Big event tomorrow at Colorado University Boulder's campus if you can make it:
http://www.denverijournal.com/...
Recently appointed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy and U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., will discuss President Obama’s Climate Action Plan at the University of Colorado Law School on Wednesday.
The event also will include a panel discussion with former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter, Colorado Oil and Gas Association President Tisha Schuller and Brad Udall, director of the law school’s Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment.
The event will be held from 9 to 10:30 a.m. in the Wolf Law Building’s Wittemyer Courtroom on the CU-Boulder campus. The event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited in the courtroom; additional seats will be available in classrooms with a live video feed. - Denver Journal, 8/13/13
Here's a little more info about the event:
http://www.colorado.edu/...
The event is co-sponsored by the Getches-Wilkinson Center and the EPA. The Getches-Wilkinson Center also will host its annual Clyde Martz Summer Water Conference on Aug. 15-16. For more information on the water conference visit http://www.colorado.edu/....
For more information on Colorado Law visit http://www.colorado.edu/....
Contact:
Brad Udall, director, Getches-Wilkinson Center, 303-492-1286
Bradley.Udall@colorado.edu
Peter Caughey, CU-Boulder media relations, 303-492-4007
Caughey@colorado.edu
In other related news, Senator Mark Udall (D. CO) is looking forward to the new Gypsum biomass power plant:
http://www.biomassmagazine.com/...
Following a visit to the site of Gypsum's new biomass power plant, Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., who serves on the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said this public-private partnership should serve as an example for the nation on how to create jobs and generate energy while also reducing wildfire risks in our national forests. Udall said this project shows why Congress needs to act quickly to renew the U.S. Forest Service's Stewardship Contracting Authority, which supports public-private partnerships to improve forest health and reduce wildfire risks.
The Gypsum biomass power plant, operated by Holy Cross Energy, will be fueled by beetle-kill trees and slash harvested by a contractor under a long-term stewardship contract with the White River National Forest. The U.S. Forest Service's ability to enter into these contracts ends on Sept. 30, 2013.
"With modern mega-fires becoming a growing problem that threatens Colorado communities, our precious water supplies and our way of life in the West, we need to use every tool we have to reduce wildfire risks. The Gypsum biomass power plant shows how we can reduce wildfire risks, create jobs and generate renewable energy sources," Udall said. "This biomass power plant also underscores the urgency for renewing the U.S. Forest Service's Stewardship Contracting Authority by passing a Farm Bill. If Congress does not stand with me and act, job-creating public-private partnerships like this will grind to a halt."
The Gypsum biomass plant, which is expected to open by the end of the year, will convert wood chips from beetle-killed trees into enough electricity to run the plant and pump an additional 10 megawatts into Holy Cross Energy, which powers about 55,000 customers in Eagle, Pitkin, Garfield, Gunnison and Mesa counties. Much of the wood the plant will process will come from beetle-killed trees from the White River National Forests. - Biomass Magazine, 8/12/13
Udall also recently toured the Visitor and Research Center at Mesa Verde National Park where he talked about energy efficiency and the NSA with local reporters:
http://www.cortezjournal.com/...
In making his tour of the new visitor center, Udall, the chairman of the U.S. Senate’s National Parks Subcommittee, marveled at the building’s energy efficiency and use of renewable power through solar panels and micro hydroelectric power.
“This is the future right here today at Mesa Verde National Park,” he said.
In response to a question from The Durango Herald, Udall expressed reservations about other forms of cutting-edge technology, the surveillance programs of the National Security Agency.
He called for an end to Section 215 of the Patriot Act, which has been interpreted to allow the bulk collection of Americans’ phone records. He described it as a “meta data” because it targets “who you called and when” but not the content of the phone conversations.
“The NSA makes the case by taking all that meta data, we can examine it and get a sense of patterns. Well, they’re right. They can. Some people think that’s not a violation of your privacy; I think it is,” Udall said.
“If they need those records, go get a warrant,” he said. “There’s ways to get warrants quickly. We can give the president emergency powers. If there’s a plot we discover looking to blow up New York City, the president would have those powers.” - Cortez Journal, 8/12/13
If you would like to donate or get involved with Udall's 2014 re-election campaign, you can do so here:
http://www.markudall.com/