Jobs in California’s green economy increased by 36% from 1995 to 2008, beating the state’s 13% job growth, a study released last week reports.

The research, conducted by Silicon Valley-based research firm Collaborative Economics, underscores California’s lead in the green economy and may indicate where other states can expect green job growth.

California’s jobs in green businesses accounted for less than 1% of jobs statewide in 2008, but employment in green businesses may be holding up better than in other sectors. According to the report, from January 2007 to January 2008, jobs in green businesses grew 5%, while total jobs in California fell 1%.

The green job growth puts California at the forefront of a wide range of technologies, and shows that regions are developing green job clusters off existing strengths. The San Francisco Bay Area leads in green energy generation, San Diego is strong in co-generation technologies, and the Los Angeles and Orange County regions excel in transportation.

Unlike California’s software and biotech industries, which are centered in a few clusters, green jobs are disbursed all around California. California’s green job sector is more than three times the size of its biotech and almost two-thirds the size of its software sector, according to the report.

I believe that green jobs in California are being fueled, in large part, by government policies encouraging energy efficiency and solar adoption. And though California’s unemployment rate is still high, the trend lines are up for green jobs. The green economy is even helping California with manufacturing jobs. They accounted for 21% of green jobs as of January 2008, while manufacturing accounted for 11% of the state’s jobs.

View a previously written post by Mouli Cohen about green technology