GREEN GROWTH: FROM RELIGION TO REALITY - Sustainia

Chapter 5Second, Colorado’s story demonstrates the importanceof policy moves that have immediate, tangible, ongoingbenefits for constituencies that otherwise might beskeptical of green policy. Such policy moves can fundamentallyalter the political landscape, creating new supportersfor green policy and hence broadening the potentialcoalition for green policy. In a conceptual sense,this is the heart of the “green growth” or “green industry”policy: environmentalists have always supported renewables,but the “green growth” argument focuses on showingother groups that they have real economic interests ingreen policy as well.Of course, Colorado’s green growth faces potentialobstacles down the road; the depth of future supportfrom the natural gas industry is an unknown. Also, Coloradolacks the transmission capacity to best exploit renewableenergy. Xcel Energy is trying to kick start solarprojects in southwestern Colorado, but an influential locallandowner is fighting placing transmission lines onhis land (Minard 2010). Public resistance is especiallypronounced against transmission lines crossing residentialareas or private lands (Davis and Hoffer 2010). Thepromotion of distributed generation at customers' facilitiesalso requires the grid to be able to accommodate distributed,intermittent power sources. As it is everywhere,upgrading to a renewable-friendly transmission grid willbe a major challenge for Colorado.Colorado, like most other states, also faces some politicaland structural challenges to green policy. Theseinclude uncertainty over future federal funding (Plant2011); potential exhaustion of the renewable energy“low-hanging fruit,” leading to higher future costs; a returnto partisanship after a honeymoon period of generalsupport; and some internal fracturing of the green energycommunity (Baker 2011). The critical question forColorado going forward is to what extent the strong successesof existing policy have created a stable, embeddedconstituency for green industry – from new manufacturinginstallations to rural landowners that have madewind leasing a part of their income base to houses thathave invested in solar panels – that will carry it forwardthrough funding uncertainties and the challenges of increasingscale.Works CitedASES. 2009. Defining, Estimating and Forecasting the RenewableEnergy and Energy Efficiency Industries in the U.S. And in Colorado.Boulder, CO: American Solar Energy Society, and WashingtonD.C.: Management Information Services Inc.Badenhausen, Kurt. 2010. "The Best States for Business and Careers."Forbes. October 13. http://www.forbes.com/2010/10/13/best-states-for-business-business-beltway-best-states_2.htmlBaker, Matt. 2011. Interview with Nina Kelsey. Telephone withnotes. May 10, 2011.Bezdek, Roger D. 2009. "Green Collar Jobs in the U.S. and Colorado,Economic Drivers for the 21st Century." Report for the AmericanSolar Energy Society, Boulder, CO.Broehl, Jesse. 2004. "Colorado Voters Pass Renewable EnergyStandard; Amendment Creates First Ever Voters-Approved RenewableEnergy Standard." RenewableEnergyAcess.Com. November 3.Burnell, James R., Christopher Carroll, and Genevieve Young. 2007."Colorado Mineral and Energy Industry Activities, 2007." Informationseries 77, Colorado Geological Survey and Colorado Departmentof Natural Resources, Denver, CO.Clean Air Clean Jobs Act, State of Colorado House Bill 10-1035 (2010).Davis, Charles and Katherine Hoffer. 2010. "Energy Developmentin the US Rockies: A Role for Counties?" The Journal of Federalism40, no. 2: 296-311.Espinoza, Annette. 2010. "5 arrested in Boulder anti-coal protest."The Denver Post. April 27. http://www.denverpost.com/comment-ed/ci_14969890?source=commented-EIA. 2010. "Colorado Electricity Profile 2008 edition." U.S. EnergyInformation Agency, Department of Energy, Washington D.C.2010. Last accessed July 28, 2011. http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/st_profiles/colorado.htmlFinley, Bruce. 2009. "Protestors want Colorado to stop 'clowningaround' on Clean Air." The Denver Post. November 19. http://www.denverpost.com/ci_13819745Frates, Chris and Erin Cox. 2004. “Voters like tobacco tax Poll saysper-pack hike, renewable energy backed MANY REMAIN UNDE-CIDED Other amendments to split the state’s electoral and removeconstruction liability limits “look pretty weak.”” The Denver Post,October 11.Laird, Frank N. 2008. "Learning Contested Lessons: ParticipationEquity and Electric Utility Regulation." Review of Policy Research25, no. 5: 429-228.MacDonald, Lisa A. et al. 2007. "Oil and Gas Economic Impact Analysis."Report for Colorado Energy Research Institute, Denver, CO.Minard, Anne. 2010. "Colorado Seeks a Renewable Energy Peak:But can Rocky Mountain power success be repeated in other terrain?"National Geographics. May 5. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/05/100505-energy-colorado- renewable-power/Net Metering Act, State of Colorado House Bill 08-1160 (2008).Olinger, David. 2004. “STATEWIDE BALLOT ISSUES AMEND-MENT 37 10% by 2015: Energy initiative would force Colo. to reaprenewables.” The Denver Post, October 17.Paulson, Steven K. 2004. “List of initiatives certified for the Novemberballot.” The Associated Press State & Local Wire, August 17.Plant, Tom. 2011. Interview by Nina Kelsey. Telephone with notes.May 12, 2011.Purdy, Penelope. 2004. “Amendment 37 Voters get their say on energyBallot measure sets renewables standard.” The Denver Post,October 10.Renewable Energy Financing Act, State of Colorado Senate Bill 09-051 (2009).Ritter, Bill. 2010. "Colorado's New Energy Economy." Forbes. May27. http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/26/clean-energy-wind-technology-colorado.html66