Community members and advocacy organizations show support of environmental bills as legislative session nears its end
Many communities of color are advocating for cleaner air, water, and land in their communities. Their push for environmental justice could soon see significant progress.
According to research released earlier this year in the Environmental Science and Technology journal, Denver's communities of color breathe dirtier air than white residents.
Environmental justice advocates have called for more aggressive policies to remove sources of pollution in those neighborhoods. As this legislative session wraps up, they hope to make meaningful headway.
On Thursday, SB-229 also known as the Ozone Mitigation Measures bill and SB-230, Oil Gas and Production Fees advanced out of their first committee hearing on party-line votes.
SB-229 would require the Department of Public Health and Environment to recommend rules to the Air Quality Control Commission to reduce certain emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) caused by oil and gas operations in certain areas of the state by 50% by 2030 compared to 2017 NOx emission levels.
Meanwhile, SB-230 would impose a fee on oil and gas production, raising approximately $138 million a year for public transportation and wildlife conservation. The bill requires the fee for clean transit to apply to all oil and gas produced by the producer in the state on and after July 1, 2025.
Advocacy groups and residents of what is known as one of the most polluted zip codes in the country want legislators to support bills that would improve air quality in Colorado.
Longtime resident Dawn Diaz welcomed CBS News Colorado inside her parents' home in the Globeville neighborhood where she was raised.
"I've lived here on and off for about 40 years," said Diaz. "But, my parents have owned this house for that long."
Living in the Globeville-Elyria-Swansea area for decades, Diaz, now a mother of five, had no idea until recently how dangerous this part of Colorado is for people.
"My other family members who don't live in this area don't have the same respiratory issues that we do," said Diaz.
Highways and polluting businesses surround their neighborhoods, and now it's affecting her kids' health. Three of her five children have respiratory issues.
"My kids have had to take breathing treatments; they have inhalers on hand," said Diaz.
That's why she's asking legislators to consider bills that would help improve air quality, especially in impacted neighborhoods in Colorado.
"These are people's lives that you have in your hands; they have the option to correct this and make it right," said Diaz.
Both SB-229 and 230 were introduced earlier this week after months of negotiations.
Harmony Cummings leads the Green House Connection Center, an environmental education and community advocacy group in north Denver.
"We have done a lot of stakeholder engagement to be in a place today where we can do something very meaningful that will help protect communities in the future," said Cummings.
As a mother herself, she understands how damaging bad air quality can be for her children at a young age.
"This is important for us moms because our children's lungs are not yet developed, and we need to do everything we can to protect them," said Cummings.
The American Petroleum Institute agrees and a statement was sent to CBS News Colorado from API Director Kait Schwartz saying:
"Our industry is committed to working with state agencies, stakeholders, and environmental groups to achieve our shared goals of safely producing affordable natural gas and oil and improving our air quality standards. These bills are further evidence of that cooperation. We have said for years that providing regulatory and legislative certainty for business owners and operators across the state and ensuring stability for a vital industry is of utmost importance. We are pleased to see that the Governor agrees. The regulatory landscape for our industry has been completely overhauled during the last five years, and it is crucial that those regulations, some of which have only just recently been implemented, be given the chance to work. The oil and natural gas industry will continue to work diligently in pursuit of meeting Colorado's increasingly ambitious climate targets, and we are pleased to be working alongside the state and other stakeholders to achieve those goals."
President and CEO of Colorado Chamber of Commerce Loren Furman sent CBS News Colorado a statement on their stance on the bills saying:
"We applaud the Governor's Office and our members in the energy sector for finding a balanced compromise to defeat a series of overreaching environmental proposals. Together, these bills would have further threatened Colorado's competitiveness and economic growth. The Colorado Chamber dubbed these proposals 'job killers,' with impacts far beyond just the energy industry, and Chamber members sent over 3,000 messages to lawmakers this session opposing the measures."
What is most important for families most impacted is the quality of life they can provide for their children.
"We want our kids to be able to go outside and play... that's the world we want for them," said Cummings.
