News

Colorado firms team to save power, cut emissions

More than 40 Colorado
companies and public agencies have commited to save
energy in an effort to reduce harmful carbon
emissions, an advocacy group said Thursday.

By Steve Raabe
Denver Post Business Writer

"We think what we’re doing is vitally important," said
Marshall Kaplan, organizer of the Colorado Business
Energy Partnership. "This isn’t just a goodwill effort.
It’s a meaningful step in addressing a global issue."

Organizations participating in the effort range from
resort operator Aspen Skiing Co. and developer Forest
City Stapleton Inc. to public entities such as the city of
Denver and the University of Colorado.

Conservation steps that the groups might take can be
as simple as replacing incandescent lighting with
energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs or as
elaborate as wholesale changes in building designs.

"It’s the correct way that we ought to be doing
business today," said John Shaw, vice president and
general manager of Opus Northwest LLC, an
office-building developer enrolled in the program.

Shaw said Opus will commit to higher levels of energy
efficiency in its buildings, even though it may not reap
financial rewards because building tenants typically
pay their own utility costs.

"This goes against the grain a little from the way
development usually works," he said.

Kaplan, executive director of the Institute for Public
Policy and the Wirth Chair at University of
Colorado-Denver, said the initiative originates in part
from President Bush’s call for voluntary cutbacks in
energy use.

Scientists say the burning of fossil fuels to generate
power sends heat-trapping greenhouse gases such as
carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The greenhouses
gases are believed to contribute to global warming.

Bush has proposed voluntary reductions in the wake of
his decision not to sign the Kyoto Protocol on global
warming, which set strict targets for reducing carbon
emissions.

Denver-based energy firm Western Gas Resources
said its commitment to the program includes spending
$30 million to modernize a West Texas natural-gas
compressing facility with new equipment that reduces
emissions by 75 percent to 90 percent.

Organizers say they can’t yet calculate energy savings
from the effort and the resulting reduction in carbon
dioxide emissions. Groups participating in the program
need not commit to mandatory levels of energy
reduction.

Several other states have similar programs in effect,
Kaplan said.

"When we join with other firms around the country,"
he said, "the aggregate impact could be significant."

Saving energy

Firms and public agencies that have committed to save
energy:

Advanced Energy Systems Inc., Altair Energy,
Armstrong Service Inc., Aspen Skiing Co., Auraria
Higher Education Center, Boulder Community Hospital,
Boulder Housing Partners, Center for Applied Research
Inc., CH2M Hill, City of Colorado Springs, City and
County of Denver, City of Lakewood, Colorado State
University, Fischer Imaging Corp., Forest City
Stapleton Inc., Gary Williams Energy Corp., Holcim
Inc., Idalex Technologies, Johns Manville Corp., Kaiser
Permanente, Leitner POMA of America Inc., Lightly
Treading Energy and Design, Lockheed Martin Space
Systems Co., McStain Neighborhoods, Marriott Hotels
(Denver Marriott City Center), Mental Health Corp. of
Denver, Millennium Energy, Miller International,
Northeast Metro Pollution Prevention Alliance,
OppenheimerFunds Services, Opus Northwest LLC,
PCD Engineering Services, Pendergast Sarni Group
LLC, Ponderosa Industries Inc., Poudre Valley Health
Services, Regis University, Robinson Dairy Inc.,
SourceOne Management Inc., Sun Fuels Inc., The
Urban Farm at Stapleton, University of Colorado
System, URS Corp., Versar Inc. and Western Gas
Resources.

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36%257E33%257E783732%257E,00.html

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