy efficiency and renewable energy for businesses and residents.”

Read the op-ed here.

Ohio’s “Heartland” Chamber Applauds New $300 Million Wind Project

When Amazon announced last month that it would build a second wind farm in northwest Ohio, Jon Cross, president and CEO of the Hardin County Chamber & Business Alliance and Director of Economic Development, eloquently put the opportunity in perspective:

Big projects don’t “always have to happen in big cities,” Cross said. “They can happen in small communities like ours, courthouse communities that are an important engine of Ohio’s economy.”

The new wind farm, which is expected to become operational in late 2017, represents an estimated $300 million investment for Hardin County. It will also lead to a significant boost in local tax revenue for Hardin’s nine communities and its schools, said Cross.

“We’re waking up absolutely excited that Amazon will be indirectly a part of Hardin County.” – Jon Cross, president & CEO, Hardin County Chamber & Business Alliance and Director of Economic Development.

Located 60 minutes from Columbus and Toledo, the Hardin County wind farm will be Amazon’s second in Ohio and fourth in the nation. Learn more in The Columbus Dispatch.

Amazon’s first is going up in nearby Paulding County, where the $175 to 200 million investment is also good news for the Paulding Chamber’s Executive Director Peggy Emerson.

Speaking in a recent video, Emerson said: “Paulding Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to celebrate all of the renewable energy projects that we have going on. These are great ways for us to develop the economic benefits locally, and not only in our county, but the counties around us as well.”

Neighboring Van Wert County has experienced similar successes with Iberdrola’s Blue Creek Wind Farm, which began operation in 2012 and delivers $2 million a year in new revenue for schools and a steady stream of income for farmers.

Chamber CEO Peggy Emerson Speaks Out about Amazon Wind Farm

Ask Peggy Emerson, Executive Director of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce, what she thinks of the new Amazon wind farm going up in her county, and she’ll tell you:

“Paulding Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to celebrate all of the renewable energy projects that we have going on. These are great ways for us to develop the economic benefits locally, and not only in our county, but the counties around us as well.”

That’s how she put it in a video recently released by Amazon about the project that is now going up in Paulding County and expected to begin operations in May 2017.

Her enthusiasm about wind energy comes for a good reason: The Amazon Wind Farm is estimated to reflect an investment of $175 to $200 million a year in this small northwest Ohio community.

Said Paulding County Commissioner Roy Klopfenstein: “On a county level, we’ve been able to give our employees raises, the school systems have been able to add instructors, and after construction, I know of no township road that isn’t in better condition after they’ve left.”

Neighboring Van Wert County has experienced similar successes with Iberdrola’s Blue Creek Wind Farm, which began commercial operation in 2012 and delivers $2 million a year in new revenue for schools and a steady stream of income for farmers.

Van Wert Area Chamber CEO Susan Munroe has called wind a “cash crop” that reliably pays year after year.

Amazon is also planning wind farms in North Carolina and Indiana. Watch the video about the Paulding County project here: https://youtu.be/hoi4YTNBz1k.

Ohio Chambers Talk Wind Energy During Capitol Visit

From a Columbus suburb (home to a new wind-powered Amazon data center) to the small village of Paulding (where a new wind farm will begin generating electricity in 2017) local chamber leaders trekked to Ohio’s capitol this month to tell Gov. Kasich and lawmakers how their communities have benefited from wind energy.

“For businesses, school districts, and taxpayers in rural communities like ours, wind power is an absolute blessing,” said Peggy Emerson, Executive Director of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce.

“Wind energy has been one of the biggest investments in Ohio and has the potential to contribute much more to Ohio’s future economic prosperity,” said Susan Munroe, President and CEO of the Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce. “We want to work with legislators to encourage further investment and job growth created with wind energy development.”

To date, wind energy has resulted in investments of more than $775 million in Ohio. This new “cash crop” delivers significant tax benefits to schools and other institutions, income to landowners and local supply chain businesses while supporting county services in communities able to host these wind farms.

This was the second visit by local chamber leaders to the state’s capitol in the past year. In a related trend, a growing number of businesses have encouraged lawmakers to establish reasonable “setback” provisions, which determine how far a wind turbine must be situated from the nearest property line.

In 2014, the Ohio legislature tripled the required distance for turbines — resulting in a near moratorium on wind farm development and investment. Meanwhile, corporations such as Amazon have announced increased demand for wind energy to power data centers in the state. And the Toledo-based Owens Corning in 2015 signed the largest wind power purchase agreement by an industrial company in the world—but had to source wind energy from Texas.

Amazon Wireless Services, Panasonic, Apex Clean Energy, First Solar, and other businesses also sent a letter to Gov. Kasich this month encouraging more reasonable rules.

The local chamber leaders took a more personal approach, sharing their stories in meetings with the Governor’s Office; Speaker Cliff Rosenberger’s Office, a half-dozen representatives, including Rep. Shaffer, Chair of the House Public Utilities Commission; and Senators Cliff Hite and Jay Hottinger.

Pictured above from left to right: Susan Munroe, President & CEO, Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce; Former Ohio Rep. Jim Hoops; Eric Germann, President, Lincolnview Schools; Peggy Emerson, Executive Director, Paulding Chamber of Commerce; Brian Dicken, VP of Advocacy & Public Policy, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce.