Communities Spotlight - Conservation Colorado

For some, it’s a hard truth to grasp; for others, it’s an everyday reality.

Our Protégete community explores Genesee Park & Buffalo Herd Overlook during the kickoff event of Latinx Conservation Week 2018

Latinx communities are disproportionately impacted by the negative effects of climate change, air pollution, and environmental hazards. They’re more likely to get asthma and to live near industrial activity that causes smog. That’s why Latinx communities are more likely to be concerned about environmental threats and are, in fact, leading the charge to advance conservation.

At Conservation Colorado, our Protégete program helps Latinx communities and leaders to build a more powerful, influential voice in the fight against climate change in hopes of a healthy future. We sat down with Noe Orgaz, the Protégete community organizer for Denver, to talk about his experiences growing up in Los Angeles and to explore what inspired him to professionally engage with Latinx communities through conservation advocacy.

What is Latinx Conservation Week? Why is this celebration important?

Latinx Conservation Week is an opportunity for the Latinx community to address conservation issues and bring awareness to the environmental issues that impact the Latinx community. We talk about how we can conserve, work toward a future that thrives, and possibly mitigate a lot of the effects of climate change we’re dealing with today.

Where did you grow up, and what was the environment like there? How did you interact with the resources around you?

I grew up in Los Angeles, California. The environment that I grew up in was a lot of asphalt and concrete. The area that I remember most is my grandmother’s house. Her backyard was adjacent to the LA River, with huge trees that I remember climbing on.

My parents didn’t feel safe drinking water out of the faucet so we always had to boil it in order to cook with it or simply drink it. We were worried it would be contaminated and make us sick. That’s one of the reasons I’m passionate about conservation today. Through my own life and the lives of other people experiencing oppression, I’ve seen the impact of environmental injustice.

In your work, in your professional experience, what are the most pressing conservation issues that face Colorado’s Latinx community?

One of the more prevalent issues right now that Latinxs are dealing with is the air quality in their communities. A lot of folks live near highways or near areas where there is construction. We’re seeing a lot of children get asthma from breathing polluted air in their homes, schools, and neighborhoods.

One of the bills we worked on this legislative session — the school setbacks bill — really got me thinking about the air pollution that kids like mine are experiencing. The bill was trying to increase the distance between schools and oil and gas drilling. It’s really troubling to know that there are communities that have oil rigs right by their football fields or playgrounds.

The idea of young people getting an education and breathing in the pollution from drilling and fracking — not to mention the risks of spills, explosions, and fires — it just doesn’t sit right by me. It’s definitely something that should be addressed — we need to make it safer for people to get a basic education.

When I think about my own children, I think about how many oil companies are drilling next to schools serving low-income families and Latinx youth, and that makes me want to work hard to change it.

Why is this celebration of Latinx Conservation Week important?

Latinx Conservation Week is important because it is an opportunity and a timeframe for people to be able to address the issues that most impact the Latinx community — but this should be something that goes on on a regular basis, an everyday basis. Every day should be like Latinx Conservation Week.

You might’ve seen the phrase “clean car standards” popping up in your Facebook and Twitter feeds this week. While your local environmental and public health organizations celebrated the new standards, you might’ve felt a bit out of the loop. Let’s break down what the clean car standards are, why Coloradans pushed for them, and what we can expect from them.

First, what are the clean car standards?

These standards regulate the emissions and pollutants from car tailpipes and are based on the “fleet average” (or all of the cars in the state by a given manufacturer). With transportation as the biggest source of pollution in the U.S., lower emissions and less pollutants from tailpipes is always better.

The “cleaner” our cars are (i.e., the less they pollute), the better we are able to protect our environment, our communities, and our economy. As we increase the market share of “clean cars,” which include hybrids and electric vehicles, we are spurring innovation, offering consumers cheaper, more fuel-efficient cars, and helping improve the air we breathe.

Why Colorado needed to act? The Trump Administration is undoing a rule that promoted clean cars.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken major steps (and there are more to come) toward weakening a 2012 rule that set fuel efficiency standards to cut the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions from cars and help Americans save money at the gas pump. These federal standards have already saved $550 million in car costs for Coloradans. But with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt at the helm, it’s an industry-wants-industry-gets world, with little concern that the agency’s rollback announcement could splinter a burgeoning electric-gasoline auto industry.

Rolling back the fuel-efficiency standards will add 4.5 million tons of carbon pollution to our skies every year and increase smog-causing air pollutants that cause asthma and make it harder to breathe.

Dirty air is unhealthy for all of us, but children, the elderly, and people suffering from lung disease or asthma — including 343,000 Coloradans — are the most negatively impacted. Communities of color and working families are also disproportionately impacted by these health effects. More air pollution means more coughing and wheezing, increased risk of infection, and permanent damage to lung tissue.

But there’s good news, even with the federal rollbacks. Governor Hickenlooper took action to make sure we keep seeing the benefits of vehicle emission standards! He just announced that Colorado will adopt new standards that reduce pollution from vehicles.

Governor Hickenlooper’s leadership comes at a critical time for Colorado. Denver was ranked the 11th most polluted city in the nation for ozone levels — and vehicle emissions are one of the largest contributors. Adopting the clean car standards will protect the clean air and clear blue skies we all cherish.

Clean Car Standards are a great move for our economy AND environment!

According to a recently released report, with the clean car standards in place, Colorado would save roughly $16 to $37 million in health care costs by 2040; reduce the number of work days lost due to illness from air pollutant emissions; and save $260 million per year in social costs from long-term damage caused by carbon pollution. Cheaper costs, lower emissions, and cleaner air: it’s not hard to see why we’re so excited.

Share this video if you’re glad Colorado is moving in the right direction.

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Every Day Should Be Like Latinx Conservation Week: Protégete’s Perspective