They have never been right. In fact, once the decision was made, each time industry rose to the challenge and American ingenuity found ways to address these problems cheaper and faster than had been anticipated. Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Provides Economic Growth Opportunities for Small and Medium-Size Businesses. A shift away from fossil fuels such as coal and petroleum and towards greater energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies presents enormous opportunities for small and medium-size businesses to grow and thrive. These businesses can manufacture, sell, and install energy-efficient appliances, lighting products, control systems, solar and wind power systems, advanced industrial processes, etc.
Farmers can grow bioenergy crops and operate bioenergy facilities as well as produce food.
Home builders can construct more efficient, higher value-added buildings, thereby increasing their revenues. And insulation and HVAC contractors can increase their business as they make our existing homes and commercial buildings more energy-efficient. All of this means more output and revenues for small and medium-size businesses, and less output and revenue for the Exxon's and Commonwealth Edison's of the world. Inc. In the words of Les Listwa, one of its senior staff, Computer Power was a dying business five years ago since it was unable to compete with large manufacturers of inverters and uninterruptible power supplies. An LED exit sign consumes just 2 Watts of power, compared to 12 Watts for a typical compact fluorescent exit sign or 40 Watts for an incandescent-based sign.