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UTAH ENERGY SUMMIT

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. will wrap up the Utah Energy Summit today.

The summit, which has drawn a wide range of Western leaders and environmental groups, has drawn some fairly heft financial support from some of the region's largest energy players, as well. The Salt Lake Tribune reported on Monday that Arch Coal, Rocky Mountain Power, Questar, Chevron and Bill Barrett Corp., all pitched in on the summit.

The summit kicked off on Sunday, with Huntsman and Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer presiding over the opening remarks, which consisted of a list of things the National Association of Governors would like Congress to get done on energy.

The governors' driving desire to hold off devastating changes wrought by a warming climate, along with a desire to wean the nation off foreign oil, provided the motivation for the "to-do" list. The list contained a push for clean-coal technology, higher mileage requirements for vehicles, and massive injections of federal cash for developing new technology.

Unremarkedly, Gov. Brian Schweitzer pushed his coal agenda, and added his endorsement for nuclear energy as well. He chided those who didn't share his enthusiasm for coal and nuclear energy as being a bit behind the times, and the Tribune quoted him as saying, "Coal is our future. Are you willing to sit naked in trees and eat nuts?"

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STATE OF THE ROCKIES REPORT

In the West, water is the wonky issue, urbanism is the sexy issue and energy is that cyclical issue that rears its big head every few decades. Meanwhile, forestry just seems to plod along through our history, never forgotten, but only in the spotlight when big fires erupt.

But forest issues are now more important than ever, according to researchers at Colorado College and a panel at the State of the Rockies Conference, which just ended in Colorado Springs. Student and faculty researchers at the school presented their baseline date for the health of the region’s forests, noting the increasing problems with insects and fires. [more]

STATE OF THE ROCKIES REPORT

The 2007 State of the Rockies Conference commenced on Monday in the atrium of Armstrong Hall, on the campus of Colorado College in Colorado Springs, and from the opening remarks onward, the speakers all seemed to want to make a few things clear: this report was primarily written by a talented group of undergraduates and a team of professors; climate change is affecting almost every issue covered in the report; and the future of the Rocky Mountain region is mired in uncertainties surrounding growth.

But Day 1 really began to cook during the first panel on water sustainability. Attendees packed the room and, following panelists’ presentations, the audience threw tough questions at the speakers. At that opening panel, presenters outlined water projects and tactics to provide water for growing cities in the West. Following those presentations, audience members grilled the panelists about growth issues. Toward the end, the discussion touched on what might happen when growth outpaces supplies. [more]

RANCH ROUNDUP

Despite all of the economic and cultural changes in the West, ranching still very much defines how we live. But in many cases, ranching isn’t what it once was. For example, in Wyoming, the state bought a 6,439-acre ranch and is preparing management plans, and in New Mexico, a family has sought the help of a land trust in managing its land with conservation in mind.

Wyoming bought the Duncan Ranch last year for $5.9 million after noticing its natural resources. Recently, reports the Casper Star-Tribune, the Office of State Lands and Investments offered up a draft management plan for the ranch. The plan aims to balance agriculture, wildlife and recreation. It is also designed to make money for the state, with profits being directed into a fund to benefit state schools. [more]

WHERE DID YOU SLEEP LAST NIGHT

The issue of affordable housing for workers in Rocky Mountain resorts just won’t go away. While the economy seems to be able to support more and more growth in places like Vail with an ever-increasing number of huge second homes, gated communities and private ski areas — there is one in the works in Utah as well as one near Vail — the market seems to forget about support staff and where they’ll live.

So it ends up that the market rarely solves this problem; usually it’s government agencies that step in. In Vail, where the problem is perhaps most acute, that means the town council, county commission and local housing authority. [more]

EVERYBODY’S A CRITIC

So long as we have public lands, the public debate regarding how best to manage them will never end. Here’s just the latest in the ongoing saga over wild lands, wildlife and wells.

In Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park, the elk population is eating itself out of house and home and the National Park Service is debating what to do. The agency’s preferred alternative is to literally bring in hired guns — sharpshooters who can take out about 1,000 cow elk at night with silencers. But other options include injection birth control for the elk, allowing hunters to cull the herd, and reintroducing wolves in the park.

Also in Colorado, the Western Colorado Congress, a nonprofit advocacy group for the Western Slope, is protesting management plans for three regional national forests. The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests recently released their proposed management plans, which the group says don't protect nearly enough acres of the land as wilderness, and allow too much energy development. [more]

COLLEGE GRADUATION

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. signed into law yesterday the graduation of Utah Valley State College into Utah Valley University, amidst fanfare.

The move, as reported by the Salt Lake Tribune, marks a much-needed transformation for the school, which has grown rapidly to accommodate a booming population in and around Orem. Enrollment has increased by 4 percent a year, and is expected to hit 24,000 students in a decade.

The legislation creating the Tier II university also comes with $8 million, most of which will be used to hire more permanent professors. Many now are adjunct.

MILITARY PAYS

As reported today in the Denver Rocky Mountain News, a U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge ruled that the U.S. Air Force must pay back developers for costs associated with cleaning up asbestos at a former military base in Colorado that is being redeveloped into homes.

Developers at the former Lowry base near Denver bought the land in 2001 from the Lowry Redevelopment Authority before later finding out that the soil was contaminated with asbestos. The developers unsuccessfully requested the federal government pay for the cleanup before suing the Air Force.

The ruling, which could force the military agency to pay developers as much as $9 million, could have nationwide implications. The military plans to shut down 22 bases, many of which could also be redeveloped into housing. This ruling sets a precedent about who will pay for cleanup costs of those bases. But Air Force officials are likely to appeal the decision. [more]

LEED THE NEW GOLD FOR COLORADO DEVELOPMENTS

It's cool to be 'green' these days. Sustainability is the new standard for communities, lifestyles and building codes. And in Denver, the Environmental Protection Agency is putting its practices where its policies are with its new Region 8 headquarters.

The Denver Rocky Mountain News reports that the building in downtown Denver sports a garden roof, replete with 40,000 plants -- half of which were obtained locally -- thus reducing even the emissions required to move the materials to the site.

Opus Northwest, the developer of the building, has applied for a Gold rating under the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards.

The gardenscape roof will capture rain and filter out pollutants, and reduce the warming effects generally caused by sunlight reflecting off concrete.
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WATER LAW

A ruling by the Idaho Supreme Court yesterday both clarifies and confuses water law in Idaho.

The court ruled that conjunctive management, which is a system of rules used by the Idaho Department of Water Resources to allocate water between senior and junior rights holders, is legal and constitutional.

But the ruling does not end the dispute between senior, surface water-rights holders and junior, groundwater-rights holders — it only says the state has the authority to wade into the debate. [more]

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