Kudos to Hickenlooper for executive order on climate targets

“State joins expanding coalition committed to greenhouse-gas reductions set in treaty,” July 12 news story.

Thank you to Gov. John Hickenlooper for joining state and municipal efforts to address climate change. Transitioning to a carbon-free economy is in the best interest of Colorado for both the short and the long term.

This will help the state become a leader in new energy technologies and preserve the alpine environments we depend on and make Colorado famous. We have more work ahead of us, but this is an important first step.

“Hickenlooper’s goal a good one,” July 13 editorial.

There are some other aspects of Gov. John Hickenlooper’s executive order not mentioned in your editorial worth noting from a local community perspective:

A growing number of cities and towns are interested in acquiring electric car charging stations. The state has been an active participant in promoting this. The development of a statewide electric vehicle plan over the months makes good sense.

Encouraging a robust partnership between the state and cities and towns on locally led climate resilience actions is a great idea. An exchange of best practices across the state is one way to accomplish this, and the state can help facilitate this.

Finally, perhaps one of the governor’s most important goals is to work with local leaders from communities especially impacted by the changing energy landscape. No community should be left behind, and their desires should be acknowledged, respected and supported.

We look forward to helping Hickenlooper implement these kinds of initiatives. The writer is executive director of the Colorado Municipal League.