SPECIAL FEATURES:
Email
58% of Americans are optimistic about solar job market
Applied Materials examines consumer awareness about the solar industry.
Wed, Jun 20 2012 at 8:00 AM
Related Topics:
Photo: Andreas Demmelbauer/Flickr
What better day than today, the summer solstice, to write a post about the solar energy industry. Applied Materials is celebrating the solstice with the release of its annual solar energy survey, which examines consumer awareness about the solar industry in the United States, China, India and Japan.
One of the questions asked in the survey was “How do you think the growth of the solar market will impact the job market?” Overall, 46 percent of respondents felt that growth in the solar market would have a positive impact on the broader job market through job creation.
American consumers responded the most favorably to this question with 58 percent of survey participants feeling that solar market growth would create jobs in the United States. Surprisingly, 20 percent of respondents felt that solar market growth would actually reduce jobs. The remaining participants felt that the solar market wouldn’t have any impact on the job market as a whole.
Another interesting result was the question of which country leads the way in solar panel installations. Most respondents felt that their country was the worldwide leader in solar arrays. However, according to Solarbuzz, Germany actually tops the list of cumulative solar installations.
Respondents in Japan guessed Germany more than respondents in other countries, though. When asked which country had the most solar panel installations, 42 percent of Japanese participants answered Japan but 35 percent answered this question correctly by stating that Germany was number one in the world.
The Applied Materials annual solar energy survey also addressed questions about solar costs and grid parity. These findings and more can be found by visiting the Applied Materials Summer solstice celebration page or following along on Twitter with #solsticeapplied.
The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.
You might also like:
Sign in with one of these accounts to add your comment.
EDITORS' PICKS
Advertisement
TODAY'S MOST POPULAR ON
- U.S. solider and stray cat save each other in Afghanistan
- 15 famous people who mysteriously disappeared
- Mount Everest conquered by 80-year old Japanese climber
- Why we turn to dogs when disaster strikes
- Kidnapped women will have chance to adopt Ariel Castro's dogs
- 10 false facts most people think are true
- 13 natural remedies for the ant invasion
- 9 habits that may do more harm than good
- Why I don't wear sunscreen
- Jon Stewart explains the ‘Monsanto Protection Act’
From our sponsor
NEWSLETTER
ABOUT Melissa Hincha-Ownby
Business guru blogs about the latest in green biz.
Advertisement
Here's one more reason to be optimistic about solar: a new report by NREL says that 200,000 GWh are possible in the US from Solar PV, and Concentrating SOlar Power (CSP). Smaller utility-scale solar farms in rural areas have the biggest potential.
See the full report at: http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy12osti/51946.pdf
I am optimisic that thin film solar will be intergrated into glass panels some future time. There exist dyes that absorb a specific wavelenth of light and convert it to electricy. At some future point, a dye that absorbs Ultraviolet-A will be found. A panel of glass coated with clear, conducting graphene, then the UVA dye, and sealed with clear plastic would be the power making greenhouse panel of choice.