A new analysis has discovered that Missouri is leading the Midwest region in the number of energy storage and smart grid jobs.
A total of 55,521 people are now working in the industry throughout the state, according to Clean Energy Trust and Environmental Entrepreneurs, a national nonpartisan business group.
The study found that job growth is occurring more than three times faster than Missouri’s overall job growth in sectors that include renewable energy generation, advanced transportation, and clean fuels.
The analysis is based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and a survey of thousands of businesses across the region. BW Research Partners performed the compilation.
The Clean Jobs Midwest report offers detailed breakdowns of clean energy jobs — including job totals for every county, congressional district, and state legislative district in Midwest regional states such as Missouri and Kansas.
The statistics further show that Missouri’s clean energy workforce employs more than six times as many people than all of the computer programmers and web developers in the state.
“Missouri has quickly become a clean energy job hub,” said Tony Wyche, a Missouri-based consultant for Environmental Entrepreneurs. “But we need policymakers in Jefferson City and Washington, D.C. to promote clean energy development to ensure that America doesn’t fall behind global competitors.”
The report also covers energy sector comparisons for each of the Midwest states.
Energy efficiency continues to be the largest energy employer in Missouri, accounting for more than 40,000 jobs that include hardware and software implementers.
Missouri led the region with a total of over 1,500 jobs in energy storage and smart grid.