Ritter Names Madden Climate Change Policy Chief

Former Rep. Alice Madden, D-Boulder, will be getting used to the executive chambers at the capitol soon.

The former majority leader was named by Gov. Bill Ritter as the state's climate change coordinator.

"Alice Madden has distinguished herself as one of Colorado's most accomplished and talented public servants," Ritter said. "Her thoughtfulness and problem-solving skills will be crucial as we strive to achieve the goals in Colorado's Climate Action Plan and strengthen Colorado's New Energy Economy. Expanding the use of wind, solar, geothermal and clean-burning natural gas will create jobs, clean the air and address climate change."

Madden served in the House of Representatives from 2001-2009. In 2004 she helped lead the campaign effort that resulted in Democrats regaining control of both chambers of the General Assembly for the first time since the early 1960s.

Madden's salary will not be paid by state revenues. Instead, her position is funded by grants from the private Hewlett, Denver and Energy Foundations.

Ritter Joins Schwarzenegger to Push "EcoDriving" Campaign

Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today joined the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers to kick off a new "EcoDriving" campaign to save consumers money at the pump, reduce fuel use and cut carbon emissions.

“The EcoDriving campaign offers easy actions that all of us can take – starting today, right now – to save money, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and benefit the environment,” Ritter said. “By adopting EcoDriving tips, we can lower our fuel costs by 15 percent or more. And these are easy, common-sense driving and maintenance tips, like avoiding rapid starts and stops, using cruise control, reducing idling, and knowing when it’s best to use your air conditioner.”

Colorado and California are the first two states to support the consumer awareness campaign, details of which are available at an interactive website. Gov. Schwarzenegger appeared at today’s news conference at the Colorado Convention Center via a live satellite feed from California.

“You can save money and save the environment by driving green,” said Dave McCurdy, president and CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. “Through EcoDriving, 10 top automakers and the states of California and Colorado have found we share an important commitment, and we commend Gov. Schwarzenegger and Gov. Ritter for their leadership in engaging consumers in green driving.”

“Today’s automobiles are really computers on wheels, with more than 3,000 interactive parts operating as a complex system,” McCurdy added. “The more you know about your machine, the better you can reduce fuel use and CO2 emissions.”

With 240 million vehicles on the road in the United States, the benefits of EcoDriving could be significant:

1. If just half of all drivers nationwide practiced moderate levels of EcoDriving, annual CO2 emissions could be reduced by about 100 million tons, or the equivalent of heating and powering 8.5 million households.

2. If all Americans practiced EcoDriving, it would be equal to 450 billion miles traveled on our roadways without generating any CO2 emissions. That’s 1,500 CO2-free miles for every man, woman, and child in the United States each year.

Sample EcoDriving practices include not tailgating, knowing the proper way to accelerate and brake, using synchronized traffic lights to a driver’s advantage, driving at the optimum highway speed, understanding when to use air conditioning and much more.

Sample maintenance practices include knowing which motor oil to use, understanding the importance of proper tire pressure and what affects tire pressure, understanding aerodynamics and much more.

In conjunction with the unveiling of EcoDriving, the National Automobile Dealers Association announced that September will be free “Green Check-up Month” nationwide.

The EcoDriving interactive website will help drivers learn practical tips to improve their mileage and reduce their carbon footprint. The site includes a video guide to EcoDriving, an “EcoCalculator” to determine benefits for individuals or states, a Virtual Road Test and a variety of educational tools.

Alliance members hope to engage all 50 states and major consumer organizations in EcoDriving.

Lundberg Says Ritter Climate Change Plan Based on "Junk Science," Human Effect on Atmosphere Unproven

Rep. Kevin Lundberg, R-Berthoud, said Monday that Gov. Bill Ritter's plan to combat global climate change is based on "junk science" and that scientists have not established that humans are impacting the atmosphere.

The remarks, delivered at a gathering of Republican lawmakers sponsored by the Independence Institute, provoked Department of Public Health & Environment Director Jim Martin to point out that there is scientific consensus on the question whether human-generated greenhouse gas emissions are causing climate change.

In a comment published by the Denver Post, Martin said that "You could have a convention of all the scientists who dispute climate change in a relatively small phone booth."

A 2001 report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes clear that the scientific community generally believes that humanity is causing the Earth's climate to change.

"Human activities ... are modifying the concentration of atmospheric constituents ... that absorb or scatter radiant energy. ... [M]ost of the observed warming over the last 50 years is likely to have been due to the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations," the report says.

The IPCC's fourth report concludes concludes that it is at least 90% likely that humanity is causing global climate change. According to a summary of that report issued by IPCC in February 2007, such human impact on the atmosphere is "very likely."

The National Academy of Sciences agrees. In a 2001 report prepared by its Committee on the Science of Climate Change, the panel of scientists wrote that "Greenhouse gases are accumulating in Earth's atmosphere as a result of human activities, causing surface air temperatures and subsurface ocean temperatures to rise."

The NAS report also said that "[t]he IPCC's conclusion that most of the observed warming of the last 50 years is likely to have been due to the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations accurately reflects the current thinking of the scientific community on this issue."