A new study released today outlines Orange County鈥檚 future as the nation鈥檚 next 鈥渃leantech hub鈥� with green jobs that will fuel the region鈥檚 economy.
The study, authored by the 麻豆原创鈥檚 Institute for Economic Competitiveness, calls for establishing green building codes and creating 鈥淕reen Energy Challenge Grants鈥� to encourage researchers to develop and commercialize new technologies.
It also calls for expanding public-private research partnerships with 麻豆原创, Orange County and local companies. A new Cleantech Business Incubator at 麻豆原创, for example, would help start-up companies focusing on environmentally friendly and competitive businesses.
鈥淲hen it comes to cleantech, I think we鈥檙e talking about the 鈥榥ext big thing,鈥欌�� Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty said. 鈥淭his is about attracting the kind of companies to Orange County that will produce the goods and services to help the world go green.”
Clean technology — or 鈥渃leantech鈥� — means using innovative technology efficiently to drive business and provide solutions to global challenges while protecting the environment. Cleantech spans many industries from renewable energy and agriculture to recycling and transportation.
The study completes a year鈥檚 worth of brainstorming with environmentally conscious companies, researchers and county leaders. The meetings were part of Orange County鈥檚 Cleantech Symposium Series, spearheaded by Crotty and 麻豆原创鈥檚 Venture Lab.
鈥淐leantech has gone from being an exotic concept 10 or 20 years ago to something that鈥檚 much more commercially and economically feasible,鈥� said Sean Snaith, director of 麻豆原创鈥檚 Institute for Economic Competitiveness. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to involve government action as well as free markets, and that combination is what will drive cleantech forward in Orange County.鈥�
Transforming Orlando into a cleantech hub akin to Seattle or San Diego will take the same kinds of partnerships that occurred in the creation of the 鈥渕edical city,鈥� Snaith said.
At the state level, the Metro Orlando cleantech study suggests requiring electric companies to supply a portion of power from renewable energy sources.
Another recommendation is the creation of a statewide clean energy public benefit fund. If Florida power companies added just 60 cents to their average customer’s monthly payment, the state could generate $114 million a year toward new energy-saving programs and incentives to help create and attract cleantech companies, according to the Florida Renewable Energy Association.
In addition to offering ideas from the county鈥檚 yearlong symposiums, the study also provides in-depth examples of other successful cleantech clusters around the country, such as San Diego, Boston and Austin, Texas.
Metro Orlando already has nearly 100 cleantech companies, several of which are some of the region鈥檚 largest public and private businesses, said John Lewis, Orange County economic development administrator.
鈥淐leantech is the next wave of innovation and job creation in this country, and regions that take advantage of it are the ones that are going to be successful,鈥� Lewis said. 鈥淐leantech has the ability of creating jobs and new companies all over Orange County, not just in one area.鈥�
He added, 鈥淐leantech represents a good number of new start-up companies and emerging companies, but it鈥檚 also represented by two of our largest employers — Siemens and Mitsubishi Power Systems — which puts Metro Orlando in a unique position when it comes to cleantech.鈥�
Orange County government commissioned Snaith鈥檚 office to research and write the study. The county selected 麻豆原创 partly because of its strong role in promoting clean tech industries in the region. Examples include 麻豆原创鈥檚 Florida Solar Energy Center, Nanoscience Technology Center and Advanced Materials and Processing Center.
麻豆原创鈥檚 Institute for Economic Competitiveness and Venture Lab were established as part of Orange County鈥檚 economic stimulus packages in 2002 and 2003.
To read the full study, visit .