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Denver's green ideas may include raising fees
By: Thanh Truong
9News
July 29, 2007
This past week, Mayor John Hickenlooper appointed Michele Weingarden as the new director of Greenprint Denver.
Weingarden previously worked as an environmental advisor for U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer of California. The council is focused on developing and implementing a plan that can help reduce the city's impact on the environment.
So far, the council, which is comprised of municipal government managers, civic and business leaders, has floated out several ideas that may be unpopular. Some of those include charging Denver residents who throw out too much trash or who use too much electricity or gas. Other proposals include giving carpoolers and drivers of hybrid vehicles priority parking. Hickenlooper says while some will debate the impact of global warming, citizens should try to do what they can to lessen any blow to the environment.
"I don't think the sky is falling. I'm not sure that global warming is happening as fast as all the scientists think, but if there's even a three-percent chance that they're right, that man is creating this rapid global warming, we're crazy if we don't go after this low hanging fruit," said Hickenlooper.
The proposals are just that. Hickenlooper says he would like to gauge the public's reaction to some of the ideas. When asked if citizens should sacrifice a little to help protect the environment, Hickenlooper responded by saying:
"The word sacrifice - you know, my mom grew up during the Depression, that's sacrifice, you know. She sewed her own clothes, rewashed her saran wrap...I don't think we're at that level of sacrifice," Hickenlooper said.
Hickenlooper said Denver residents could do simple things such as recycle their garbage. According to the Denver recycling program manager, 44-percent of Denver households recycle. She says if that number were raised to 60-percent or higher, it would put a significant dent into the estimated 234,000 tons of garbage Denver produces each year.
"At our current rate, we recycle about 27,000 of those 234-thousand tons," said Recycling Program Manager Charlotte Pitt.
Pitt said other cities which have placed a "usage" fee on garbage collection have shown some results in waste reduction, but she said it may also cause other problems.
"In Denver, the garbage collection program is available at no cost. There's always the concern that perhaps there may be an increase in illegal dumping if a fee were implemented," said Pitt.
In the coming months, Michele Weingarden, in her new position, will be responsible for marketing the proposals to the City Council and the public. Other western cities like Seattle and Portland have enacted similar plans targeting lower greenhouse gases.
Article URL: http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=74461
