The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) tracks the number of jobs it considers related to clean energy (see the data note below). This is one way to measure the adoption and spread of clean energy technologies. It also tells us how important clean energy jobs are to the local economy and what portion of the energy industry they constitute.

From 2020 to 2021, the number of clean energy jobs in the region grew roughly 5%, from 8,255 to 8,641, the same rate of increase as the state. The smallest number of clean energy jobs were in Seneca County, 57 in 2021. Monroe County had the highest number, with 5,844 in 2021.

A clean energy job is defined as any worker that is directly involved with the research, development, production, manufacture, distribution, sales, implementation, installation, or repair of components, goods, or services related to the following sectors of the clean energy economy: Renewable Electric Power Generation; Grid Modernization and Energy Storage; Energy Efficiency; Renewable Fuels; and Alternative Transportation. These jobs also include supporting services such as consulting, finance, tax, and legal services related to energy.

Clean energy employment data is presented by county for total clean energy jobs, renewable electric power generation jobs, and energy efficiency jobs in Q4 2021. It should be noted that because data collection in Q4 2021 did not include county-level employment, the proportions from last year are applied to the most recent job totals.