KITCHEN: URBAN MODERNIZATION HEARING HIGHLIGHTS GREEN INITIATIVES

            PHILADELPHIA, March 23 — As Pennsylvania focuses more on energy efficiency for our homes and businesses, state Sen. Shirley Kitchen said she believes that urban modernization is a crucial step toward making Pennsylvania a clean energy leader.

            At the senator’s request, the Senate Urban Affairs and Housing Committee held a public hearing last week at CORA Services in Northeast Philadelphia to discuss the significance of urban modernization.

            The participants offered perspectives concerning modernization in building, infrastructure development and policy initiatives. 

            “Thanks to Pennsylvania’s historic Alternative Energy Investment Act of 2008 and the President’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, our state is taking great strides toward achieving energy independence, while investing in our economy through the emerging clean energy industry,” said Kitchen, who is the committee’s Democratic chairwoman. “If we want to continue this trend of going green, we have to think about conservation and efficiency on many different levels.

            “Fortunately, we learned at the hearing that we have many agencies that share Pennsylvania’s green vision, and their advice is important for developing policies that benefit Philadelphia and our entire state,” she said.

            A study conducted last year by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), “Potential for Energy Efficiency, Demand Response and Onsite Solar Energy in Pennsylvania,” found that energy efficiency can cost effectively meet 30 percent of the total energy demand in Pennsylvania, according to testimony from Liz Robinson, executive director of the Energy Coordinating Agency.

            “If the state were to implement the study’s recommendations to harvest this vast energy resource, we would collectively save $5 billion a year and create 27,000 new full-time jobs by 2025,” Robinson said.

            Some agencies are already putting green strategies to work. Asociacion Puertorriquenos en Marcha, a nonprofit organization that provides support services to the Latino community, has designed affordable housing units that include solar panels, recycled materials, Energy Star HVAC systems, rain barrels and more.

            Youthbuild Philadelphia, which helps high school dropouts earn their diplomas or certifications, offers vocational programs that train students in modern building trades. This training provides students with training “geared toward supplying them with the skills necessary to become part of the green workforce in the city of Philadelphia,” said Candace Carmon, director of vocational programming at Youthbuild Philadelphia.

            The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission also suggested that building an energy efficient economy invests in people by training them for green collar jobs.

            Kitchen is the author of legislation (Senate Bill 21) that would create the Green Work Force Training Program, which would promote job training related to energy efficiency and renewable energy industries.

            “This training program would increase energy efficiency and energy independence in Pennsylvania, while investing in our economy by training employees in cutting-edge industries,” Kitchen said. “If we’re going to talk about green building, we need a workforce to match the growing demand.”

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