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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0210.001 2008-2010William P. Kenoi Mayor Randall M. Kurohara Director Diane L. Ley Deputy Director County of Hawaii DEPARTMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 25 Aupuni Street, Room 109 • Hilo, Hawaii 96720A252 (808) 961-8366 • Fax (808) 935-1205 E-mail: chresdev(a)co.hawaii.hi.us May 4, 2009 N O ° ~~ ~~ Honorable JYoshimoto, Chair z ,- ~_' s County Council '- •` ' . Honorable Dennis Onishi, Chair _s~= 3 ~=-. and Committee Members >' ,; ~ w r-; _ y Committee on Food and Energy Sustainability ~~'' cn 333 Kilauea Avenue, Second Floor `-" Hilo, Hawaii 96720 RE: Communication 210 requesting an update on Resolution 731-08, Relating to the Green Jobs Act 2007 and Establishing aCounty- Wide Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Worker Training Program. Dear Council Chair Yoshimoto, Committee Chair Onishi and Members: Please find attached a status report relating to a needs assessment and workforce development opportunities to support the expansion of green jobs on the island of Hawaii. My staff and I look forward to addressing any questions that the members of the Committee on Food and Energy Sustainability may have on May 5, 2009. Sin~ely, VAC Randall M. Kurohara Director Attachment Comm. No. 2 ~ ~ Ref. To: Presec;od Ref. Dare MAY ~ Hawari County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer ~'`a'"'' COUNTY OF HAWAII •'~ :• STATE OF HAWAII t; ~~oa i~ RESOLUTION NO. '7:31 nt~ A RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING THE ADMDYISTRATION TO RESEARCH THE APPLICATION PROCESS TO OBTAIN FUNDING FOR AN ENERGY WORKER- .RELATED TRAINING PROGRAM, AS ESTABLLSHED TAItOUGH THE GREEN JOBS ACT 2007. WHEREAS, the Green Jobs Act 2007, was signed into law on December 19, 2007 and codified as part of Public Law 110.140, Title X, Section 1002: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Worker Training Program; and WHEREAS, the Green Jobs Act 2007 provides a funding source "to establish an energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training program"; and WHEREAS, this legislation established up to $125 million in grant funding to initiate national and state job training programs to help address job shortages that are impairing growth in green industries, such as energy efficient buildings and wnstruction, renewable electric .,. power, energy-efficient vehicles, and bio-fuels development; and WHEREAS, on January 31, 2008, Governor Lingle signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Department of Energy for the Hawaii-DOE Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI), where the strategic vision to the initiative's implementafion recognizes Hawai`i's need to "build the workforce of the future" and "help create educational and employment opportunities necessary to sustain a clean energy economy"; and WHEREAS, unemployment is constantly rising in Hawaii CounTy, increasing in May 2008 to 6.0%, the highest in the state and well above state (3.8%) and national (5.5%) levels; and WHEREAS, this initative not only assists in building a path towards a strong energy self-sustainable~future, but also helps our workforce reply to the increasing demand for "green jobs", opening employment opportunities for "green-collar" jobs, benefiting mainly, but not solely, low-income and working-class constituents, especially in these times of high unemployment;' now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCII. OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that the administration explore the possibilities of establishing a county-wide energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training program; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the administration explore how to access federal funding provided by the Green Jobs Act 2007; and ~.. ~/ w ,\ County Council Resolution 731-08 Administration's Status Report May 4, 2009 County Council Resolution No. 731-08, encourages the Administration to research the application process to obtain funding for an energy worker-related training program, as established through the Green Jobs Act 2007. (See attached Resolution No. 731-08). The specific outcomes requested are listed below in Roman Numerals with the Administration's efforts to date directly below that represented by bulleted arrows. I. Explore the possibilities of establishing acounty-wide energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training program. - The County has and continues to provide leadership and guidance to the Hawaii Community College (HCC), University of Hawaii at Hilo (UHH) and State Workforce Development to support their efforts and encourage new initiatives. These organizations have the technical and programmatic resources for developing and delivering workforce development training programs. They are also supported and guided by the Workforce Investment Board (WIB) which is comprised of state, county and business leaders who have a key stake in the quality of our workforce. - The Administration played an active role in the several business/labor development workshops recently, including Surviving the Tough Times and Going Green Workshop. Both of these WIB sponsored workshops generated many ideas relating to green job development and opportunities. - R&D is co-sponsoring eight (8) Energy Efficiency and Auditing Workshops in partnership with Hawaii Community College, Friends of NELHA, HELCO and County Council. II. Explore how to access federal funding provided by the Green Jobs Act 2007. - Neither Congress nor the President has yet to include funding for this Act in the federal budget. R&D continues to monitor legislation as it arises. - A number of potential funding opportunities ($500 million) have been identified through the federal stimulus package relating to green jobs training and these are being monitored. The County's partners in developing a proposal for application would include the HCC, UHH, State Workforce Development and the business communitythrough the WIB. County Council Resolution 731-08 Administration's Status Report May 4, 2009 Page 2. III. Prepare a list of "green collar" jobs that might be needed for Hawaii County to become energy self-sustainable per the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative. - Green Jobs can be defined as those jobs that support individuals, businesses and government to achieve economic self-sufficiency and move us all forward in achieving goals of energy efficiency, expanded utilization of renewable energy resources and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Key green jobs include: • Green building design and construction, retrofit and value added manufacturing ^ Reuse, deconstruction and recovery of resources ^ Local and sustainable agriculture ^ Renewable energy including production of in-puts and processing for geothermal, solar, wind, ocean thermal • Eco-tourism ^ Creative sector-digital media, eco-fashion and arts ^ Holistic Science and Technology ^ Through education and collective efforts, all jobs can be made "greener." - On December 11, 2008 R&D entered into a contract with the local company, Green Collar Technologies to support the outcomes of the resolution by: ^ Conducted eight (8) sustainable living workshops in East and West Hawaii related to community based economic development. - Upcoming economic development report titled, Innovation Island of Hawaii -Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable Island Economy will be published by the Department of Research and Development in July 2009. The report reviews recent international, national and local studies, research, plans, policies and activities related to sustainable economy and green jobs. Below is the outline of the report: ^ Executive Summary • Table of Content ^ Research Overview • Background • Learning from the past • Defining minimum condition for sustainable economy • Spectrum of economic development -Green, Sustainable, and Regenerative ^ Chapter One -Global Context • Introduction • Major Flaw in the Current global economy • GDP i County Council Resolution 731-08 Administration's Status Report May 4, 2009 Page 3. • 1.3 Measures of prosperity and well-being • 6PI • Happy Planet • Local Sustainability Indicators • 1.4 Opportunities for Sustainable Island Economy • 1.5 Examples of World Changing Initiatives ^ Chapter Two -Island Economy • 2.llntroduction • 2.2 Industry Transformation • 2.3 Hawaii Island Economic Snapshot • Cost of Import Economy and Benefits of Local Economy ^ Chapter Three -Island Trend • Introduction • Science and Technology • Healthy and Livable Community • Local Food Economy • Renewable Energy, Renewable Fuel and Climate Change • Sustainable Buildings • Resource Recovery and Management • Creative Sector ^ Chapter Four -Sustainable Business Solutions • 4.1 Benefit of Sustainable Solutions • 4.2 Local Success Stories ^ Chapter Five -Green Jobs Capacity Assessment • 5.1 A summary of national green job studies, research and forecast • 5.2 An environmental scan of local businesses and organizations focused on sustainable practices ^ ChapterSix-Conclusion Appendix