Mountain Biking: Rubber side down- Time for a TurnaroundWell, my friends, things are finally looking up, and good timing, too, since I’m sure you’re all sick of me bitching. Recent bike build, including wheels… fun! In what feels like a fairly short time, I’ve come from sitting around … Continue reading → […]
- This Raised My PulseHey, baby… wanna ride? I may be injured, but I’m not dead yet. I can still have racy thoughts. Here’s more info. In other news, UBI was an awesome success! I had a blast. I highly recommend it. Overhaul day…. … Continue reading → […]
- Time for a Turnaround
- Edgy Veggie
Valmont Coal Plant protesters give lengthy interview
On the day of the late-April Valmont Coal Plant protest protest, the Camera talked to protester Tom Weis by cell phone – while he was standing on top of a pile of coal at Valmont. Weis and four others were arrested that day, but they’re not done talking (or collecting funds for legal defense, for that matter).
Diana Best -- who is not one of the protesters interviewed and was not arrested -- chants "renewable now" with about a dozen others protesters at the Valmont coal plant. | Photo: Mark Leffingwell, Camera
Elephant journal recently talked to four of the Valmont Coal Plant protesters, Weis included, who are in hot water after trespassing on Xcel’s property.
The plant is apparently on the chopping block, and has been the object of many a protest here in Boulder.
Waylon’s interview with four of them is occasionally illuminating, and pretty long. A quick sample here and of course you can scan the rest over at elephant: Read more
Bill McKibben surprises Valmont coal plant protesters (and people are arrested, too)
Diana Best chants "renewable now" with about a dozen others protesters at the Valmont coal plant in Boulder on Tuesday. (Mark Leffingwell)
A small group of protesters gathered at the Valmont power plant east of Boulder on Tuesday to protest the burning of coal for electricity.
The group was surprised when eco-hero Bill McKibben (founder of 350.org and an award-winning environmental journalist) dropped by. Later the police dropped by, too, which shouldn’t have come as a suprise.
In all, five people were arrested for second-degree trespassing. Those were the folks who actually climbed over Xcel’s fence (it’s rimmed with barbed wire) and unfurled a banner on the side of a coal pile that was waiting to be incenerated. The sign read “Renewables Now” and was accompanied by a pair of fake wind turbines.
Xcel didn’t find this all that amusing. In fact, spokesman Mark Stutz called the move stupid. Read more about the protest and watch a video at DailyCamera.com.
Valmont coal plant could close
Valmont's coal plant could close if a new Colorado General Assembly bill passes. | flickr user smazurov
Here’s a bit of a surprise — the Valmont coal plant, which gets an awful lot of attention just for being a coal power plant in Boulder, might close if a new Colorado bill passes. Read more
Creepy clowns against climate change?
Members of WildEarth Guardians dress as clowns and wear Gov. Bill Ritter masks during a protest outside the state Capitol on Wednesday | Denver Post
Front Range environmentalists gathered in Denver yesterday to tell the governor to quit “clowning around” when it comes to climate change.
The state’s air quality commission will take public comment tonight on Xcel Energy’s request to renew its air permit for the Cherokee coal plant in Denver. Earlier this year, Xcel also sought to renew its air permit for the Valmont coal plant in Boulder.
The clown-protesters — wearing wigs and Ritter masks — said that the state shouldn’t issue any permits until coal plants are forced to deal with their carbon dioxide emissions, but the state says it has no authority to do that.
Read more about the protest at DenverPost.com.
Hundreds turn out for “Power Past Coal” bike ride in Boulder
Hundreds of folks turned out this weekend on their bikes and rode from downtwon Boulder to the Valmont coal plant as part of the “Power Past Coal” rally.
The event was one of more than 4,500 organized across the world as part of the 350.org global campaign.
Eric Robbins rode to Boulder’s Central Park on Saturday with a battery-powered amplifier strapped to the back of his Schwinn bicycle. The Beatles’ song “All You Need Is Love” blared from his speaker into a crowd of more than 200 cyclists busy chanting “power beyond coal.”
“We need to put an end to coal and promote the use of renewable energy,” Robbins said, preparing to ride to the Valmont power plant in east Boulder to raise awareness of global climate change and voice support for the plant’s closing. “It would be nice if this plant became a wind farm or a solar installation.” Read more
Join the world: Get your 350 on in Boulder
Two kids show their support for lowering carbon dioxide concentrations below 350 ppm at the Great Barrier Reef | 350.org
People all over the world are getting worked up about the number 350.
Here’s the deal: Scientists are say that atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions must stay below 350 ppm. Or we’re screwed. Now, carbon dioxide concentratoins are around 390. So, climate activists are saying, something’s gotta change.
Hundreds of students at "Tiger Fest" in India call for 350 in order to protect endangered species like the tiger | 350.org
This weekend, people in Boulder will join communities around the world by rallying around a number: 350.
There are more than 4,000 events planned for Saturday across 170 countries — including 300 events in China, 500-plus in Central and South America, and 1,500 across the United States — to call attention to the number, which stands for a concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide in parts per million.
Many scientists believe that the carbon dioxide concentration must stay below 350 ppm in order to keep the most traumatic consequences of global warming at bay. The carbon dioxide concentration hasn’t been that low since the late 1980s. Today, it’s at 387 ppm. Read more
