Sustainability a mixed bag in Pikes Peak region

In downtown Colorado Springs, there are exactly two public recycling bins.

And that’s an improvement, said Mark Tremmell.

“As a conservative community, we should be the heart of sustainability. We should be conserving everything,” said Tremmell, an architect who co-chairs a sustainability committee for the Downtown Partnership. He noted that, while recycling is mandatory in much of the nation, the few people here who recycle must pay extra to get cans, bottles and paper picked up at the curb.

It’s an example of a contradiction that emerges in Colorado Springs when discussing sustainability – broadly defined as reducing people’s impact on the environment and natural resources through recycling, mass transit, cleaner energy, efficient buildings and locally grown food.

Last year, environmental group Sustain-Lane ranked Colorado Springs 43rd out of the 50 most populous U.S. cities for sustainability.

Earlier this month, Tremmell joined a dozen leaders from the public, private and non-profit sectors for the first “State of the Region” panel discussion, part of the Southern Colorado Sustainability Conference.

But on the same day panelists were talking about environmental friendliness and listing their successes, voters were rejecting a proposed city tax hike – which will mean drastic cuts to bus service – and voting to end the Stormwater Enterprise fee, which funds drainage projects and works to restore waterways to a more natural state.

“We are not known as a green city, despite all the positive things we’re trying to report,” said Steve Saint, chairman of the Green Cities Coalition of the Pikes Peak Region, during the event. “We have a legacy of decisions that have created sprawl and unsustainability in this region.”

There have been small successes and encouraging developments, said Eric Cefus, executive director of local environmental group the Catamount Institute, which organized the conference. He noted that the Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network, a local consortium formed by the institute in January to share resources on being more environmentally friendly, has grown to 100 members.

But for many successes, there are discouraging downsides for environmental advocates.

• Energy: Colorado Springs Utilities is on track to meet a state mandate of generating 10 percent of its power from renewables through wind, solar, biomass and hydroelectric power, but the operations are small compared to Utilities’ overall energy system, which gets 70 percent of its power from coal.

“All those things come with a cost. If we do implement wind power or solar power, it may impact your rates,” Mayor Lionel Rivera said at the conference.

But relying on coal could carry its own cost. Cap-and-trade legislation in Congress would set a limit on carbon emission and cost coal-dependent communities millions, as they race to find new energy sources and buy credits from other utilities on the open market.

“The longer we procrastinate making a decision to start using more renewables and getting more efficient, the larger bills we’re going to pay in the future,” Cefus said.

Utilities CEO Jerry Forte, speaking at the conference, said the organization next year will update its Electric Integrated Resource Plan, a 5-year energy road map that he hopes will be “much more of a larger community conversation.”

• Transportation: The much-maligned public bus system – Saint called it “the lamest system that the city can afford” – could be getting lamer. After the failure of a proposed tax hike in the Nov. 3 election, the cash-strapped city is considering cutting night and weekend service and some routes.

Environmental advocates said a lack of transit not only means more carbon emissions from cars on the roads, but it hurts Colorado Springs’ reputation and ability to attract employers. In the national survey, Colorado Springs was ranked 47th out of 50 in metro transit ridership, and authors noted that 80 percent of commuters drive alone to work.

• Recycling: Last summer, local trash haulers began offering single-stream recycling, meaning residents can mix their recyclables together in one bin for curb side pickup.

But it’s still a service customers must pay extra for, and few do.

According to data released this month  by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado recycled 20 percent of residential waste in 2008, but in El Paso County, only 4.45 percent was recycled.

There is no facility here to sort and pack recyclables for shipping, so they are taken to Denver or Boulder, which adds to the cost of collecting them and leads to more trucks on the road.

“You should pay more for not recycling, not the other way around,” said Tremmell, with the Downtown Partnership.

Trying to get public recycling bins has proven frustrating for Tremmell’s committee, too. Since recycling service is costly, the only way they got two in place earlier this year is because they are in front of businesses owned by environmental advocate and former city councilman Richard Skorman, who bought the bins, and trash hauler Bestway Disposal is emptying them for free, Tremmell said.

• Renewable energy industry: To the north and south of El Paso County, renewable energy companies are making major investments in Colorado. One company, Vestas Wind Systems, plans to build plants in Pueblo and north of Denver that would employ more than 1,500 total.

At the conference, Mike Kazmierski, president of the Colorado Springs Regional Economic Development Corp., said Vestas chose Pueblo because of its proximity to rail lines, and Colorado Springs was never in the running.

While renewable energy may be regarded as the industry of the future, he said it isn’t yet a thriving industry.

“It doesn’t pay that well. It’s not making a lot of money. It’s still in the development stage, as much as we don’t want to accept it,” he said.

He said the EDC is working with eight renewable prospects for Colorado Springs, not big names like Vestas, but “other secondary industries on the renewable side.”

SUCCESSES IN SUSTAINABILITY

As presented at the Southern Colorado Sustainability Conference on Nov. 3:

City of Colorado Springs: Many city vehicles run on biodiesel fuel, with a fleet that has been recognized as the largest in the nation.

Colorado Springs Utilities: Negotiating for the purchase of 10 to 100 megawatts of wind power. Investing in research locally to remove pollutants from coal emissions. Building a new hydro-electric plant. Incorporating biomass from dead trees into coal burning.

City of Manitou Springs: Passed a law allowing expanded community gardening. Obtained federal stimulus funding for a $5.9 million sewer system upgrade.

Fort Carson: Built a solar array to generate 2.3 percent of the post’s power, with a goal of 100 percent renewable power by 2027. New buildings must have 30 percent better energy performance than those built to standard codes.

Colorado Springs Regional Economic Development Corp.: Working with eight prospective renewable energy projects, including two that are expected to announce startup here within 90 days.
Colorado Springs Downtown Partnership: Two public recycling bins set up on Tejon Street, working to place more.

Green Cities Coalition of the Pikes Peak Region: Held a summit in 2008, attended by hundreds, to set goals and priorities for a community-wide sustainability effort.

University of Colorado at Colorado Springs: Two LEED-certified buildings – a designation for buildings that meet stringent efficiency and sustainability standards – under construction. Recycling 90 percent of construction waste. Started a bike-share program to cut vehicle use. Created a minor degree program in sustainable development.

Governor’s Energy Office: Established goals of reducing carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2020 and reducing waste in state agencies by 75 percent by the same year. Received $49 million in economic stimulus money for energy efficiency and conservation projects.

Obama Administration: 18 percent of stimulus money has gone to energy efficiency and renewable energy projects and initiatives.