From Steve Kenny
Colorado’s winter season was one for the record books. More specifically, the Rocky Mountain region seen 27.9 million skiers visited this year, a record second year in a row, thanks in large part to consistent snow cover throughout.
The ski season started at the beginning of November with a well above-average snow cover that lasted well into May. It was a consistent winter that the ski industry dreams of all year round.
But it was also the kind of time of year that climate experts said we would see — a solid winter this year, followed by a few warmer winters before we see the next epic winter. As the climate tends towards warmer and wetter winters, inconsistency and uncertainty prevail.
As a member of Colorado’s dynamic and economically important winter outdoor industry, this trend scares us. Without winter, our jobs and our businesses are at risk, as is Colorado’s $5 billion winter outdoor recreation economy, the largest in the US
As an industry truly at the forefront of climate change, it is our responsibility to address this issue by embracing the large-scale, systemic solutions that will have the greatest impact. One is to clean up the transportation sector, the state’s largest source of carbon emissions.
Zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) are perhaps our best tool for fighting transportation emissions, and the Colorado Clean Car standard, which the Air Quality Control Commission will vote on adopting this October, would rapidly accelerate the deployment of these zero-emission vehicles . We support adoption of the full version of this rule, which will result in 100% zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035, because that will bring the greatest benefit to Colorado residents. Adopting the highest possible Colorado Clean Car standard will demonstrate Colorado’s innovation and leadership in the 21st century.
There are many good reasons why Colorado should adopt the strongest version of that rule this year. Most notably, a tough Colorado Clean Car standard will make the goal of 940,000 ZEVs on Colorado’s roads by 2030 and 2.1 million ZEVs by 2035 more achievable. It also ensures Coloradons have access to cheaper and higher quality ZEVs, helping us meet the ambitious and required greenhouse gas emissions targets set years ago and address the worsening air quality issue in the Front Range.
Being outside is more popular than ever. In fact, 92% of all Colorado residents participate in outdoor recreation each year. Getting outside and enjoying our mountains, rivers, and clean, crisp air is an integral part of Colorado’s culture and vibrant tourism economy, and changing the way we use nature is an essential one part of their protection.
Thankfully, there’s some momentum — just last month, the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission passed “Advanced Clean Trucks,” another landmark law requires manufacturers of medium and heavy-duty vehicles to sell an increasing proportion of zero-emission models. This is the first step. If we If we are to meet Colorado’s goals of reducing statewide emissions by 50% by 2030 and 90% by 2050, we must address the entire transportation sector, which includes trucks. but also, The 17 million tons of CO2 are emitted by the millions of light commercial vehicles in Colorado. To truly combat the effects of climate change in our state, we cannot do one without the other.
If we are serious about managing the impact of climate change on Colorado’s mountains and our winter recreation economy, leading the shift to electric vehicles and tackling the main source of carbon emissions will have powerful, immediate and positive impacts.
But time is not on our side. We cannot wait another year to implement this new rule. Let’s implement the Colorado Clean Car Standard in 2023 to protect our outdoor recreation economy during the winter.
Steve Kenny is the CEO or Flaik. Kenny lives in Lafayette.
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