(Updated November 2, 2016). 

Recent campaign finance disclosures make clear what many have been speculating for a while now: the oil and gas industry is the driving force behind the ballot initiative that would make it harder for Colorado citizens to amend their own state constitution. Watergate’s “Deep Throat” informant taught Americans to follow the money, and in our new analysis, we did just that. We discovered that the paper trail of support for the “Raise the Bar” initiative leads directly to oil and gas companies and their front groups, and that oil and gas is by far the biggest financial backer of Raise the Bar.

At issue is Amendment 71, which would require 55 percent of voters to approve an initiative (rather than the current standard of 50 percent plus one). It would also force organizers to get petition signatures from two percent of voters in every state Senate district in order to get the measure on the ballot (the law currently stipulates that they must get five percent of the number of people who voted in the last election statewide). 

Experts note that this would cost proponents of future ballot initiatives millions of dollars to run a campaign to put a measure on the ballot — prohibitively expensive for all but the biggest business interests. Recent citizen-led efforts to pass initiatives to regulate oil and gas activity are perhaps why the oil and gas industry is so interested in this change.

Our new analysis shows that as of the most recently available campaign finance documents, the oil and gas industry has given $3,729,190.00 of the $4,854,075.50 in contributions that the official Raise the Bar Issue Committee has received. That’s 77 percent of the contributions, making it the largest sponsor of the initiative (the remainder being real estate, banks, investment companies, and others). Click here to see the data.

What’s particularly galling is that despite the fact that this is so obviously a corporate-funded campaign, the proponents are attempting to cloak it in a grassroots veneer. Take, for example, the fact that proponents are using mass-printed envelopes that look like they were written and signed by “your neighbor.” Here’s a 7News story with more details:

Back to the contributions to the Raise the Bar issue committee– the majority of the contributions from several large donations that a group called “Protecting Colorado’s Environment, Economy, and Energy” gave on September 8th, September 16th, and October 21st. This is an oil and gas front group supported by millions of dollars in from Anadarko and Noble Energy, two out-of-state oil companies. It has played a major role in oil and gas issues in Colorado since its establishment in 2014, with one of its major accomplishments being a campaign to keep two measures to strengthen restrictions on oil and gas drilling off the ballot earlier this year. And the group recently wrote that being able to stop commonsense oil and gas measures is one of the three top reasons to support Amendment 71.

Importantly, our analysis does not include the additional money that Protecting Colorado is spending directly on Amendment 71 (rather than giving it to the “Raise the Bar” Issue Committee). Protecting Colorado has spent millions of dollars on the fracking initiatives but has changed its primary purpose to include support of Amendment 71.

In another twist, it is worth noting that Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development — the oil and gas “education” organization that runs seemingly non-stop advertisements about the benefits of fracking — has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Protecting Colorado thus far this year.

A number of important policy changes have been enacted by citizens in Colorado with use of ballot measures, from  minimum wage laws to marijuana legalization. There are already numerous “checks” in place to ensure policy proposals are supported by voters from across the state, including the very vote on the ballot on election day.

In the end, as the Denver Post put it, “citizens liberal, moderate and conservative would soon come to hate” the provisions of Amendment 71. The interests that are for restricting the rights of citizens to change their own constitution are the same ones who would have the money and resources to change it in the future — and that’s just not right.  That’s why a huge coalition— including Democrats, Republicans, unions, teachers, environmentalists, Latino groups, the NAACP, and the ACLU– have come together to defeat this amendment. 

We will update this post as more campaign finance data become available.

The post With $3.7 Million in Donations, the Oil and Gas Industry Has Given 77 Percent of the Contributions to “Raise the Bar” appeared first on Conservation CO.

The post What a Trump Presidency Means for Colorado’s Environment — and How We’re Fighting Back appeared first on Conservation CO.

Conservation Colorado Executive Director Pete Maysmith made the following comments about President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees:

Scott Pruitt for Environmental Protection Agency Administrator

“It is extremely disconcerting to hear that President-elect Trump has nominated a climate denier to lead the EPA. His record of putting profits ahead of people is crosswise with Colorado’s commitment to a clean future. We urge Senators Cory Gardner and Michael Bennet to vote against this reckless nominee and instead prioritize the health of Colorado’s air, land, water, and people.”

Representative Ryan Zinke for Secretary of Interior

“Rep. Zinke’s track record on public lands is confusing and inconsistent. He has made strong statements against privatizing our public lands, but has also voted for bills that would do just that.

Governor Rick Perry for Department of Energy

“We are also incredibly concerned about his prioritization of fossil energy over clean renewable technologies. Colorado is home to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and is a leader in cleantech research and industry, which have supported myriad jobs and economic development in our state. We need a Secretary of Energy who embraces the inevitability of a clean energy future rather than someone who wants to hamper these booming industries and take us backward.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

The post Reactions to Trump Cabinet Nominees appeared first on Conservation CO.

This year holds a lot of promise, in spite of a disappointing start to 2017 for environmental issues on the federal level, with President-elect Trump’s nomination of several very concerning cabinet nominees.

But the election has not changed what we plan to do here in Colorado. We will still work to clean up our air, make our water use more efficient, protect our public lands, and ensure that every person in Colorado lives in a healthy environment. We are prepared to fight even harder to make change on the state level to protect Colorado’s air, land, water, and communities.

One of the most important places we can make change on the state level is in our legislature, which convenes on Wednesday, January 11th. Little changed in the balance of the state legislature this year except that the conservation majority in the state House grew and is now 37 Democrats and 28 Republicans (the state Senate is comprised of 18 Republicans and 17 Democrats).

Conservation Colorado has four main areas where we want to see change — and we have reason to be optimistic for each of these in the upcoming year. These priorities reflect the fact that Coloradans care deeply about our way of life. For example, the Conservation in the West poll found that 89% of Colorado voters cite a “healthy, outdoor lifestyle” as a key reason they live in the state, higher than quality of public schools or taxes.

Here are four important places where we could make major progress this year through the state legislature and other ongoing efforts:

1. Making change the Colorado way — by leading the nation and creating clean energy jobs.

Colorado often charts its own path, especially when it comes to energy and the environment. For example, we were the first state to have a voter-approved renewable energy standard back in 2004. We passed groundbreaking rules to control methane pollution three years ago, and last year we were the first state to designate our own Public Lands Day. In the face of intransigence from Congress and President, it’s more important than ever that we continue this legacy of leading the nation.

This means we will fight to have the cleanest air in the nation and to make sure that our clean tech sector thrives. We plan to help ensure that communities in rural Colorado are economically diversified, especially those that have been historically dependent on resources like coal. We know the renewable energy sector can be a big source of jobs — 62,000 of them, in fact — and we want to see that job growth continue while keeping our air clean.

We must also fight against any attacks on Colorado’s right to decide what is best for our state. This also means we will defend against any attacks on Colorado’s right to choose our own path that come from the Trump administration, such as throwing our lands open to drilling or rolling back critical environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act.

2. Preparing for the future: transportation and growth

Colorado’s population is set to double from 2000 levels by 2050. We need to prepare now for the coming growth and influx of people to our state. We must make sure there is enough water to go around; that safety, traffic, and public transportation are vastly improved; and that there are plenty of protected open lands for future generations to enjoy.

In 2017, there’s huge potential for success. We’re currently working with a large coalition on a transportation package. In addition to the needed funding for repairing roads and bridges, we’re asking for major investments in improving transit, walking, and biking options. A strong commitment to improving this infrastructure now will pay off in making our cities more accessible and our air cleaner in the future.

We’re going to be working on transportation and growth in several other ways. In 2016, the state legislature helped make Colorado the best state in the nation to buy an electric vehicle with improved tax credits. Now we must make sure it is the best state to drive an electric vehicle by investing in charging stations and other infrastructure.

3. Protecting the health of our children

Our children are our future. They are also one of the most susceptible populations to environmental pollution, whether that is polluted air or tainted water.

Especially in low-income communities, which in Colorado are often dominated by a racial or ethnic minority group, children much higher chances of suffering from asthma or other diseases related to pollution. Every child has a right to live in a healthy community, and we must take every action possible to protect our kids.

Specifically, this means we are going to work to ensure that oil and gas infrastructure does not encroach on our communities, which can damage air and water quality in our neighborhoods. We will also work to defend the gains we’ve made on clean air and clean energy, considering that children are one of the most susceptible populations to air pollution.

4. Preventing waste and pollution: Using our resources sustainably

We can’t take our natural resources for granted, and we must use what we have carefully. That means ensuring that they are not wasted — whether that is energy lost on its way from the power plants to our homes and businesses or water that could have been used more efficiently. We must also ensure that the natural resources we have are clean and pristine, and not polluted by accidents or thoughtlessness.

We’ll do this by fighting to hold industry accountable, especially for activities like mining where the waste can affect the health of people nearby. We’ll work to cut down on waste in our energy infrastructure as well as water systems.

All in all, we’re feeling optimistic about this year’s legislative session. There’s a lot we can do on the state level to protect our environment, and Colorado is poised to lead the way for the nation. We are looking forward to making progress with champions on both sides of the aisle to protect what we love about Colorado: our way of life.

The post Our Four Priorities for the Colorado Legislature in 2017 appeared first on Conservation CO.

When changes happen at the federal level, it’s easy to feel like those changes are restricted to Washington D.C. and won’t affect the daily lives of Colorado residents. This, however, is not so.

Colorado is home to federal agency offices in all sectors, from the military to veterans’ affairs to transportation — in fact, Colorado had more than 37,796year-round, full-time, non-military employees in fiscal year 2015.

Federal agencies in Colorado also have a particularly strong presence when it comes to science, research, and the environment. According to publicly available data from the national Office of Personnel and Management, as of September 2016 there were of 11,483 employees in science and environmentally-focused federal agencies in Colorado (see a full list of employees by agency below). And, as we describe at the end of this post, there are also thousands of additional people whose jobs depend on federal agencies, whether those are part-time employees, contractors, seasonal employees, and partnerships with universities.

This means that the major budget cuts that the Trump administration is proposing for agencies including the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) could have a significant and measurable impacts on Colorado.

When EPA transition leader Myron Ebell said, “What are all these people in the EPA air and safe drinking water offices doing?,” he was generalizing to a shocking extent. As we describe below, it turns out that these men and women provide enormous contributions to Colorado’s environment, economy, and communities. So, any cuts to their work and their jobs would be felt deeply in our state.

We’ve summed up which federal science and environmental agencies are in Colorado and what they do:

Environmental Protection Agency — 610 employees in Colorado

• The EPA protects all Americans from the dangers of pollution, and mitigates health risks to our children and families. The work the agency’s employees undertakes is deep and vast, and is tremendously important to keeping both Colorado’s communities and our land, air and water healthy. An independent federal agency, the EPA is tasked with protecting humans and the environment. The agency is responsible for enforcement against polluters, writes regulations in response to new laws, provides grants to states and a variety of environmental institutions and nonprofits, conducts research, and educates and informs the public about relevant issues. In the 2017 fiscal year, there were 149 grants and contracts for work in Colorado, with a total value of $6.37 million. See all the EPA cleanup sites in your community here.

Department of the Interior — 6,839 total employees in Colorado, not including seasonal workers. The public lands that DoI manages provide more than just jobs; particularly outside of metro areas, these lands provide energy, resources and are crucial for boosting local economies. Some of the offices you may be most familiar with are outlined below.

• National Park Service — 1,548 employees in Colorado

Colorado has four national parks, eight national monuments, and various other national historic sites and trails. This agency manages over 660,000acres of land in the state for recreation, education, inspiration, and above all, the preservation of our state’s natural and cultural heritage.

• Bureau of Land Management — 1,030 employees in Colorado

The BLM manages 8.4 million acres of public lands in Colorado along with 29 million acres of subsurface minerals like oil, natural gas, and coal. BLM also maintains a transportation system consisting of about 4,000 miles of roads, 1,215 miles of trails, and 20 bridges. The role of the BLM is unique in that they are tasked with balancing conservation values with commercial development and use of resources. From recreation and historical/cultural tourism to mining and livestock grazing, the scope of BLM’s work in Colorado is vast.

• United States Geological Survey — 1,124 employees in Colorado

The USGS is the nation’s largest government science agency, providing biological and geological research as well as mapping services for the public. They conduct large-scale research and data collection across the country as well as resource monitoring that dates back over 100 years. The information they provide allows resource managers to make informed decisions about our nation’s land and water use, natural disasters and climate change.

• Bureau of Reclamation — 1,109 employees in Colorado

The Bureau of Reclamation manages dams, hydroelectric powerplants, and canals in the western U.S. The agency provides water to over 31 million people, including irrigation for 10 million acres of farmland. Chances are, you have the Bureau of Reclamation to thank for the vegetables on your plate at dinner tonight, and possibly for the electricity that powers your home.

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife — 438 employees in Colorado

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is tasked with promoting stewardship and conservation of our nation’s wildlife. They protect and manage national wildlife refuges, migratory birds, fisheries, endangered species, and restore critical wildlife habitat like wetlands across the country.

Department of Agriculture

• U.S. Forest Service — 2,068 employees in Colorado

The Rocky Mountain region of the USFS manages nine national forests and two national grasslands in the state, amounting to over 10 million acres of land. This includes the most visited national forest in the country, the White River National Forest, which sees 9 million visitors every year in large part thanks to the ski areas that are located there. Employees of the Forest Service fight wildfires, conduct forestry research, collaborate with tribes to protect non-federal forests and watersheds, and provide technical assistance to landowners, the public, businesses, and the government to ensure sustainable forest management.

• Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) — 290 employees in Colorado

NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to agriculture producers to help them care for the land. They use a comprehensive, landscape approach to conservation that views the land as a sustainable system to provide long-term benefits to people and the environment.

Department of Energy — 821 employees in Colorado

• National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) — Located in Golden, NREL is the Department of Energy’s primary national laboratory for research and development for renewable power technologies, sustainable transportation and energy efficiency. The groundbreaking research that scientists conduct at NREL actively changes the way we use energy in the nation and the world. Including both part and full time employees, there are 1,705 workers and researchers at NREL who could also be affected by budget cuts, as well as 700 visiting researchers, 80 post-doctoral students and 234 student interns.
• Western Area Power Administration and the DoE Golden Field Officepersonnel also contribute to the 821 DoE employees in the state. Both of the agencies help provide energy and electricity to our region.

Department of Commerce

• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) — 482 employees in Colorado

NIST provides scientific standards and measurements in order to support economic enhancement through innovation. While this might sound like it has nothing to do with you, it actually has everything to do with you. The car you drive, the phone you talk on, the computer you use and nearly every technology around us were manufactured based on standards of measurement designated by NIST.

• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — 373 employees in Colorado

Do you like knowing the weather? You have scientists and NOAA to thank. The range of science, research and environmental management that NOAA conducts at its Boulder campus is vast — including fisheries, severe weather, restoration, resource management, and climate monitoring. The diverse array of information they provide allows both the public and private enterprises to understand and make informed decisions. When contractors, researchers, and other employees are included, the total grows to over 1,000 whose paychecks come from federal government funding.

The numbers get even bigger

The numbers that we’ve reported from the Office of Personnel Management above include only full-time, non-seasonal workers, which fails to account for part-time employees, contractors and partnerships with universities.

For example, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science (CIRES) is a partnership between the University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA, and it employs approximately 800 scientists who seek to develop a better understanding of the dynamic Earth system using a scientific approach. The CIRES team studies everything from western water resources, to atmospheric chemistry to air quality. Additionally, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) is funded primarily by the National Science Foundation, but managed by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (a non-federal consortium of universities). In Colorado, NCAR has 885 employees.

Conclusion: budget cuts hurt Colorado

Each one of these 11,483 people who work in federal science and environmental agencies contributes to our Colorado way of life. We are dependent on the scientific research; energy innovations; water, land and resource management; public health and air quality monitoring; disaster mitigation; and so much more that these agency offices contribute to our society. Budget cuts to these offices threaten our values, our environment, and our economy.

The post Think that what happens at federal agencies doesn’t have much of an impact in Colorado? Think again. appeared first on Conservation CO.

There’s nothing more important than keeping our children safe and healthy, especially when they’re at school. That’s why we encourage kids to get exercise and play outside during recess; why the 1,000-foot federal drug-free school zone exists; and why in Pueblo, Aurora and Denver it’s illegal to sell, grow, transfer or distribute marijuana within 1,000 feet of school property.

So why shouldn’t oil and gas facilities also be 1,000 feet from school property?

Unfortunately, in Colorado this is not the case. Dozens of schools throughout the state have oil and gas wells or storage facilities in close proximity to the places that our children are playing sports, learning, and playing outside.

Current law in Colorado states that oil and gas facilities must be at least 1,000 feet away from any “high-occupancy building” (including schools). However, the definition only includes school buildings, rather than school property, which allows the 1,000 foot setback to be measured from the brick-and-mortar school building rather than from the property line. This leaves sports fields, modular classrooms, playgrounds, and other outdoor areas well within 1,000 feet of the heavy industrial activity of oil and gas facilities.

It only takes a few real-world examples to understand why this is such a critical bill. One school affected by this issue is Bella Romero Academy in Greeley. In March 2017, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission approved a permit for 25 wells that would be only 600 feet from the school’s property line. This middle school is 82 percent Latino and 5 percent African American, and 92 percent of its students come from low-income households. These factors qualify the area served by the school as a high-risk environmental justice community.

Take a look at how close oil and gas wells are to several other school playgrounds and football fields in the our Google Earth video below:

Luckily, Colorado state Representative Mike Foote has introduced a simple bill that addresses this issue and clarifies that the intention of the setback rule is to keep all of school property at least 1,000 feet away from oil and gas industrial activity. This will mean that the distance will be measured from the property line, rather than from the school building.

This clarification makes sense because unlike other high-occupancy buildings, such as hospitals, the occupants of a school are not restricted to the building. Children spend many hours outside each week, all year-round, playing, attending sporting events and practices, eating lunch, participating in extracurricular activities, and attending class on all parts of the school property.

The bottom line is that oil and gas facilities can be dangerous and can cause health problems for our children. Oil and natural gas facilities release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants which can cause respiratory problems. On the Front Range, roughly 50 percent of all VOC pollution comes from oil and natural gas facilities. If there’s any evidence at all that exposure to these facilities might be harmful to our children, shouldn’t we take the proper measures to ensure their safety? That’s what this bill does.

It’s also important to note that ultimately, if this bill passes, it will have little impact on the oil and gas industry. This is because new modern technology has allowed companies to extract oil and gas from up to three miles away from a well pad using a technique called “directional drilling.” So, the change that this bill would enact wouldn’t affect the ability of the industry or mineral rights owners to extract the resources that they seek, even on large school properties in rural Colorado.

Safety technology on drilling platforms has come a long way, but accidents still happen. A recent well blowout in Colorado sprayed a mist of oil, gas, and drilling wastewater that covered an area 2,000 feet long and 1,000 feet wide. In April 2014, a storage tank exploded 1,800 feet away from Legacy Elementary school in Weld County, causing students and teachers to shelter in place. What if a school playground had been coated in that toxic mist? If we continue to allow drilling operations to be so close to our schools, it’s only a matter of time before such worries become realities. While relatively uncommon, the risk is not worth the consequences.

Our children are vulnerable, and they are the ones who stand to lose the most if this bill doesn’t pass. The industry doesn’t need protecting, but our kids do.

The post Why This Commonsense Oil and Gas Bill Is Good For Colorado’s Children appeared first on Conservation CO.

• Nearly 80 people signed up to testify on the transportation bill. One of the most attention-grabbing bills this year has been the transportation funding bill. This bill would ask voters to raise the state sales tax by a small amount and direct that money towards roads, transit, and local governments for transportation options that benefit all of our citizens. After seven hours of debate, it was clear that Coloradans are in support of funding for transportation options that include buses, bikes, and beyond. The bill passed through the House with bipartisan support, and will soon be moving to the Senate.

• The water projects bill started off on a good foot. Every year, the Colorado legislature votes to approve a bill that determines how we invest in our state’s water resources. This year that bill includes a real commitment to funding conservation and ensuring we have healthy rivers. It passed through its first committee in the House, with a promising start.
• Colorado is still making strides to promote clean energy, regardless of our president’s proposed cuts to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and other research institutions. Thus far, several bills to support clean energy in Colorado have been introduced. One would renew a successful energy efficiency program that has been saving money and reducing pollution for five years. Another bill would allow utility companies to build charging stations for electric vehicles, helping create a system of charging stations and making Colorado the best state to drive an electric vehicle.
• A bill nicknamed the “Cliven Bundy Protection Act” died in committee. This would have threatened criminal felony sanctions for people doing their jobs to enforce laws on federally owned lands. The bill died before making much headway, sending a clear message that Colorado lawmakers won’t stand for this type of attack on our public lands and their management.
• More than 200 people showed up for Latino Advocacy Day, making a big splash at the Capitol. In partnership with other community organizations, these activists spent the day speaking to our state Representatives and Senators about the issues that matter most, like public health and clean air.

• A recently introduced bill will provide funding to test for lead in schools’ drinking water, protecting our most vulnerable communities. Lead can leach into drinking water from old pipes and fixtures. In fact, of the Colorado school districts that have already tested for lead, 77 schools found water sources with elevated levels of lead. There is no safe level of lead exposure, and it can be especially damaging to young children. Therefore, providing schools the ability to proactively test for lead in schools will pay off in a big way when it comes to safeguarding our children’s health and protecting our water.

• The bill to stop “rolling coal” is back! Rolling coal is when certain individuals tamper with their vehicles’ exhaust to cause a release of smoke and emissions that creates a black cloud. This is done solely for the purpose of annoying pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers. Right now, the law against rolling coal is cumbersome and difficult to enforce. A new bill would to make it a Class A traffic infraction to blow smoke out of your tailpipe in a way that would make a reasonable person feel harassed or annoyed. This version of the bill has specific exemptions for anything other than a passenger vehicle, to address concerns from farmers and diesel truck drivers. We’re hoping this bill will pass to prevent unnecessary pollution for the sole purpose of harassing others. (Curious what this looks like? Check it out.)
• We’re standing up for low-income communities across Colorado by supporting the reauthorization of “LEAP”. The Low-income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP), helps low-income families by providing important energy bill assistance and energy efficiency programs. Since LEAP began in 2006, it has saved Colorado families over $140 million in energy costs. This program is set to expire soon, so we supported a bill that would extend it indefinitely to continue aiding low-income families.

We’ll keep fighting for all these bills — and more — through May, when the legislative session ends for the year. If you want to get involved in any of these issues, take action with us!

The post Nine Things We’re Fighting For This Legislative Session appeared first on Conservation CO.

The post Why Trump’s Executive Order on Climate Won’t Stop Colorado’s Progress appeared first on Conservation CO.

The recent home explosion in Firestone is a wake-up call

Update 5/2/17 3pm: The Denver Post has reported that the fatal Firestone home explosion was the result of a cut supply line running from the nearby gas well. The cut seeped volatile gas into the home that ignited and caused the explosion.

News broke last week that a home explosion in which two people were killed and two were injured may have been caused by an oil and gas well that was located just 178 feet from the home. The news has caused two of Colorado’s top 10 oil and gas companies to temporarily shut down wells in the area.

Whether or not the investigation ultimately determines that a well was the cause, the tragedy is a grim reminder that oil and gas drilling is a dangerous industrial activity. Indeed, there have been several other recent disasters in Colorado caused by oil and gas drilling. Below we take a look at five that have occurred just within the last eight years.

The bottom line is this: there is mounting evidence that oil and gas extraction is dangerous activity, not only for the workers themselves, but also for those in close proximity to facilities. Colorado residents shouldn’t have to fear for their lives on a daily basis, worrying that a well or storage tank less than 500 feet from their home that they’ve been assured is safe is actually a danger to their health, well-being and maybe even their life. We cannot allow oil and gas drilling to take place near homes, schools, and other community buildings.

Oil and gas development isn’t slowing down or going anywhere anytime soon. Particularly in the Front Range, new leases and well pads with unprecedented numbers of wells are being approved within areas that are primarily residential, as seen in these maps of Adams and Arapahoecounties. If we are to prevent future tragic accidents, we must protect not just the areas that are already threatened, but those that face possible development in the months and years to come.

Whether the industry is at fault for the Firestone home explosion or not, this is a wake up call that the safety measures we have in place now are simply not good enough. We’ve long said that the burden of proof for proving that drilling is safe must be on the oil and gas industry. One example of a step the industry can take in response to this tragedy is to agree to a commonsense bill that set oil and gas wells further back from school property, which was voted down by a state Senate committee just a few weeks ago after strong opposition from the industry.

Here are five oil and gas disasters that have occurred in Colorado in the last eight years:

1. Hudson Blowout, Weld County, January 2017

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation

A well blowout caused 28,000 gallons of oil, gas, and drilling waste water to gush from a damaged well over a period of three days. It shut down roads, and the effects were seen as far as 2,000 feet away from the site of the accident.

2. Legacy Elementary School, Frederick, April 2014

Unknown Operator

A storage tank exploded approximately 1,800 feet away from the elementary school and caused all students and teachers to shelter in place. Luckily, no one was injured.

3. Windsor, February 2013

PDC Energy

A technical failure caused a valve to break and gush oil and green-colored flowback fluid for 30 hours before it was stopped. The spill was contained so that it did not affect nearby residential areas.

4. Ault, June 2013

Noble Energy

A worker failed to open a valve properly which resulted in the backup and eventual release of crude oil over 150,000 square feet of an organic farm. The farm had to scrape away and replace the contaminated soil. There were no reported injuries.

5. De BeQue, Colorado 2009

Unknown Operator

A spring used as a water source at a cabin in Western Colorado was contaminated with BTEX, a carcinogenic combination of benzene, toluene, xylene and ethylbenzene. The owner of the cabin drank multiple cups of the water before he realized it was contaminated. A tested sample of the spring water contained 100 micrograms per liter of BTEX. Five micrograms is the safety threshold for groundwater. A toxicologist with the oil and gas commission told him to get continued blood tests to check for liver or kidney damage. Because his spring is located within 3,000 feet of 18 wells and multiple other oil and gas activities, the exact cause of the contamination is unknown.

The post A Look at Five Recent Oil and Gas Disasters in Colorado appeared first on Conservation CO.

Every year in Colorado, 100 legislators buckle down for five months of proposing, hearing, amending, discussing, killing, and passing bills. This year’s legislative session had several great, bipartisan wins for conservation issues. Conservation champions on both sides of the aisle stood up for our air, water, and public lands. We’re excited about the passage of seven meaningful and innovative bills that protect our environment.

But throughout the session, a group of radical right-wing Republican senators repeatedly blocked progress, putting themselves on the wrong side of history and supporting polluters and big industry over everyday Coloradans. In fact, we saw obstructionism and pushback on even the simplest of issues, like whether to ban the nuisance of “coal rolling.” These loud voices against conservation in the state Senate should serve as a reminder about why voting matters.

Here are our seven key wins this year:

Clean Energy and Air

We moved the needle on clean energy and saving money for consumers this session with two big wins. First, we played a key role in extending Colorado’s successful Energy Efficiency Resource Standard (EERS), which requires energy savings goals for utility companies and provides incentives for implementing energy efficiency programs. Since it started in 2008, this program has created over 40,000 jobs and avoided 1.85 million metric tons of carbon pollution while saving Coloradans over $1.3 billion in utility costs. This program was set to expire in 2018, but we helped extend it to 2028.

Second, we supported the Low-income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP), which helps low-income families by providing energy bill assistance and energy efficiency programs. Since LEAP began in 2006, it has saved working Colorado families over $140 million in energy costs. This program was set to expire soon, but we helped extend it indefinitely to provide continued support to low-income families.

Another big win for our clean air was outlawing “coal rolling”. Coal rolling is when a person tampers with the exhaust system of a diesel-engine truck to blow black smoke from the tailpipes to annoy pedestrians and motorists. Belching smoke from a vehicle can be a safety hazard, and is harmful to the health of our communities and environment. Now, rolling coal is illegal in Colorado as a Class A traffic infraction, punishable by a $100 fine.

In addition, we fought to defend tax credits for electric vehicles in Colorado. Last year, we helped put this progressive tax credit in place; this year, we fought back when Republican lawmakers tried to undo it. Colorado remains the best state in which to buy an electric vehicle!

Water

We made real progress for protecting clean drinking water and healthy rivers at the Capitol this year. One of our bills that had major bipartisan support was to provide funding for schools to test for lead in their water. Lead can leach into drinking water from old pipes and fixtures. A few Colorado school districts have already tested for lead, and found more than 100 schools had water sites with elevated levels of lead. There is no safe level of lead exposure, and it is especially damaging to young children. This new program to provide funding for schools to test for lead in their water will pay off in a big way when it comes to safeguarding our children’s health and drinking water.

Another success this year was in the form of securing funding for our rivers and streams. Every year, the Colorado legislature votes to approve a bill that determines how we invest in our state’s water resources. This year that bill includes a real commitment to funding conservation and healthy rivers.

Public Lands

In the past few years, we have seen a resurgence from extremists to seize public lands for state or private control. This idea rose all the way up to the national Republican Party platform in 2016. However, Colorado lawmakers have continued to stand up against this idea. Over the past five years, eight bills were proposed that would have promoted public land seizure in some way — and they were all rejected. This year, we didn’t see any bills involving seizing or selling off public lands, which goes to show how politically toxic the issue has become.

We don’t always get to continue celebrating our victories year after year, but last year we helped pass a bill that establishes an annual holiday! Now, the first-ever Colorado Public Lands Day is coming up on May 20th, 2017. There are more than 100 events planned across the state, from trail restoration to mountain biking to happy hours. Find an event near you >>

Oil and Gas

The oil and gas industry continues to fight every measure proposed at the state Capitol that relates to their industry. We’ve seen this fight play out time and time again, and it’s shocking what they are willing to urge legislators to vote against.

This conversation was amplified by an explosion in Firestone, Colorado in April that killed two people in their home due to gas from a cut supply line running from a nearby well. This tragedy is a grim reminder that oil and gas drilling is a dangerous industrial activity.

This year, we saw three simple, common sense bills go down that would have kept our communities safe from oil and gas drilling.

• Protecting children from oil and gas wells located near schools(HB 1256)
• Providing notice and transparency to property and mineral rights owners in the gas patch (HB 1372)
• Securing mapping of and information about oil and gas lines, a critical necessity in the wake of the Firestone tragedy(HB 1336)

Bills stalled or killed

Several other environmental priorities were left on the cutting room floor this year, thanks to opposition from the right-wing of the Republican party. These bills included funding to improve transportation infrastructure and options; funding for our state parks; opening up new opportunities for investment in electric vehicles; and defending the Colorado Energy Office, which will now be largely pared down from lack of funds.

With the end of the legislative session, another chapter is ending. But the work continues. We’ll keep fighting on these issues — especially the ones that didn’t move forward this year — to keep making progress to protect Colorado’s future.

The post Our Seven Wins for the Environment During the 2017 Colorado Legislative Session appeared first on Conservation CO.

Expanding one coal mine would emit enough methane to undo half of Colorado’s work to prevent methane pollution.

A year ago, we reported on the West Elk Coal Mine, a highly contested mine in Colorado’s Gunnison National Forest. At that time, we and many other Coloradans were concerned about Arch Coal’s proposal to expand its coal mine, which would destroy 1,720 acres of forest.

Now, those concerns have become reality. Just two weeks ago, the Trump administration’s Forest Service announced that it is forging ahead with a plan to allow the company to expand the mine. If approved, this decision will cause irreparable harm on the national forest in more ways than one.

To take a step back, the West Elk coal mine is located in western Colorado, north of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It’s an extremely controversial mine for a variety of reasons, including its location inside a roadless area of a national forest, its exemption from a new moratorium on coal leasing, and the fact that it is owned by formerly bankrupt companyArch Coal. But perhaps the most disturbing issue is the air pollution that it already causes, which would increase if the mine expands.

The West Elk mine has already been the single largest source of methane pollution in Colorado, spewing 58,000 tons of methane into the air every year. Methane — an immensely potent greenhouse gas — has more than 80 times the heat-trapping power of carbon dioxide, and is a major contributor to climate pollution.

Although Colorado has some of the strongest rules in the nation for methane pollution from oil and gas activity, as the Colorado Independent reports, “Unlike methane from oil and gas drilling, coal mine methane remains unregulated at both state and federal levels.” The proposed expansion to the coal mine could mean emitting enough methane to negate half of the emissions prevented by Colorado’s methane rules for oil and gas.

Plus, under Arch Coal’s plan, more than six miles of forest will be bulldozed for roads and up to 48 drilling pads will be built in the Sunset Roadless Area, which connects to the West Elk Wilderness. The area is a rolling landscape of aspen and spruce-fir forests that provide habitat for native black bear, elk, lynx, and cutthroat trout.

The actions by the Trump administration to move forward with this mine expansion are even more disturbing because of how they deal with the impacts of government projects on climate change. Previously, government environmental reviews like this had to take into account the impact of the project on climate change. Now, the Forest Service claims that calculating climate impacts is not an “appropriate tool at the project level” and is “no longer representative of governmental policy.” This comes out of a Trump executive order that disbanded the agency working group associated with it.

The Forest Service wants to give Arch Coal access to more than 17 million tons of coal — but at what cost? The West Elk Mine already has over a decade of coal in reserve, and this decision not only ignores the economic realities that face the coal industry, but it generates even more greenhouse gas emissions, further exacerbating climate change. Coal has been central to the local economy in this area for generation, but this coal mine expansion is a bad idea for the forest and for our climate.

The negative consequences of expanding the West Elk Coal Mine and the damage it would cause to our national forest are obvious. The U.S. Forest Service is asking the public to weigh in on this problematic West Elk Coal Mine expansion. Take action today to send a message to the administration that we value our public lands too much to watch them be destroyed. Follow this link to sign a petition to the Forest Service.

This one decision could destroy aspen groves, displace native wildlife, and vent methane pollution into our air. It’s a sign of what to expect under the Trump administration in terms of our public lands — and it’s up to us to stop it.

The post Trump’s Dirty Energy Agenda Comes to a Colorado Forest appeared first on Conservation CO.

Renewable energy provides tremendous benefits to Colorado. Wind and solar employ more than 15,000 Coloradans and bring needed dollars to rural areas. So far, construction and operation of wind power has had an estimated $2.7 billion economic impact on Colorado’s eastern counties alone. Meanwhile, clean energy saves us money by keeping our air clean, preventing pollution-related health problems, and slowing our contributions to climate change.

But over time, it’s become clear that there’s another huge benefit of renewable energy that doesn’t get discussed enough: it’s become cheaper than coal in Colorado as well as many other places across the nation.

To take a step back: as recently as 2008, coal powered half of America’s electricity. In seven short years, it has dropped to one-third of our energy supply. While natural gas is responsible for some of this shift, wind and solar energy are playing a growing role as they continue to take off around the country. Wind powers around 36 percent of Iowa’s electricity generation, the largest percentage of any state. In Colorado, it’s about 17 percent, while solaris 1 percent.

Prices of renewable energy have been been dropping over the past decade. The cost to install solar has fallen by more than 70 percent since 2010. Changes in solar panel cost over time can be explained by Swanson’s Law, which states that the price of solar panels decreases by about 20 percent for every doubling in global solar capacity. The law reflects a phenomenon seen across the economy: new industries face a major learning curve, and as they improve, prices fall. In 2015 — the biggest year ever for solar installation around the world — prices fell by 5 to 12 percent. While solar may not always be able to out-compete coal on the short-term time scale, the cost depends on where you are in the country and who is buying solar power (residents or utility companies). Meanwhile, it continues getting cheaper each year.

When it comes to wind production, the savings are in large part about physics. Manufacturers increased the length of wind turbine blades over the past several years, while engineers have added more height to wind turbine towers. This has caused big changes to power production and efficiency, and has brought down the cost of wind energy. Now, wind is the cheapest form of energy available in many central U.S. states, including Colorado.

Moreover, coal has several hidden costs that make it fundamentally more costly than renewables. It is expensive to extract and it is a finite resource, whereas once wind turbines or solar panels are installed, the wind and sunshine are free. When the actual fuels used are free and the only costs are the systems for generating energy, it is a huge leap for society.

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But we’re not the only ones who are noticing that renewables are cheaper than coal. Here are business leaders and elected officials are touting the fact:

David Eves, president of Xcel Energy’s operations in Colorado:

“We know our Colorado customers and communities want affordable energy from increasingly clean energy sources, and it is our goal to provide what they value. The Rush Creek Wind Project [will] be one of the largest wind projects in Colorado, with the lowest-cost energy on our Colorado system.”

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper:

“The average price of wind energy declined nationwide by more than 50% from 2009 to 2014, while average solar energy prices declined more than 78% over the same period. Natural gas prices are at historic lows. One current Colorado wind project, our largest ever, will employ 350 people in its construction and is expected to save ratepayers $400 million over its lifetime.”

Republican Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds:

“Wind energy brings 9,000 jobs and more than $13.5 billion in investments [to Iowa] — and we’ve done it all without sacrificing price or reliability. In fact, Iowa has the most reliable electric grid in the country, and the average energy cost for all sectors here is the sixth cheapest in the nation.”

Stephen Byrd, of Morgan Stanley research:

“Numerous key markets have reached an inflection point where renewables will have become the cheapest form of new power generation by 2020, a dynamic we see spreading to nearly every country we cover.”

Alice Jackson, vice president for strategic initiatives at Xcel:

“We don’t even look at coal anymore.”

Michael Taylor, senior analyst at the International Renewable Energy Agency:

“What Colorado is experiencing is what is happening around the world. It is now quite an outdated opinion to consider renewables the more expensive option.”

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Some might argue that this progress, and plummeting renewable energy prices, are due to assistance from the federal government. But government investment is critical for nascent technologies and for setting up new infrastructure and industries. As one news outlet put it, these subsidies are “an investment to drive renewable energy costs down by expanding the market and capturing economies of scale.” Just as it was government, not business, that first got a man on the moon, government investment can jumpstart the industry.

Not only is renewable energy cheaper than coal, it is also incredibly important when it comes to jobs. Indeed, there are more renewable jobs than coal jobs in America. Nationwide, twice as many Americans work in solar as in coal, and solar is creating jobs at about twelve times the rate of the rest of the economy. Colorado’s solar employment increased by 20 percent from 2015 to 2016, and now has roughly 8,000 solar jobs, while wind employs about 7,100 Coloradans. In total, clean energy employs 62,000 Coloradans today, which dwarfs the 4,600 jobs provided by coal, oil, and natural gas generation combined, as well as the roughly 1,200 coal mining jobs.

In addition to jobs, renewable energy is a boon for our state when it comes to certainty for utilities and businesses. As the New York Times put it:

“The clean energy push allows…utilities to lock in low power prices for decades, creates manufacturing jobs, puts steady money in the hands of farmers who host wind turbines and lures big employers who want renewable power.”

And finally, when considering the price of different types of energy, some of the largest costs are the ones unseen by energy companies or politicians. These are the costs to society for polluting our air and harming our health. Though these costs have been ignored for most of our history, that does not mean they are not important. Power plants fueled by coal or oil emit dangerous pollution that damages our health and our atmosphere. These include mercury, other toxic metals such as arsenic, chromium and nickelthat can cause cancer, and acid gases that cause lung damage and contribute to asthma, bronchitis and other chronic respiratory diseases. Coal plants also emit fine particle pollution, which causes premature deaths from heart attacks, bronchitis, and asthma.

The numbers vary, but researchers agree that considering these long-term, big-picture costs increases the price of fossil fuels. Estimates range from 5.7 extra cents per kilowatt-hour to 26.89 cents per kilowatt hour. These costs, which include the economic, health, and environmental damages, are directly passed on to the public. This includes the public health burden of air and water pollution, and the increased healthcare costs for those impacted.

Further, when we mine and burn fossil fuels we release greenhouse gasses — mostly carbon dioxide and methane — into the air. These gasses are thickening our atmosphere and causing global climate change, which will have long-term disastrous effects on every species on the planet (including us). The economic impacts of continuing business-as-usual instead of acting now to reduce our carbon emissions are daunting.

One of the most prominent false ideas carried by fossil fuel advocates and lobbyists is that renewable energy is more expensive than coal. While this may have been true 20 years ago, it’s time to put that idea aside. The U.S. is in the midst of a major transition to clean energy. As consumers demand access to cleaner energy and cleaner air and our technologies improve, prices for renewables are falling across the board. With market forces increasingly favoring renewables, dirty energy is no longer a smart investment.

Are you wondering if it is possible for the U.S. to run entirely on clean, renewable energy? It is. Read more here.

Are renewables reliable? Don’t they provide spotty energy? No. Read more here.

The post The Data is In: Renewable Energy Is Cheaper Than Coal in Colorado appeared first on Conservation CO.

There’s no tiptoeing around it: 2017 was a tough year. From natural disasters to political fiascos, this year has been marked by tough news and divisiveness.

But we’re happy to say that we made progress for protecting Colorado’s land, air, water, and communities. We’re proud to celebrate the end of the year by looking back at some of our biggest wins for the environment.

In order to win even bigger next year, we need people like you to stay with the fight. Engage. Volunteer. Donate. Be active. Together we can build on all the successes of this year to make even greater impacts.

Thanks to you, we:

Fought for Our Public Lands

• Celebrated the first-everColorado Public Lands Day,with 137 events across the state and more than 2,000 participants. Big names like Governor Hickenlooper, Senator Michael Bennet, and the Colorado-based band Elephant Revival spoke out in support of public lands.
• Mobilized 12,800 of our members to speak up for Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, which saved the monument from the Trump administration’s attempt to shrink it.
• Successfully influenced the Outdoor Retailer trade show to move to Denver. Our efforts helped show why Colorado has a better attitude toward protecting public lands than Utah, where the show was previously held until outdoor companies became fed up with Utah’s anti-public lands politicians.

Mobilized Action for Our Climate

• Worked with Governor Hickenlooper to commit Colorado to fighting climate change! In July, Hickenlooper announced major steps to fight climate change, putting the state on track to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement and joining Colorado into the U.S. Climate Alliance.

• Helped pass two bills in the Colorado Legislature that support low-income families with energy efficiency programs. These programs will save money for families and businesses while reducing air pollution.
• Remember when Colorado got a bunch of money from a settlement with Volkswagen? Due to the testimony and comments from our members, Colorado’s plan to use that money is the best in the country for promoting electric vehicles and clean air!

• Led the People’s Climate March in Denver with over 5,000 participants, in spite of freezing temperatures and snow! Our team made sure that our march, which was in conjunction with 370 marches across the country, elevated diverse voices and values.
• Stopped Congress from rolling back methane regulations on oil and gas activity, with 5,500 comments from our members and 25 op-eds from supporters in local news outlets.

Protected Our Water

• Released the first-ever Rivers Report Card, which provides a clear picture of the threats to eight rivers in Colorado and focuses on solutions to protect them.
• Helped pass a bill to provide schools with funding to test for lead in their drinking water. This proactive measure will pay off in terms of safeguarding our children’s health.

Stood up for Our Communities

• Endorsed two environmental champions for seats in the Aurora City Council — and they both won! Crystal Murillo and Nicole Johnston will bring a much-needed focus on diversity and inclusivity to the Council, and will champion environmental issues.
• Brought local voices to a public hearing for the Suncor oil refinery in central Denver on whether to increase the amount of pollution it is allowed to emit. The refinery is surrounded by neighborhoods that are primarily Latino and home to low-income families. We helped 30 community members testify at the hearing and gathered 750 written comments.
• Graduated 48 Promotores, or Latino community members learning to organize and advocate for environmental concerns within their communities.
• More than doubled our membership to over 36,000 members!

This was going to be a “top ten” list, but we had too many great wins to count! Thanks again for sticking with us in good times and in bad, and helping us make all these successes possible. We’ll be fighting just as hard in 2018, which will be a huge year for Colorado, not only because of the looming elections but also because of the many opportunities to protect the state we all love.

Although our conservation values are facing gridlock and animosity at the federal level, we’ve made it through tough political times before. And even though we’re up against wealthy interests, our power goes deeper than money: we’ve got people on our side.

Together, we will keep up the fight.

The post Our Biggest Wins in 2017 appeared first on Conservation CO.

January 10, 2018 marks the start of Colorado’s legislative session. And for the next four months, we’ll need to work together to determine our path forward to protect our air, water, public lands, and communities.

We are facing a turning point for our environment. As attacks come down from the federal level, the choices our lawmakers make today will determine whether we will take the lead or fall behind. We can influence those choices — and we must — if we want to protect our way of life.

Over the last 50 years, Conservation Colorado and our members have helped pass hundreds of pieces of legislation at the state Capitol. Starting today, we will spend the next four months working with legislators to support proactive legislation for conservation and to defeat bills that are bad for our future. You — our members & supporters— are the power behind these efforts. By joining us and raising your voice on the issues you care about during the legislative session, you can be a crucial part of our success.

This year we have two major priorities: protecting our communities from unchecked industries and preparing for Colorado’s growth. Not only are these some of the most pressing issues facing our state today, but they are also opportunities to make meaningful policy changes.

What do these priorities mean? Let’s take a closer look.

Protecting Our Communities

Colorado’s industries have a responsibility to clean up after themselves and conduct business without harming our neighborhoods or our health. We are working to make sure that industry in Colorado operates responsibly. We will fight to:

→ Put in place safeguards that promote health and safety for communities affected by oil and gas operations.

• Oil and gas development continues to encroach on our neighborhoods. It’s important that the state steps in to make sure development is not done at the expense of the health and welfare of our communities. We’ve seen time and again that the oil and gas industry will use its lobbying power at the Capitol to protect itself, not Coloradans.

→ Address the root causes of climate change.

• With recent events such as a 30-year-low for snowpack, increasing wildfires, and reduced air quality, we need to get serious about addressing our changing climate. It’s up to the state to take action to reduce carbon pollution in all sectors of our economy, from transportation to energy generation.

→ Update our mining policy to protect taxpayers and water quality while preventing future disasters.

• We all remember the Gold King Mine spill that poured over 3 million gallons of acid sludge into the Animas River and turned it a rusty shade of orange two years ago. We’ll be aiming to set up protective measures for mine permits that will protect our drinking water from toxic pollution.

Preparing for Colorado’s Growth

As our state population booms, we continue to face growing pains like higher energy consumption, congested roads, and increased pollution. We’re fighting for forward-thinking solutions to those challenges that are good for our people and our environment. This year we’re working to:

→ Make our transportation system cleaner, more efficient, and accessible for all Coloradans.

• Our expanding population means that traffic and air pollution are expected to get worse unless we focus on making electric vehicles and public transit more readily available and affordable for everyone.

→ Increase the use of renewable energy with a focus on reducing the disproportionate impacts that air pollution from energy production has on communities of color in Colorado.

• Clean energy like wind and solar is increasingly cheaper than coal. It can create jobs and cut air pollution while saving money for families and businesses.

→ Protect our state’s outdoors so every family can get outside and so our unparalleled wild places are conserved as our population expands.

• Colorado is known for its outdoors — we need to promote and also conserve these outdoor places so future generations can enjoy the same quality of life.

→ Secure funding for sustainable solutions to address the increasing demands on our water.

• Water is at the core of Colorado’s economy and identity, but because we live in a semi-arid state, we need to conserve this limited resource.

As the state legislature convenes, we’ll be supporting bills that advance these priorities and are good for our air, land, water, and communities. Once the session is over, we’ll release our annual Scorecard to report how legislators voted on key issues and to share our conservation wins.

Even in a tough time for our environment, we can make huge progress at the state level! Will you help us jump-start this legislative session by reminding your legislators to prioritize these important issues? Click here to take action!

The post Why Colorado’s Legislative Session Matters for Conservation appeared first on Conservation CO.

The post Environmental Groups Applaud House Committee Passage of Bill to Put Public Safety Above Oil and Gas Profits appeared first on Conservation CO.

There’s no tiptoeing around it: 2017 was a tough year. From natural disasters to political fiascos, this year has been marked by tough news and divisiveness.

But we’re happy to say that we made progress for protecting Colorado’s land, air, water, and communities. We’re proud to celebrate the end of the year by looking back at some of our biggest wins for the environment.

In order to win even bigger next year, we need people like you to stay with the fight. Engage. Volunteer. Donate. Be active. Together we can build on all the successes of this year to make even greater impacts.

Thanks to you, we:

Fought for Our Public Lands

• Celebrated the first-everColorado Public Lands Day,with 137 events across the state and more than 2,000 participants. Big names like Governor Hickenlooper, Senator Michael Bennet, and the Colorado-based band Elephant Revival spoke out in support of public lands.
• Mobilized 12,800 of our members to speak up for Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, which saved the monument from the Trump administration’s attempt to shrink it.
• Successfully influenced the Outdoor Retailer trade show to move to Denver. Our efforts helped show why Colorado has a better attitude toward protecting public lands than Utah, where the show was previously held until outdoor companies became fed up with Utah’s anti-public lands politicians.

Mobilized Action for Our Climate

• Worked with Governor Hickenlooper to commit Colorado to fighting climate change! In July, Hickenlooper announced major steps to fight climate change, putting the state on track to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement and joining Colorado into the U.S. Climate Alliance.

• Helped pass two bills in the Colorado Legislature that support low-income families with energy efficiency programs. These programs will save money for families and businesses while reducing air pollution.
• Remember when Colorado got a bunch of money from a settlement with Volkswagen? Due to the testimony and comments from our members, Colorado’s plan to use that money is the best in the country for promoting electric vehicles and clean air!

• Led the People’s Climate March in Denver with over 5,000 participants, in spite of freezing temperatures and snow! Our team made sure that our march, which was in conjunction with 370 marches across the country, elevated diverse voices and values.
• Stopped Congress from rolling back methane regulations on oil and gas activity, with 5,500 comments from our members and 25 op-eds from supporters in local news outlets.

Protected Our Water

• Released the first-ever Rivers Report Card, which provides a clear picture of the threats to eight rivers in Colorado and focuses on solutions to protect them.
• Helped pass a bill to provide schools with funding to test for lead in their drinking water. This proactive measure will pay off in terms of safeguarding our children’s health.

Stood up for Our Communities

• Endorsed two environmental champions for seats in the Aurora City Council — and they both won! Crystal Murillo and Nicole Johnston will bring a much-needed focus on diversity and inclusivity to the Council, and will champion environmental issues.
• Brought local voices to a public hearing for the Suncor oil refinery in central Denver on whether to increase the amount of pollution it is allowed to emit. The refinery is surrounded by neighborhoods that are primarily Latino and home to low-income families. We helped 30 community members testify at the hearing and gathered 750 written comments.
• Graduated 48 Promotores, or Latino community members learning to organize and advocate for environmental concerns within their communities.
• More than doubled our membership to over 36,000 members!

This was going to be a “top ten” list, but we had too many great wins to count! Thanks again for sticking with us in good times and in bad, and helping us make all these successes possible. We’ll be fighting just as hard in 2018, which will be a huge year for Colorado, not only because of the looming elections but also because of the many opportunities to protect the state we all love.

Although our conservation values are facing gridlock and animosity at the federal level, we’ve made it through tough political times before. And even though we’re up against wealthy interests, our power goes deeper than money: we’ve got people on our side.

Together, we will keep up the fight.

The post Our Biggest Wins in 2017 appeared first on Conservation CO.

January 10, 2018 marks the start of Colorado’s legislative session. And for the next four months, we’ll need to work together to determine our path forward to protect our air, water, public lands, and communities.

We are facing a turning point for our environment. As attacks come down from the federal level, the choices our lawmakers make today will determine whether we will take the lead or fall behind. We can influence those choices — and we must — if we want to protect our way of life.

Over the last 50 years, Conservation Colorado and our members have helped pass hundreds of pieces of legislation at the state Capitol. Starting today, we will spend the next four months working with legislators to support proactive legislation for conservation and to defeat bills that are bad for our future. You — our members & supporters— are the power behind these efforts. By joining us and raising your voice on the issues you care about during the legislative session, you can be a crucial part of our success.

This year we have two major priorities: protecting our communities from unchecked industries and preparing for Colorado’s growth. Not only are these some of the most pressing issues facing our state today, but they are also opportunities to make meaningful policy changes.

What do these priorities mean? Let’s take a closer look.

Protecting Our Communities

Colorado’s industries have a responsibility to clean up after themselves and conduct business without harming our neighborhoods or our health. We are working to make sure that industry in Colorado operates responsibly. We will fight to:

→ Put in place safeguards that promote health and safety for communities affected by oil and gas operations.

• Oil and gas development continues to encroach on our neighborhoods. It’s important that the state steps in to make sure development is not done at the expense of the health and welfare of our communities. We’ve seen time and again that the oil and gas industry will use its lobbying power at the Capitol to protect itself, not Coloradans.

→ Address the root causes of climate change.

• With recent events such as a 30-year-low for snowpack, increasing wildfires, and reduced air quality, we need to get serious about addressing our changing climate. It’s up to the state to take action to reduce carbon pollution in all sectors of our economy, from transportation to energy generation.

→ Update our mining policy to protect taxpayers and water quality while preventing future disasters.

• We all remember the Gold King Mine spill that poured over 3 million gallons of acid sludge into the Animas River and turned it a rusty shade of orange two years ago. We’ll be aiming to set up protective measures for mine permits that will protect our drinking water from toxic pollution.

Preparing for Colorado’s Growth

As our state population booms, we continue to face growing pains like higher energy consumption, congested roads, and increased pollution. We’re fighting for forward-thinking solutions to those challenges that are good for our people and our environment. This year we’re working to:

→ Make our transportation system cleaner, more efficient, and accessible for all Coloradans.

• Our expanding population means that traffic and air pollution are expected to get worse unless we focus on making electric vehicles and public transit more readily available and affordable for everyone.

→ Increase the use of renewable energy with a focus on reducing the disproportionate impacts that air pollution from energy production has on communities of color in Colorado.

• Clean energy like wind and solar is increasingly cheaper than coal. It can create jobs and cut air pollution while saving money for families and businesses.

→ Protect our state’s outdoors so every family can get outside and so our unparalleled wild places are conserved as our population expands.

• Colorado is known for its outdoors — we need to promote and also conserve these outdoor places so future generations can enjoy the same quality of life.

→ Secure funding for sustainable solutions to address the increasing demands on our water.

• Water is at the core of Colorado’s economy and identity, but because we live in a semi-arid state, we need to conserve this limited resource.

As the state legislature convenes, we’ll be supporting bills that advance these priorities and are good for our air, land, water, and communities. Once the session is over, we’ll release our annual Scorecard to report how legislators voted on key issues and to share our conservation wins.

Even in a tough time for our environment, we can make huge progress at the state level! Will you help us jump-start this legislative session by reminding your legislators to prioritize these important issues? Click here to take action!

The post Why Colorado’s Legislative Session Matters for Conservation appeared first on Conservation CO.

The post Environmental Groups Applaud House Committee Passage of Bill to Put Public Safety Above Oil and Gas Profits appeared first on Conservation CO.

Colorado oil and gas lobbyists and money keep Senate Republicans in their pocket

In 2017, during Colorado’s legislative session, a deadly explosion killed two people in Firestone, CO. The explosion was due to an uncapped flow line from an oil well.

After such a tragedy, most Coloradans believed the oil and gas industry would work harder to keep people safe. But recently, several former Anadarko employees came forward during an investor lawsuit against the company, saying Anadarko can’t be trusted to maintain their equipment to protect health and safety, calling their operations in Colorado “a ticking time bomb.”

In 2018, on the one-year anniversary of the Firestone tragedy, state legislators had repeated opportunities to enact safeguards for people’s health and safety as the Colorado oil and gas industry moves closer and closer to our neighborhoods and schools. They didn’t take that opportunity. Instead, we saw one commonsense measure after another get shut down by the strength of the oil and gas industry’s lobbying.

Here are some of the stories that unfolded at the state Capitol:

Killed: a bill to keep oil and gas drilling away from kids

Currently, Colorado’s laws require oil and gas activity to be 1,000 feet away from school buildings. But there is no legal limit to how far this industrial activity should be from school playgrounds, outdoor lunch areas, modular classrooms, or athletic fields. HB 1352 would have required oil and gas activity to be 1,000 feet away from school property boundaries. This is in line with what all other industries have to do near schools, like liquor stores.

In support of this bill, dozens of students and parents came to the state Capitol and testified in committee, asking lawmakers to protect them and future students from the impacts of oil and gas, ranging from air pollution to dangerous explosions. In addition, 55 students, teachers, and parents signed on to an open letter to lawmakers to make their voices heard on this issue.

In an emotional moment, a young activist spoke out of turn when a legislator asked if an oil and gas explosion has ever happened near a school. “Why does it need to happen first?” she flatly responded.

Those powerful voices speaking up for this bill didn’t stop a Senate committee from killing it and continuing to put our kids at risk.

Killed: three bills with small changes that would have made a big impact

One bill — HB 1071 — was an attempt to clarify the mission of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC). It currently states that the COGCC is in charge of fostering and regulating oil and gas in Colorado. This bill would have changed this contradictory mission to prioritize health, safety, and the environment over industry profits.

Another, HB 1157, would have ensured the industry is tracking and reporting all spills, fires, explosions, injuries, and deaths due to oil and gas well operations and production facilities. This bill would have made incident reports mandatory and required more detail for major and minor accidents, improving transparency to the public.  

Third, HB 1419 was a bill to require pipeline mapping and transparency so we all know where oil and gas operations are taking place — exactly the kind of information that would have prevented the Firestone tragedy. It would have also prevented leaks, groundwater contamination, and explosions by ensuring wells are strong and up to industry standard.  

All three of these bills were killed by Senate Republicans who continue to pander to oil and gas companies.

Killed: a bill to expand local government authority

While local governments (like cities, counties, or towns) cannot permanently ban oil and gas development in Colorado, they can put in place temporary halts on the industry. SB 048 would have protected the authority of local governments to regulate oil and gas facilities, allowing governments to determine oil and gas regulations according to the needs of residents. As is the story with most of these bills, this bill was killed in a Senate committee.

But there’s good news, too. We managed to block the passage of SB 192, a bill that would have forced local governments to pay oil and gas companies for any loss in profits due to a temporary moratorium or ban. This would have added a financial penalty to any local government trying to do the right thing by their residents. We helped keep this bill from going anywhere!

Protecting homeowners from forced pooling

Forced pooling is when an oil and gas operator wants to acquire rights to extract oil and gas, but a mineral rights owner — like a homeowner — does not want drilling in their backyard. In Colorado, if there are 100 homes in a development and one of them agrees to lease the mineral rights for oil and gas development, all 99 of the other homes are “force pooled,” and the operator can develop there.

Currently, forced pooling laws and practices are unfair to the mineral rights owners and are advantageous to oil and gas operators. Highly technical notices are sent to property owners who are given only 30 days to respond. People with little or no experience with the oil and gas industry are forced to make a tough decision without enough time or clear information.

One bill (HB 1289) would have prevented local government and school district minerals from being force pooled. This bill was blocked.

Finally, one bill that provided some improvements for mineral owners’ property rights passed this year. This bill (SB 230) was a compromise that will provide some immediate relief to homeowners by extending the amount of time homeowners have between getting notified about forced pooling and their hearing, and providing more easily understandable information about the process of being force pooled. Even with the passage of this bill, property owners still face an uphill battle when it comes to negotiating with industry. Compared to the many other commonsense bills that were killed this year, this one is a small step.

While it can be easy to feel disappointed that these bills we all fought so hard for did not pass, even bringing up these issues at the Capitol is a step in the right direction. Thank you for standing with us to fight for these bills, especially if you sent a message, called your legislator, came to testify, or took action in another way to protect our communities.

The best way to change this story next year and into the future is to elect more pro-conservation champions into office. This November, many of our state senators and all of our state representatives will be up for re-election. Help us build the majority we need to pass more life-saving bills that put our communities over the industry!

Find out how your elected officials voted on key environmental bills during this legislative session using the 2018 Conservation Scorecard. View it online or download it here.

The post Proof that oil and gas money has a stranglehold on Colorado’s state capitol appeared first on Conservation CO.

Pueblo, Colorado

Pueblo, Colorado, is in many ways a vision of times past. The steel mill that the city was built around looms over downtown. Unions are big, newspapers are small, and locals are dedicated to their old watering holes. But in this union town that has often been seen as a bellwether of politics, change is coming.

In the next few years, the steel mill could be powered by renewable energy from solar panels and battery storage right down the road. Two coal-fired power plants in Pueblo could be shutting down early in favor of renewable energy — and if it happens, energy customers will save money because of it.

How is this all possible? It’s happening because of the Colorado Energy Plan, a proposal to shut down two coal-fired power plants and replace them with renewable energy like wind and solar that will save customers money and clean our air. The plan is being proposed by Xcel Energy, the state’s largest energy provider, and is being considered by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC).

Today, Xcel Energy submitted to the PUC its plan to create a cleaner energy mix in Colorado. Their plan, called the 120-day report, outlines a few options for energy portfolios to replace the coal-fired power plants they’re closing. The preferred option — the one most likely to happen — is even better than we’d hoped.

The post Colorado’s Clean Future appeared first on Conservation CO.