Early in the keynote address at the Colorado Renewable Energy Conference in Pueblo, Congressman Udall spoke optimistically about a green bipartisan effort for legislative action. He said, "Red or Blue doesn't matter; mix red and blue colors and you get green!" and expressed an optimism about the future based on his observation that both Democratic and Republican candidates for President will be more supportive of green initiatives than President Bush has been. Congressman Udall reported that the Energy Caucus in the House of Representatives now numbers 218 and will soon reach a critical mass for better energy legislation. He said, "we have to develop a diverse and balanced policy." In his opinion, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has been the nation's premiere source of research relevant to finding solutions to our energy issues, but he wants to provide better funding for the lab partly through minimizing "earmarks" which divert funds to home state favorites which may or may not fit into a plan best for the nation.
Congressman Udall talked about incredible business opportunities that are derivative to pursuing a green path. The world market for green products is projected to be in the trillions of dollars. Fred Krupp's book "Earth: The Sequel" details many examples of business opportunities.
The needed legislative initiatives include: incentives for renewable energy and energy conservation; Renewable Electricity Standards; increased fuel economy standards; and, cap & trade carbon. He also supports creating funding for people to upgrade the energy footprint of homes at the time of purchase.
Congressman Udall spoke of opportunities to capitalize on the fact that our military is the largest user of energy and our government. Rather than take a negative approach, he spoke positively of the efforts taken by our military leaders and government bureaucrats which need to be encouraged through executive leadership and legislative action.
Exhibits at the conference provided support for Udall’s optimism. The vendors demonstrated that solar and wind products are mature and being widely used by individuals for home applications as well as the large scale projects we’ve read about. Green construction materials and design services are being used in Colorado to make development a greener, more sustainable activity. The Green Building Conference scheduled for July 10-13 in Boulder will provide detailed information about changing a community’s codes in order to promote green practices in planning, development and construction. The free Products & Services Fair on July 13 offers access to over 50 green building professionals to discuss projects.
Starting as soon as this fall, commuters may have the option of taking a bus from Woodland Park to Colorado Springs instead of driving. The 'Ute Pass Express' is still in the planning statges, but is envisioned to be a commuter-oriented bus (though midday bus runs will be considered), probably stopping in Green Mountain Falls and possibly Manitou Springs as well as Woodland Park. You can read more about it in the Gazette.
Keep Woodland Park Beautiful will host its 6th annual Great American Clean-up on Saturday, June 7, 2008 in Memorial Park. This community-wide event will begin at 9am and conclude with a free barbeque lunch that starts at noon. The Committee welcomes residents and visitors, new-comers and old-timers, families and individuals, business owners and retirees. This is your chance to show your pride in our city while making a new friend or catching up with an old one.
The mission of Keep Woodland Park Beautiful is to protect our community, the wildlife that live here, and the area’s natural beauty by reducing the accumulation of litter, junk, and rubbish while promoting the responsible handling of trash and solid waste through education, enforcement, and an active community participation. At past events, volunteers have collected over 360 cubic feet of litter along roadways and ditches in just a few areas of Woodland Park. The Great American Clean-up is also the perfect opportunity to join the City’s Adopt-a-Spot program by pledging to maintain your own neighborhood street.
Trash bags and safety vests will be provided. Participants should bring water, work gloves, and sunscreen. Please call Amanda Schofield at 687-5202 for more information.
Don't forget, Munchkin Market starts today at 5:00 (though participating sellers get to shop early, at 3:00)! If you're not familiar with this semi-annual event, it's a huge consignment sale featuring mostly things for children. Lots of toys, strollers, TONS of clothes, all of it in really good shape. Proceeds go to the non-profit Mothers of PreSchoolers (MOPS) group. The sale is at the Woodland Park Community Church, on Valley View Drive near highway 67, and will also be going on tomorrow (see calendar) and Saturday (everything's half price on Saturday).
Senator Allard of Colorado was the lone opponent of a measure recently passed by the Senate (by a vote of 97 to 1!) to temporarily halt the shipment of ~70k barrels of oil per day to the government's emergency reserve, in an effort to alleviate soaring fuel prices as the summer driving season approaches. The House will vote on a similar measure soon, then it'll face opposition from Bush. (via CNN).
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