This was a great show - sold out with a 75% student crowd. We had Bob Gough from the Intertribal Council on Utility Policy as our guest speaker. Fort Collins has a municipal utility that has pledged to support renewable energy. We do have to define renewable more strictly because some energy programs list hydroelectric power as renewable. We don't believe that hydro power is renewable because of its impact on hydrology and the ecosystem. Some student activists are pushing the school to allow $1 of their student activity fees to go towards green energy. This has been done in Boulder. The school's policy is that the students are not allowed to vote on this kind of issue. They are petitioning for it anyway. The student body and the professors seem very active. Even though the school focuses on traditionally conservative fields such as forest management, the students are on the good side of these fields.

We talked about the problem of military toxins and the new Range Readiness and Preservation Act. Winona has been stressing to us that fighting this initiative should be one of our main agendas. The more I hear about it, the more I agree. The vote is coming up soon and if it is approved it will mean the military is exempt from the "Readiness and Range Preservation Initiative". This Initiative, if made into law, would give the Department of Defense exemption from the Clean Air Act, the Superfund law, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

I am concerned about this initiative because the Military owns 25 million acres of land, and with exemption from these important environmental laws, it would endanger the critical habitat of 300 endangered species.

Rocky Flats nuclear site is near where we are. They made parts for bombs, using plutonium. The plant is closed but the clean up effort has run into the usual problems of the government wanting to do a half ass job. The government is trying to classify the site as a wildlife preserve because the cleanup standards would be lower than for a human habitat. Either habitat should have the highest of standards, the ecosystem shouldn't be compartmentalized like that.

Bob Gough spoke about wind energy, he's an expert.

We had another night of excellent questions. Some challenges for Winona, she is constantly asked about the Green Party and her Vice Presidential campaign in the last election. When students ask if she feels like she contributed to the Republican victory by splitting the vote, Winona is quick to remind them that Bush didn't actually win the election. As uncomfortable as it is, its nice when students speak their minds and have some gumption.

We had a question about how many birds die from wind towers. Bob handled this question. He said, that the old wind towers were built like grids (the Eiffel Tower) and attracted birds to nest in them. They were often killed by the propellers when they swooped down to hunt. Now a wind tower is just one smooth tall pole, and the propellers are large and slow moving, so the wind generators are bird proof. Then Bob reminded the audience that 44,000 birds a year are killed by cell phone towers.

We also had questions from a forestry student and a student working with the military on environmental impact. They had good exchanges with Winona over what they can do to effect change and make sure regulations are applied and followed.

Action Cards:
Andy Sulkko Action Card (Microsoft Word Format)
Senator Ben Campbell - Renewable Energy Action Card (Microsoft Word Format)
Senator Johnson Action Card (Microsoft Word Format)

Amy Ray's Tour Diary Continues:
April 21st, Fort Lewis College, Durango, Colorado