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Wisconsin coalition pushes feds for 'green' jobs
A coalition of Wisconsin environmental groups and government officials is asking President-Elect Obama and Congress to include projects in the coming economic stimulus package that would protect and improve the environment while creating good-paying jobs.
Some of the proposals were already in the economic stimulus proposal that Gov. Jim Doyle presented in Washington, D.C., but the coalition is emphasizing projects that would lead to a "green economy" for the 21st century.
"The unprecedented infusion of federal resources being proposed in Washington is an opportunity for Wisconsin to start building a 21st century economy that creates new family-supporting jobs and is more ecologically sustainable," said Robert Kraig, program director for Citizen Action of Wisconsin.
The main focal points of a $2 billion blueprint announced during a State Capitol press conference Tuesday morning are: building energy independence through renewable energy, retrofitting existing buildings to make them energy-efficient, building public transit lines to connect people to jobs, and renovating crumbling urban water and sewer systems.
The coalition favors public transit improvement and road repair over new road construction.
The projects, which include statewide efforts as well as local plans, would create about 30,000 jobs in Wisconsin, officials said.
Local projects proposed for Dane County include funds for two potential manure digesters that would help dairy farmers get rid of livestock waste while creating electrical energy or fuel; a solar energy project that would provide hot water for the City-County Building; and the use of geothermal heating and cooling for the new Badger Prairie Health Care Center.
County Executive Kathleen Falk, a member of the coalition, said that though the county has budgeted some funds for these projects, federal dollars could augment or even replace that money.
"We have this national recession, but a new president committed to sustainability," Falk said. "These are shovel-ready projects that are the smart thing to do."
Proposals for Madison include a revolving loan program for energy-efficient projects by homeowners and a grant program for businesses to install solar systems.
Proposals for Milwaukee include retrofitting Milwaukee housing stock to save energy and replacing street lighting with energy-saving technology.
"Wisconsin residents are paying 30 percent more for energy because of drafty buildings," said state Rep. Jon Richards, D-Milwaukee, adding that good-paying construction jobs retrofitting and weatherizing buildings could build a bridge between unemployed people -- especially African-Americans -- and the new green economy.
Rehabilitation of impoverished urban neighborhoods with large-scale renovation projects, including cleanup of contaminated properties, is needed to address industrial contamination and poverty issues, the blueprint said. Job training should be part of the stimulus effort, Richards said.
Transit projects included in the blueprint include high-speed rail between Kenosha and Watertown, funding for public transit vehicles, and train stations in Madison that would serve high-speed rail.
Water infrastructure improvements proposed for Madison include urban stormwater diversion to protect the Cherokee marsh, a stormwater management plan, and installation of stormwater treatment catch basins in the Capitol neighborhood. Conversion to a meter reading system for the Madison Water District that would aid water conservation and data collection also was included.
"Joe Six Pack will go off in a hard hat to fix America," Richards predicted.
