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Is counting 'Green Jobs' a green job or a hazardous undertaking?
The Department of Commerce released "Measuring the Green Economy," an early attempt to take inventory of how many "green jobs" exist today -- and what should count anyway.
The report (pdf) says selling "used merchandise," including toys, books and jewelry, can be thought of as a green job.
But even by a generous count, one that adds such jobs to other, commonly cited occupations like installing solar panels and weatherizing buildings, green jobs make up only 1 to 2 percent of the workforce.
May 24, 2010
by Saqib Rahim
in New York Times
On a good day, Michelle Charak might haul away 300 boxes of outmoded buttons from a factory that's all too happy to lose the clutter.
At her shop in New York City, she'll hand-stitch the buttons into chic necklaces and bracelets, then sell them on her company's website, Chelcnyc.com, for hundreds of dollars a pop.
Is that a "green job"? Charak says so.
"They think it's junk. So I take their junk and I make something," she says. "It's not your typical green job, but it has probably a lower environmental impact than most of the green jobs out there."
According to the... [continue via Web link]
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