AT A TIME when the U.S. and Rhode Island economies are rapidly losing manufacturing jobs, renewable-energy manufacturing and energy-efficiency strategies could revitalize communities across the Ocean State that have lost jobs, as well as create a whole new generation of good-paying manufacturing jobs.

At the same time, Rhode Island’s excessive dependence on imported energy threatens our environment and our national security. The massive amount of energy that Rhode Island imports creates a drain on our economy. The good news is that environmental challenges like global warming represent the most important economic opportunities of our generation while protecting our coastlines and our beloved Narragansett Bay.

That’s why the Sierra Club Rhode Island Chapter and the Rhode Island AFL-CIO share a vision for Rhode Island’s new energy economy. This new vision is integral to bridging the gap between environmental groups and the labor community in regard to Quonset Point. Now we are joining forces to make Quonset the potential center of the new-energy economy and to reduce our dependence on imported energy in two ways: 1) invest in renewable power; and 2) conserve our energy resources.

According to the RIWINDS Phase 1 Siting Study, conducted for the Office of Energy Resources ( http://www.energy.ri.gov/other/independence1.php), the available wind resource in Rhode Island is four times the amount that the Carcieri administration has proposed for Rhode Island’s electricity mix — a possibly lucrative energy export. If Rhode Island is able to get both community wind projects and large-scale wind farms working before Connecticut and Massachusetts, it is probable that Quonset Point, once the site of tension between environment and labor, will be the setting of a wind-turbine manufacturing facility that will serve all Northeast wind projects.

It would generate many new good union jobs and move us toward energy independence. The Ocean State could become a key distribution center for transporting wind turbines by sea. This is a Quonset Point that the AFL-CIO and the Sierra Club can agree on.

Likewise, given the amount of untapped roof space in Rhode Island, we can generate thousands of jobs installing solar panels for hot water and electricity generation. Hard-earned Rhode Island dollars would be invested in our own communities, rather than being sent away for coal and oil imports. In the process, we can be sure that every rooftop in Rhode Island has the potential to be a solution to the threat of global warming.

Visit the IBEW Local 99 Union Hall and training center in Cranston to see how solar power is already operating in our state. This building is obtaining all its power from solar energy and is presently selling its excess on the grid. In fact, the local union has put training on solar technology into the curriculum of its apprenticeship program so that trained workers are ready to get to work in the new energy economy today.

Our cities and towns, homes, workplaces, schools and houses of worship can also be built or redesigned to use energy much more efficiently. An entire economy of green-building potential can be had if we make the investment.

One example worth citing is the Gordon Avenue Business Incubator in South Providence. A vacant, decaying building was rebuilt with the latest energy-saving technology to provide a home for fledgling businesses and nonprofits, creating good construction jobs in the process.

If we are going to re-energize the Ocean State’s economy, we must start working today. We re-commend that all new publicly funded projects involving building construction have a requirement for a meaningful percentage of clean energy technology and transit-oriented design as part of the plan. Once the building is operational, this will result in ongoing savings to the taxpayers and an overall reduction in costly energy imports.

We applaud National Grid for agreeing to long-term renewable energy contracts — a crucial step to get wind power and other renewable technologies online in Rhode Island. We also urge National Grid to support efforts that will encourage the growth of renewable energy by properly compensating people for the electricity that they generate from their own wind turbines and solar panels.

By quickly getting wind power online, expanding public transit, and investing in energy-efficient buildings, we can make sure that Rhode Island rides to the energy-independence finish line, driven by a vibrant, clean-energy economy.

Chris Wilhite is director of the Sierra Club Rhode Island Chapter. George Nee is the treasurer-secretary of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO.