“We are going to be slathering the Eastern Plains with wind and solar.” A wind farm in Washington County, as seen from Colorado 71 in June. “Over the next 10 years the electric grid in Colorado is going to be transitioning from thermal fossil fuel plants to largely wind and solar,” Colorado Public Utilities Commissioner John Gavan said at a recent session on climate change. The pair of 350-kilovolt transmission lines - looping from Fort Saint Vrain in the north down to rural Kiowa County and then over to Pueblo and up to Aurora - is the backbone of Xcel Energy’s plan to develop clean electricity generation and meet state mandates. The goal for the state is a 50% reduction over 2005 levels by 2030 and a steeper 80% reduction for the utility industry. Power Pathway is, in turn, the product of Colorado’s push, embedded in state law, to reduce its emissions of climate-altering greenhouse gasses. A land rush for renewable energy is transforming the Eastern Plains CloseĬolorado’s climate goals leads to creation of the Power Pathway
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