Gov. Gregoire highlights �green� collar job growth, innovative technology during the Green Jobs Symposium

September 23, 2008

Good morning, and thank you Peter for the kind introduction.

It�s great to be here so bright and early this morning � especially when it�s to talk about a subject I just can�t talk about enough these days�

�How to transform our economy into thousands of green-collar jobs while meeting our moral obligation to take on climate change at the state and regional level.

I first want to thank all of you for coming together today to ask the same question -- and do the hard work required to come up with answers.

The fact is, we are well on the road to transforming Washington into a place where we create good, rewarding, green-collar jobs while reducing our dependence on climate-changing fossil fuels.

Let me start with a little story for you, which is a beautiful illustration of what I�m talking about.

First of all, if you watched the Olympics coverage, you know that China has a major problem with pollution. In fact, a large part of China�s industrial base in and around Beijing was shut down during the games to clean up the air and create bluer skies.

Well, when Chinese President Hu visited our state two years ago, I had a meeting with him, and he told me China very much needs to take on serious environmental challenges -- including a shift into cleaner energy sources.

He told me in no uncertain terms that he knew we were committed to producing bio-fuels in Washington � and said his country would buy all we could produce.

That, folks, is the future -- and it isn�t just about biofuels. It�s about the whole array of green technology and produces we have developed, are developing and will develop.

The truth is, our state is already open for business not only with our northwest neighbors and our nation, but with the world.

In our Great State of Washington the future is already here from Puget Sound to Moses Lake to Longview and Vancouver to Aberdeen.

I�m talking about � for example -- the amazing ride I took last spring in an ordinary looking SUV that is anything but ordinary.

This plug-in hybrid � the XH-150 -- is unlike anything on the road. This vehicle -- developed by the AFS Trinity Power Corporation based just across the lake in Bellevue � can get up to 150 miles a gallon.

How? AFS figured out technology to give a strong electrical boost for acceleration, instead of depending on gasoline combustion for that.

And I have to tell you � the acceleration would impress even a teen-age boy.

Every time I turn around, I hear or read about innovators making things happen right here in Washington.

We have taken the first step toward swapping oil for biofuels � and at the same time we have learned that the answer cannot be to substitute biofuels for food.

Did you know that the Seattle area is already carving a name for itself as a research Mecca for growing and using algae as a biofuel?...

�With companies including AXI, Bionavitas, Indenture and Blue Marble Energy?

And of course we have the major construction contractor McKinstry based right here blazing new trails in the construction of super-efficient green buildings. I know McKinstry Vice President Dean Allen will have more to say about that later in the program.

Washington also is on the cutting edge of research and trials to make ethanol from wood and agricultural waste � cellulosic ethanol. Weyerhaeuser has teamed up with Chevron in an effort to develop this product. What better place than here, with all the wood products waste available?

You may already know that Washington is the fifth largest generator of wind power.

But did you know that Moses Lake is becoming a big player in solar energy? REC Silicon employs more than 350 people making solar power cells, and the company plans to expand and hire 170 more, and may build a plant in Wallula.

In fact, did you know that Washington is now the third largest producer of solar-energy equipment in the United States?

Down at the Ports of Longview and Vancouver, which used to specialize in raw logs, grain or coal, longshoremen are busy unloading huge components for wind farms going up in Washington and across the West.

In fact, the Port of Longview is so busy that it is setting aside 50 more acres of land to handle the shipments.

And before too long, I expect we�ll be exporting our own wind turbines made by sheet metal workers born and raised right here in Washington.

So what are we doing in the public sector to create this opportunity?

The short answer is a lot� from tax incentives to big policy changes -- and in the time I have today I�ll mention some of what we�re doing.

I won legislative approval this year for our far-reaching Climate Change Initiative that creates a framework to gradually wean us from our dependence on fossil fuels while creating thousands of green collar jobs. This isn�t a utopian dream. This is our future.

Our state is chairing our Western Climate Initiative � a collaboration of Washington, six other Western states, and four Canadian Provinces. We are developing a regional C02 �cap and trade� system.

This not only will cut greenhouse gas emissions � which I believe is our moral obligation. It will also create a real market for fossil fuel alternatives. We�ve been waiting for the federal government to step up, but we will wait no longer.

I mentioned tax incentives.

They range from a B&O tax credit for development expenses in the manufacture of solar energy components�to a sales tax exemption in the purchase of gas-saving automobiles.

(And by the way, we are transforming our state government vehicle fleet to where we now rank first in the number of hybrid and flex-fuel vehicles.)

�And our tax incentives range from a B&O tax credit for energy efficient commercial appliances to a tax break for buyers of waste oil used for fuel.

I know one of your big focuses today is how to make sure Washington has the skilled workforce to transform itself into a green economy.

So let me talk about that for a minute.

Here�s the 30,000-foot-view first.

We are busy reforming our education system from early childhood through adulthood. We are investing to create a world-class, learner focused system of lifelong learning so we can continue to thrive and compete in a world marketplace.

We have opened the doors to our colleges and universities to more students, and we have targeted high-demand fields in science, engineering, and computer technology.

At the same time, we have nearly doubled to 18,000 the number of high-school students moving into apprenticeship programs in the skilled trades. We are going to need the sheet metal workers, electricians, and builders to meet the demand for green collar jobs.

Now for a closer look. Our Climate Change Initiative contains a framework to focus on and invest in training and other programs specifically to make sure skilled workers from engineers to tradesmen and women are here to fill the jobs that are coming.

I intend to fill in this framework with specific proposals in the next legislative session.

And in this regard, we could use your help. Part of what I�ve been doing the last four years is connecting with regions and businesses in those regions.

What we are doing is learning from and partnering with businesses on the ground to help in any way we can to meet current and future employee needs.

The bottom line is we have created a real structure to make sure our door is open to hear what employers need and figure out how to make it happen.

I applaud what you�re doing here today � coming together to share stories and ideas to transform Washington into an economy where families will support themselves in green-collar jobs.

As I said, this is our future. And in Washington we�re embracing that future.

Thank You