Garfield Clean Energy is merging the parallel goals of energy efficiency and economic development by circulating a resolution that sets energy goals for communities throughout Garfield County.

For a list of local governing boards that have adopted the resolution, see the column at right.

“Energy efficiency goes hand-in-hand with economic development,” said Shelley Kaup, chair of the Garfield Clean Energy Advisory Board. “As we work to improve the energy efficiency of government, commercial and residential facilities, it creates jobs for the local companies that make buildings more efficient and develop renewable energy. Long-term savings from these improvements help us to be more cost effective and energy independent.”

There are three targets within the “Energy Efficiency and Economic Development” resolution.

• The first target sets a countywide goal to increase energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption by 20 percent by 2020.
• The second target calls for reducing petroleum consumption by 25 percent by 2020.
• The third target sets a goal of 30 percent of our electricity to be generated from renewable energy sources by 2020.

All the percentage reduction goals start from a 2009 energy use baseline, which was carefully measured in the Garfield Energy Inventory. The inventory revealed $219 million in total energy spending in Garfield County in 2009. Of that, $95 million was spent on electricity, natural gas and propane, and $124 million was spent on transportation fuels.

A 20 percent reduction in spending on electricity, natural gas and propane would mean $19 million in savings per year, while a 25 percent reduction in spending on transportation fuels would yield $24 million a year in savings across the county – a total of $43 million.

“Reaching the 20 and 25 percent targets over the coming 10 years sounds like a lot, but it really means just 2 to 2.5 percent per year,” said Mike Ogburn, lead author of the Garfield Energy Inventory and the energy tracking program manager for CLEER: Clean Energy Economy for the Region.

“As we save more and more on energy, more of that money stays in our communities. I’m sure we could all think of more appealing ways to spend 20 percent of our utility bills or 25 percent of our gas money,” Ogburn added.

Other community organizations are encouraged to adopt the resolution as well. To download a copy of the resolution and for more information, open the Garfield Energy Efficiency and Economic Development Goals Toolkit.