Colorado enjoys the spotlight on its renewables

Obama chose to sign stimulus bill there, touted ‘world’s first smart grid city’

DENVER – Colorado’s renewable energy promise was on the national stage this week when President Barack Obama chose Denver as the stage for signing the $787 billion economic stimulus package.

The 250 or so renewable energy business leaders who attended the ceremony Tuesday weren’t surprised.

“You’re asking why Colorado? It’s like it’s in the water here,” said Jo Elyn Newcomb, general manager of Boulder-based Independent Power Systems, which among other things puts solar panels in people’s homes.

The federal economic recovery act will pump money and tax credits into renewable energy projects around the country, and Obama highlighted Colorado as leading the way in developing new energy technologies, such as “smart grid” projects to improve power delivery and boost conservation.

MSNBC