ENVISIONING ENERGY: Perspectives on Our Sustainable Energy Future
Colorado Law’s Energy and Environmental Security Initiative (EESI) hosted Envisioning Energy yesterday evening. Speakers discussed the passage of numerous bills designed to put Colorado on the right track for achieving a sustainable energy future to a standing-room-only crowd. Key leaders from the Colorado Legislature, Governor Ritter’s cabinet, and the British government came together to address the progress that has been made and the difficulties that lie ahead for Colorado and the world in reference to sustainable energy.
Speakers at the event included: Colorado House Majority Leader, Alice Madden; Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, Jim Martin; Director of the Governor's Energy Office, Tom Plant; and British Consul in Denver, Kevin Lynch.
According to some of Colorado’s Democratic leaders, some examples for sustainable energy for Colorado are: ethanol fuel-production plants and higher mileage standards for Colorado’s energy image.
“For a while, the global climate was changing faster than the political climate was changing, and now that’s turning around,” said Tom Plant.
For example, in 2004, only 3 percent of energy came from renewable sources such as hydropower, wood, solar, wind, geothermal, and waste materials. The rest of the energy was derived from coal and natural gas.
To counteract the 97 percent of energy being derived from coal and natural gas, Colorado passed Amendment 37, which calls for 10 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewable sources by 2015.
"Colorado can emerge as an economic powerhouse in this field, and this past legislative session was a solid step in that direction. But we also need to make sure that Colorado is a leader in taking advantage of all the opportunities that are coming onto the scene at state, national, and even international levels. The speakers helped us understand how to do that," said Dr. Lakshman Guruswamy, EESI Director and Professor of Law.
For more information on the Envisioning Energy event, or the EESI greenhouse gas trading report, please visit http://www.colorado.edu/law/eesi/."There's an extraordinary amount of activity happening in the area of sustainable energy," said Dr.Guruswamy.