Bonneville Environmental Foundation Joins with Town of Breckenridge to Reduce Carbon Footprint
Town’s Vision Plan conveys importance of natural resources and demonstrates support for renewable energy solutions
Portland, Ore. – (March 31, 2008) – The Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) www.b-e-f.org, today announced its support for the sustainability efforts of the Town of Breckenridge, Colo., through the sale of BEF Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), or Green Tags.
The Town of Breckenridge purchased 6,511 renewable energy certificates to offset the electrical energy consumption of their infrastructure. These carbon offsets replace traditional polluting sources of electricity with clean and sustainable wind energy. The certificates offset a total of 4,557.7 tons of carbon dioxide that otherwise would have been released into the atmosphere to accelerate climate change.
“Our community is a unique resource and we want to work together to sustain it,” said Tim Gagen, town manager for the Town of Breckenridge. “Purchasing wind energy offsets is one of the arrows in the quiver of all of the things we’ve been doing. Both the Town Council and the employees supported this initiative.”
The Town encourages citizens to reduce their carbon footprint through the purchase of green tags wind credits to offset their personal energy consumption by visiting: https://www.greentagsusa.org/GreenTags/landing/breckenridge/.
An important reason for selecting BEF’s renewable energy certificates is because a percentage of these Green Tag purchases, through a custom-designed Breckenridge landing page, will be applied to the BEF-sponsored “Solar 4R Schools” program being piloted at Breckenridge Elementary. This program educates teachers and students on the benefits of solar energy through an installed solar-power system and curriculum package.
A small community of 3,200 residents nestled 75 miles west of Denver in the Rocky Mountains, Breckenridge is best known for its winter activities offered by the world-renowned Breckenridge Ski Resort, which hosted 1.6 million snow riders during the 2006/7 ski season —making it the most visited ski resort in North America.
Uniquely situated in a valley that has limited growth and expansion, Town planners developed a master plan for growth management for the Blue River Basin about seven years ago. To counter the damaging environmental effects of the area’s mining activities that began during the gold rush of 1859, today’s Council and employees have committed to a vision of “leaving the area better than we found it,” said Gagen.
Over the course of twelve months, about 300 community members attended multiple sessions to form the Breckenridge Vision Plan. Adopted in 2002, the plan outlines ten values that are guiding the future of Breckenridge, including the preservation of natural resources.
As a result of the Vision Plan, the employees of the Town of Breckenridge formed the Green Team in January 2007. According to Gagen, the Green Team meets monthly and consists of town employees from various departments whose mission is to reduce the ecological footprint of the Town. Town Council supported this group’s recommendations with a 2008 budget of $117,000. The budget includes a van pool program, recycling receptacles, funds for a future purchase of energy efficient vehicles, energy audits, ballast replacement, wind power purchase, and educational programs for employees and citizens.
Gagen describes Breckenridge residents as outdoor recreational enthusiasts who want to keep the environment as pristine as possible and balance the need for development and recreation.
With this effort to reduce their carbon footprint and support renewable energy, town staff can focus on the most important economic stimulus: snow recreation. “We began as a mining town, but now we mine white gold in the mountains,” Gagen said.
About Town of Breckenridge
Breckenridge is a 149-year-old quaint Victorian town in the heart of the Colorado Rockies. The character of Breckenridge is ever evolving – from its rich, colorful past - established in 1859 as a small mining outpost - to one of the top mountain resort destinations in the world. Breckenridge balances its past and future, continually providing an unparalleled experience for visitors. Further information is found at www.townofbreckenridge.com.
About Bonneville Environmental Foundation
The Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF), a Portland, Ore.-based nonprofit organization, was established in 1998 to further the development and use of new renewable energy resources and restore watershed ecosystems. Through revenues generated from the sale of green power products, BEF funds projects that support new renewable energy projects from solar, wind and biomass and restore damaged watersheds. Revenues generated from its sales of Green Tags directly support additional new watershed restoration and renewable energy projects such as the national Solar4RSchools program. More information is available at www.greentagsusa.organd www.b-e-f.org.
