Oh no, oh no, oh no no no no no! - Western Colorado Alliance for Community Action

Last month, we told you that Colorado’s SB21-200: Reduce Greenhouse Gases & Increase Environmental Justice would be the legislative showdown of the year. That prediction has proven truer than we could’ve imagined. Right now, our governor and legislature are locked in a high-stakes standoff on climate action. Here’s the backstory and a plea from our West Slope communities.

If you remember, in 2018, Governor Polis campaigned for election, in part, on a promise to take swift and bold action to address the climate crisis as well as shift entirely to a renewable energy economy by 2040.

And in 2019, the legislature passed a bill that seemed to fulfill that promise. HB19-1261, dubbed the Climate Action Plan (a bill we supported and followed closely), established a timeline committing the state to a series of greenhouse gas emissions reductions that included a 26% cut by 2025, a 50% cut by 2030, and a 90% cut by 2050. While this bill was signed by the governor, it didn’t ultimately hold the administration or any state office accountable to actually meet the goals.

Now, two years down the road, Polis’s office recently unveiled the Colorado Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap. But it’s difficult to celebrate when, even with such a big plan, the state’s own projections show Colorado is only on pace to get about halfway to its stated goals for the years 2025 and 2030.

With that knowledge in hand, a team of legislators and environmental organizations came together this year to introduce SB21-200, which would essentially serve as the legislative teeth to help enact the State’s Climate Roadmap. But from the moment of its introduction, the legislature saw immediate pushback from the Polis administration.

Why? It seems the Governor’s commitment to achieving a 100% renewable energy transition by 2040 only goes as deep as free-market solutions will allow, leaving little room for tighter regulations to encourage swifter action. For example, one of the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Faith Winter, stands firm in her commitment not to promote “cap and trade,” which, while still incentivizing lower emissions, allows companies that reach emission caps to buy allowances and go over. While eliminating this loophole would certainly help us lower greenhouse gas emissions sooner, Polis’s administration doesn’t seem likely to budge on stricter regulations like this —so far, to the extent that he’s now threatening to veto the bill if it isn’t scaled back significantly.

As we watch this in-fighting from afar, we know the communities on the West Slope are paying the cost of this Front Range fight. We’re preparing to enter another extreme drought season and readying ourselves for the fires that will come with it. We’re watching our land burn and our rivers dry. Maybe the Polis administration has forgotten that the Western Slope has warmed more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit since the 1800s — double the global average. Spanning more than 30,000 square miles, it is the largest hot spot in the Lower 48, a Washington Post analysis found. Ignoring the threat to our climate seems like the biggest economic gamble our state could make right now. A decision not to act is a decision in favor of future disaster.

With all due respect, we ask that the Polis administration and the legislators championing this bill get together and hash out a compromise on climate action — one with real numbers behind it — and do their part to protect our West Slope communities and way of life.

About the author

Jeriel Clark

Jeriel joined the Western Colorado Alliance staff in February 2017 (back when we were still Western Colorado Congress), but you may remember her as our Canvass Director for the successful Minimum Wage ballot initiative in 2016! In her young career, Jeriel has worked with engaged citizens across Colorado on issues ranging from veterans' affairs, healthcare and women’s rights. Jeriel has called Grand Junction and the Western Slope home for 16 years, and enjoys running, hiking, biking and crafting with her daughter Emma.