Jared Polis on money spent on wildfire risk
As Xcel Energy begins spending $1.9 in preventative work, governor outlines what he believes should be the test for spending
Xcel’s Robert Kenney on storage and other thoughts
CEO of Colorado’s largest electric utility tells conference-goers that storage is a crucial part of the still-evolving decarbonization effort
Solar-powered ski lifts in Colorado?
OK, the sun produces less in winter. But combined with storage and a major project near Cortez, it’s possible several resorts in SW Colorado could soon be powered by solar on some days.
Unexpected voices in the national climate debate
A few paragraphs in a Meeker newspaper triggered a legal brief supporting Boulder in Supreme Court case heard on Monday
Electrical transmission and interstate highways
Former state legislator Chris Hansen talks about storage but also the need to create a better network of transmission lines across the country. What will it take?
How a century-old pricing system has emptied the Colorado River
An absurdity of the Colorado River crisis is the role of heavy government subsidization of agricultural water use
Paleontologist to become next CEO of Denver museum
A careful scientist but colorful speaker, Kirk Johnson had led the Snowmastodon excavation on behalf of the Denver Museum of Nature & Science before spending the last 14 years at the Smithsonian
As a coal mine closes, solar comes on
Craig’s Trapper Mine began operations in 1977. In Severance, Black Hollow Sun is being completed as Colorado moves beyond 50% renewables
Renewables continue to gain in Colorado
A dip in percentage during July, but still responsible for 53.3% of electricity in Colorado in 2026
Implications of Michigan case for Craig coal unit
Trump and his team lost a key court decision involving a coal plant in Michigan. But Energy Secretary Chris Wright has issued another “emergency” order for Craig. Why?
A big widening of this narrow electronic highway
Federal money will help two efforts in southeastern Colorado for electricity sharing with the eastern grid. Why does that matter?
Two Denver-based firms get geothermal grants
But no projects in Colorado awarded federal funding by the Department of Energy’s $99 million disbursement
Contain a wildfire? Call in the cows
Hard to believe? You bet. But new technology has already proven effective as a wildfire-fighting tool in Colorado
Political theater at the Ray Nixon plant
Energy secretary and congressmen make the case that coal keeps the lights on and electricity affordable. To make that case they must be selective in their facts.
Gaps narrowing between high-speed EV chargers on Colorado’s highways
Ironically, sale of EVs has faltered in 2026 even as drivers now are within 30 miles of fast-charger on 83% of federal and state highways
We can’t build our way out of this ‘drought’
Some of those on the campaign trail call for more storage. They need to visit Green Mountain Reservoir.
Agribusiness and its antithesis
Wendell Berry understood what Harvard business professors and at least several agriculture secretaries did not. He understood culture.
More utility-scale battery storage
Black Hills Energy plans 50 megawatts at Pueblo to allow it to store excess wind energy to help meet peak demands
A first in this canal’s 110-plus-year history
Farmers served by the Government Highline Canal as of today will get no water, a result of last winter’s dismal snowpack and low levels in Green Mountain Reservoir
Amid the y’alls, two themes at the Colorado Water Congress conference
Many political office-seekers spoke at the annual summer conference in Steamboat. Some ‘y’alled to the attendees. Others not so much. Most called for more water storage and “forest resilience.”
