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Community Green local initiatives
GREEN MOUNTAINS
Local governments set sustainability goals and initiatives to achieve them
BY MARTINIQUE DAVIS
Telluride, Mountain Village and San Miguel County are stunningly beautiful, with a diverse, pristine backcountry that provides locals and visitors alike with a multitude of options for outdoor recreation. Less poetically, the region’s economy depends heavily on this pristine backcountry and its opportunities for outdoor recreation. So, as the impacts of climate change become a sobering reality for communities across the globe, including the Telluride region, it’s no wonder that local governments here have heeded the call. Initiating meaningful change for more sustainable futures can be a daunting challenge, but local governments have committed to carbon neutral, zero waste and other environmental goals in the coming decades, and are in the process of putting projects and programs into place to realize those goals.
To reach its carbon neutral goals, as well as improve efficiencies and decrease costs, San Miguel County recently partnered with the state Department of Local Affairs and the Colorado Energy Office in launching an energy performance and solar installation project for county facilities. “Becoming carbon neutral will give us long-term stability and ensure quality of life as climate change is becoming more apparent,” says County Manager Mike Bordogna of the program, which will see the installation of on-site solar photovoltaic and battery systems at key county facilities, as well as identify facility improvements that will reduce energy usage. All told, these improvements will result in a total reduction of 7,704 tons of carbon dioxide.
In Telluride, the citizen-led Ecology Commission has been hard at work updating the community’s Carbon Action Plan, hiring consulting company Cascadia to create an updated plan that will serve as the town’s sustainability roadmap. The plan highlights sources of carbon emissions and ways to reduce and eventually eliminate them, and outlines some of the expected impacts climate change will have on the community in the coming years. Says Commission Chair Kiersten Talbert, “Our hope is that the updated CAP will guide the actions of the town government in order to reduce our contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and the effects of climate change, and to prepare our community for some of the changes that are predicted for our region.”
The commission has also focused on reducing single-use plastics and is in the process of creating a reusable takeout container pilot program.
Mountain Village, meanwhile, has put its money where its mouth is when it comes to promoting environmental stewardship. A slate of incentive programs designed to help residents take steps towards more green behaviors are available, including a Compost Incentive Program, where recipients receive a free home-composter unit; the Smart Building Incentive program, where those building a new home can qualify for up to 100 percent building fee waiver; and a Solar Incentive Program, where the town partnered with the Telluride Mountain Village Owners Association and nonprofit Solar United Neighbors to create a solar energy co-op. A total of 15 local families received up to a $5,000 rebate to install solar panels on their homes in 2021, thanks to the program.
To help manage these programs and seek grant funding for future sustainability projects, the town has hired an environmental efficiencies and grant coordinator. Lauren Kirn, who began in August, points out that green practices are as much about protecting the environment as they are about promoting innovation. “We are constantly researching environmental efforts and developing relationships to understand and evaluate the best path forward for our community,” says Kirn. “One of my personal goals is to demonstrate that environmental efficiencies and sustainability efforts coincide with economic growth and productivity.”
Mike Bordogna
