During the Ark Valley Voice Chaffee Candidate Forum on October 19, Chaffee residents asked more questions than could be answered during the allotted time, all of them directed to the three candidates running for the Chaffee Board of County Commissioner (BoCC) District 3 seat.
Ten additional questions came in during the forum which was conducted live in Salida City Council Chambers, and broadcast on YouTube and on Zoom. They were given at the same time to all three candidates running for the BoCC seat; all responded by the requested time.
Yesterday their answers to the first four questions were published by Ark Valley Voice. Today we move on to the next set of questions and, as before, rotate their position in the answers to those questions.
5. In what ways do you think climate change affects Chaffee County? Do you think the issue is important for a county commissioner?
Adriane Kuhn is running as an unaffiliated candidate for Chaffee County Commissioner. Courtesy photo.
Adrian Kuhn (Unaffiliated): Our mountains are not holding snow into the summer as they used to and our monsoon times and lengths are changing so yes, because of that and more, climate change is affecting our county. I do think it is an important issue that we can’t work on alone. Having a better recycling plan is just one way to help. Having no place for individuals to recycle when they don’t use trash pickup or have more than can fit in their bin, and using individual trash trucks to drive far away is a regressive move for this county.
Here is one of my answers from the commissioner’s questions from . Q. What do you want to accomplish should you be selected as a county commissioner?
A major priority I have is to bring back public recycling. Without a place where people can bring their own recycling people are either hauling it to another county or just throwing it away. Too much recyclable material is choking our county landfill, and shortening its lifespan. There are doable solutions that can be put in place. I have been meeting the department heads of Chaffee County and one of the first I met was Shannon Wilcox, the landfill manager. He kindly showed me around, explaining what is working well and what isn’t.
I also met with Chris Lyons, owner of Shamrock Disposal Service and learned so much about what could be done through the private sector and his perspective on what the county can do. Between just those two meetings I can already see a pathway to sustainable recycling in the county. Of course, land use codes are important, as is housing. These are ongoing issues that will need a multi-pronged approach that will never be “solved” but will need constant work that I look forward to being a part of.
PT Wood, whose Woods Distillery was part of the effort with Pure Greens and Elevation Brewing to produce Chaffee Hand Sanitizer in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when sanitizers were in short supply. Photo by Brooke Gilmore.
PT Wood (Democrat): Longer dryer summers and shorter warmer winters are creating serious challenges to our natural environment’s health; things like increased wildfire risk, less and warmer water in the Arkansas River and its tributaries among other impacts put us at the forefront of climate change.
If we are going to mitigate our fire hazard, keep our valley green and ensure our water, it needs to be a front-of-mind issue for the BoCC.
Brandon Becker (Republican): Climate change will always affect Chaffee more than many places due to its dry environment. This is an important issue and we can do our part by exploring more sustainable business practices and sustainable energy generation.
A good way would be exploring geothermal energy generation as it is some of the cleanest and it is a very active area for it. Thankfully the Federal and State governments are making these types of ventures possible, and I say we take that opportunity to be on the forefront of green energy and business in Colorado.
6 – 10 Sustainability Challenges and Solutions:
6. Will you support the sustainable development plan that would be a major step in addressing waste diversion, recycling, stormwater runoff, multi-model transportation, etc.?
7. What do you think are the barriers to expanding clean energy for Chaffee County residents and how would you address those barriers?
8. How can Chaffee County best help low-income and fixed income residents with their energy costs?
9. Chaffee County currently requires compliance with the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code for residential buildings, do you think this should be updated? What process would you put in place to make sure energy conservation codes were kept up to date?
10. How would you prepare Chaffee County for an increase in electric vehicle usage, including bus traffic, in the coming decade? What do you see as the most viable efforts the county can make toward decarbonizing our increasing electric usage?
The Ark Valley Voice-Truth Has a Voice Foundation 2022 Chaffee Candidate Forum was held in the Salida City Council Chambers. From left to right: PT Wood, the empty chair for write-in Clerk and Recorder candidate Elaine Allemang, Incumbent Clerk and Recorder Lori Mitchell, Brandon Becker, and Adriane Kuhn. Photo by Hannah Harn.
Brandon Becker: (Answering all questions in one answer)
Chaffee County has experienced growing pains, to say the least. One of the most important things we can do as a County to address this is to have a good sustainable development plan so that we address these issues with growth before they happen, as opposed to trying to figure it out after the fact.
A lot of the barriers to clean energy now come down to funding. That is something I believe the county can help with, whether it be through loans or subsidies. I am more in favor of loans for sustainable energy development as these are private companies that will be making money.
The best way to help low-income or fixed-income families with energy costs, in the long run, is to be looking into these types of sustainable energy projects. In the short term, it should be helping nonprofits that have the boots on the ground helping these people with things like tax breaks or subsidies.
The International Energy Conservation Code has been updated many times since 2006 and they even have an update going out as far as 2024. So it is imperative that the county takes a hard look at updating these codes. This is beneficial to everyone because everyone loves saving money on heating bills. As far as growth goes in the area of power generation it goes back to exploring other secondary means of power generation for this county which will help address the increased usage of electric cars and buses.
PT Wood:
6. I do support both the Waste Diversion Plan and the Transportation Advisory Board as they work towards a Multimodal Transportation Plan.
Salida Recycling Center, was a busy place, 365 days a year. Photo by Merrell Bergin
7. Both Xcel and SDCEA offer subscriptions that allow you to use 100 percent renewable offsets for a modest fee. The Arkansas River Valley also sits on a potentially endless supply of Geothermal energy that seems to be worth exploring further. One of the easiest options is supporting both local solar farms and home solar installations.
8. The main [low-income energy assistance] program that does this is the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) which can be accessed through the Chaffee County Department of Human Services. You may apply from November 1 through April 30. Applications are available at the county office (on November 1st) or call 1-866-HEAT HELP (1-866-432-8435), or you may visit their website at www.colorado.gov/LEAP after November 1 until April 30.
9. It is my understanding we are moving in this direction (of ensuring Chaffee County energy conservation codes were kept up to date) — which I support.
10. To date Chaffee County has done a good job of preparing for increased EV usage, level 2 chargers are widely available in the municipalities and level 3 chargers are becoming more common, including the first Rivian super charging complex in the country. With the Rivian lease, we required that they provide universal connections which we should be doing with all new stations as well as requiring they buy 100 percent renewable energy.
While I was Mayor of Salida the city’s facilities finished the transition to 100 percent renewable electricity, which was a relatively straightforward process that we can continue to expand across the county infrastructure.
Adriane Kuhn:
6. Yes. [the sustainable development plan] is complex and I am still learning about it, but overall yes. I am very interested in a transportation system. As our county grows in places like Poncha Springs we will eventually need more than what Chaffee county shuttle does. It’s best that plans are put in place earlier rather than later because that will help establish where growth goes instead of spending more money to awkwardly add it in later. Transportation will also not only help the environment and traffic by taking daily commuting cars off the road but help those in the lower income [brackets] by providing a less expensive way to get to work, their health care appointments, and get basic shopping done.
7. We need to assess existing [clean energy] programs, and determine what works locally. What technology works best for Chaffee County. Combining many types of clean energy. What are the new developments in geothermal? The solutions may already be waiting for us.
8. The main barrier [for low-income and fixed-income residents] is the cost of installing more solar, wind, and geothermal to self-produce our own energy. My family just put solar panels on our roof. It was expensive but we made it a budgetary priority. I know that adding solar or wind is out of reach for many people but as a county we can work through grants to help in places and work with our utility companies to push for more sustainable energy. Ideally, once the infrastructure is built for renewable energy it should bring down the cost long term but first, we need to decide to spend the money without raising taxes to do that.
One of the EV Charging stations in Buena Vista. Photo by Jan Wondra.
Once elected I can learn more about the budget in terms of county savings, if there is enough that some could be spent on power, what kind of renewable energy to invest more in, and what the people want and don’t want i.e., there are positives and negatives to having wind power generation. Leasing a small piece of land for a wind turbine may help a rancher keep ranching or help someone just keep their property but on the flip-side maybe we as a county don’t want views of wind farms.
These are all tough decisions to be made and I don’t plan on coming in like a dictator but instead applying my own personal sensibilities with the thoughts of the other commissioners and the wants and needs of the people of Chaffee county.
9. Chaffee County currently requires compliance with the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code for residential buildings, do think this should be updated? What process would you put in place to make sure energy conservation codes were kept up to date?
I do think [International Energy Conservation Codes] should be updated as I think all codes should keep up to date with all newest and best practices in both safety and environmental standards. With that said it’s about time and money. It takes time to go over each code and update it. I don’t know what kind of schedule the county is on now but with the fast progression of energy conservation and renewable energy, it needs to be looked at more often then it is now. As county commissioner that is something I will look into doing. As for cost, there needs to be a balance between best practices and affordability. Boulder ran into that after so many houses needed to be rebuilt after the fire. It is something I am interested in, and understand the balance of, but need to learn more about the process while in office.
10. Previous questions covered some of these [increase in electric vehicle usage, including bus traffic] topics. It’s important to be forward-thinking in our actions while not being cost prohibitive. Finding that balance between not taking too long to implement ideas such as vehicle charging stations in more places but doing so in a way that is long-term effective, and perhaps as a public and private partnership. I am wary of the county spending money on electric cars before we have worked out making sure the electricity they are using is renewable. I’m not an expert on this, but I’m interested. We have so many experts not only in this county but around the world and we can use ideas from other places that have begun to make it work while developing new ideas here so others will look to us as an example of what to do.
Featured image: Rivian charging station wall mural at Safeway in Salida by Salida-based artist, “Buckley”. Merrell Bergin photo.
Editor’s Note: For a report of the forum itself, and to view the entire 2022 Candidate Forum sponsored by Ark Valley Voice and Truth Has a Voice Foundation, follow this link.
Recent Comments