Thomas Friedman argues that solar power shows signs of booming in countries where regulations allow it to grow. He suggests that existing regulations in the United States do not, and continue to favor the oil, gas and coal industries that have dominated the energy sector for years.
The reason that . . . other countries are building solar-panel industries today is because most of their governments have put in place the three prerequisites for growing a renewable energy industry: 1) any business or homeowner can generate solar energy; 2) if they decide to do so, the power utility has to connect them to the grid; and 3) the utility has to buy the power for a predictable period at a price that is a no-brainer good deal for the family or business putting the solar panels on their rooftop.
Regulatory, price and connectivity certainty, that is what Germany put in place, and that explains why Germany now generates almost half the solar power in the world today and, as a byproduct, is making itself the world-center for solar research, engineering, manufacturing and installation. With more than 50,000 new jobs, the renewable energy industry in Germany is now second only to its auto industry.
. . .
If you read some of the anti-green commentary today, you’ll often see sneering references to “green jobs.” The phrase is usually in quotation marks as if it is some kind of liberal fantasy or closet welfare program (and as if coal, oil and nuclear don’t get all kinds of subsidies). Nonsense.
This is another example of demosclerosis, covered below and in our lectures on Federalist #10. It also illustrates the concept of agency capture, the process by which an interest group can effectively capture a regulatory agency and ensure that any regulations it issues will favor the industry, not the general welfare.
