|| Climate Change

At the High Country Conservation Center, we believe that “climate change” is at the point where debate about its existence, or potential, is no longer relevant. 97% of scientists agree that it is "very likely that anthropogenic greenhouse gases have been responsible for most of the unequivocal warming of the Earth's average global temperature in the second half of the twentieth century" (National Academy of the Sciences, 2010). The Precautionary Principle dictates that action even without 100% certainty is prudent.


Summit County-Wide Goals
Climate Change Affects Colorado
Personal Actions and Green Lifestyles
Colorado Carbon Fund
Chill the Drills - Save America's Arctic
Why Idling "Gets You Nowhere"
Compost as a Solution to Climate Change
350 is the Most Important Number
More Resources

In our mountain community, climate change or global warming or whatever you call it, is a local issue.  Why?

Quite simply – we depend on our winter for our economy.  Perhaps even more importantly is a regional issue: in the West, our precious and often scarce water comes from our winter snow.

Instead of focusing on the facts and reports of what climate change may have in store for our region (there are ample resources at the end of this page), we instead provide some tips for ACTION to reduce your personal carbon dioxide emissions.

For a perspective on how much we are underestimating the global warming problem, read the essay "Think Again: Climate Change" by author, environmentalist Bill McKibben.

|| Summit County-Wide Goals

Summit County and Towns are in full support of the Summit Energy Action Plan, which sets a 20% green-house gas reduction goal by 2020, matching the State Climate Action Plan.

How will this be accomplished? By setting clear and measurable action items and targets in the following sectors:

Built Environment

Renewable Energy

Waste Reduction

Transportation

|| Climate Change Affects Colorado

Prepared by Douglas Muschett, Ph.D,. a (mostly) retired researcher and consultant specializing in climate change mitigation and sustainable development. Please click highlighted links for additional resources.

Although climate change is a global phenomenon, with profound effects and implications for people and  natural  systems everywhere,  Colorado is uniquely dependent upon its climate to sustain both its economy and population. Summer and winter outdoor recreation, resort communities, agriculture and ranching, urban populations, wildlife habitats and forest health are all critically dependent upon the interplay of temperature, precipitation, evaporation, snowmelt and runoff.

As temperatures continue to increase over time, these other climate variables will be affected in many important ways. Clearly the length of the snow season will contract, the depth of mountain snowpack will diminish, and the snowmelt will advance earlier into springtime.  In turn, the peak river flow may diminish somewhat and occur earlier in the season. Warmer temperatures will also increase evaporation from streams and reservoirs and lower the oxygen content of streams.

These climatic changes will have important impacts and will require various adaptations for Colorado’s economy and populations.  Outdoor recreation, including the length of the winter resort season;   fishing conditions in rivers, lakes and reservoirs; and river rafting and boating will face significant changes.  Agricultural production will be affected by warmer temperatures, increased evaporation of soil moisture and changing  waterflows  for irrigation.  Projected  decreases  in runoff will complicate water supply distributions for the Colorado and other rivers; and decreases in runoff coupled with  increased evaporation will affect urban water supplies from reservoirs.

These concerns about climate change in Colorado have stimulated much scientific and policy interest among research institutions and government agencies in Colorado.  As a result there is much detailed and quantitative information being published and made available to the public. The “Colorado Climate Report” is a good synthesis of climate change findings and implications published by the Colorado Water Conservation Board.

A few highlights from the Summary Report include:

|| Colorado Carbon Fund

It's time we started supporting local energy projects! We're happy to announce HC3's new partnership with The Colorado Carbon Fund. Have you thought about buying carbon offsets but weren't sure how? Do you know your carbon footprint? Would you like to make a tax-deductible donation to help support new clean energy projects here in Colorado? The new Colorado Carbon Fund is helping individuals and businesses reduce their carbon footprint by supporting new clean energy projects in our state. You can participate in a three-step process to help combat climate change by visiting www.ColoradoCarbonFund.org.

1). Think: Measure your impact
2). Act: Reduce your emissions through simple action steps
3). Fund: Offset emissions through the Colorado Carbon Fund

In addition to offsetting your carbon, 20% of your tax-deductible donation will go to new local - Summit County - projects that reduce emissions. Sign up today!

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|| Chill the Drills - Save America's Arctic

Okay...you know we had to do it. Yes, it is another photo of a cute, fuzzy polar bear swimming in a sea of melting ice. The polar bear has become the icon for climate change as their habitat and existence continues to be threatened by warming arctic climates. Chill the Drills is a program of the Sierra Club. According to the Sierra Club - America's Arctic wilderness is under siege from local and global forces being shaped by human actions: Oil and gas drilling are combining with global warming to wreak havoc on this vast beautiful landscape. Caribou, muskoxen, wolverines, grizzly and polar bears roam the vast expanse of land while walrus, bowhead and beluga whales ply the arctic waters. These creatures have roamed the far north for centuries. But now they are facing danger. All across their Arctic home, rapid climate change is altering their fragile habitat and the push to drill for oil is mounting. Why should we care here in Summit County? Because our daily actions - driving our cars, warming our houses, and food habits - contribute to the greenhouse gases influencing climate change across the globe. It's sad to think that our grandchildren may not even know polar bears or other arctic wonders. It's not too late to make a positive change to your carbon footprint. Visit Chill the Drills to find out more or click here for resources and tools to lightening your impact.

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|| Car Idling for climate change?

The best way to warm up your car is to drive your car! Modern engines don’t need more than a couple of seconds of idling time before they are ready to go. When you start your drive, you warm up the engine!

For those really cold Summit County days like 25 degrees or below, you only need to warm up the engine for about thirty seconds. And for 10 degrees or below, a minute at the most.

There is absolutely no need to leave your car idling for 5 minutes let alone 10! In fact, if you decrease your idling by only 5 minutes per day, in a year’s time you can save yourself 10 gallons in a small engine and even 20 gallons in a larger engine. Think of the financial savings! Not only that, you’ll decrease your carbon footprint by reducing the amount of carbon emissions coming from your car. Think of the environmental savings!

Having a hard time believing Eartha's Angels? Here's some background info for you...

Car Talk
Car Talk's Guide to Better Fuel Economy
The Facts About Car Idling
Summit County Environmental Health Department - You Tube Video

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|| Compost Combats Climate Change

According to COOL 2012, an action campaign to get compostable organics out of landfills by 2012, "landfiling our food and paper is heating the planet."

They go on to state, "As communities work to decrease greenhouse gas emissions, the first place to look is in the garbage can. Every day, communities across the U.S. send tens of thousands of trucks to bury biodegradable materials such as paper products, food scraps and yard trimmings. These materials amount to half of our discarded resources. When buried in a landfill, those lettuce heads, grass clippings and paper boxes don’t just break down as they would in nature or in a compost pile. They decompose anaerobically, without oxygen, and in the process become the number one source of human-caused methane and a major player in climate change."

Read more about it and solutions on HC3's composting page or visit COOL 2012.

Click here for COOL 2012's PowerPoint on Compost and Climate Change

Download GrassRoots Recycling Networks handout on "Burying Organics Stinks: The Compost Solution"

Download EPA's "Cover Up with Compost" Fact Sheet

SOLUTION - COOL 2012's 4 Steps to be COOL by 2012

Seize the Paper: Commit to recycling a minimum of 75% of all paper and composting the rest by 2012. Paper is the largest share of biodegradable materials in a landfill, so recycling and composting paper products will take the largest bite out of your community’s methane emissions.

Source Separate: Require source separation of residential and business waste into three streams: compostables, recyclables and residuals. Source separation is pivotal to maximizing the environmental and economic potential of these resources.

Feed Local Soils: Support local farmers and sustainable food production with community composting infrastructure. The benefits of amending soils with composted organics are well-proven to increase long-term soil productivity, reduce irrigation needs and use of petroleum-based synthetic fertilizers, and increase water infiltration from today’s frequent and intense storm events.

Stop Creating Methane Now: No matter how the waste industry “greenwashes” its “new and improved landfills,” there is only one proven method to truly prevent methane emissions — keep compostable organics out of landfills. Public policy needs to first support the elimination of methane by requiring source separation of compostables and recyclables, then mitigate methane from existing sources where organics have already been buried.

You can read more about the COOL 2012 campaign here.

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|| 350 is the Most Important # on the Planet

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|| More resources:

Climate Action Network

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