In the Headlines
May 28, 2017
Colorado Utility Regulators Are Putting A Dollar Value On Carbon Emissions' Impact and Will Ask Xcel To Account For It
The Denver Post
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission may reassess how it computes the "social cost" of carbon as demand for energy and energy-producing facilities continues to increase. Attorney Seth Belzley is the director at the Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association, which backed adding carbon's social cost in the utility planning process. He weighed in on the matter.
"It is more monumental as a statement of belief and direction than it may be in terms of immediate effects," said Mr. Belzley. "If you are looking at building a (power) generation asset after 2022, you need to count $43 per ton of carbon dioxide emissions." That price tag goes up to $69 a ton by 2050.