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Smart Growth In the NewsThe Coloradoan - 9/21/2007
Development patterns affect climate change, report determines (new window)A new report says developing more compact communities where residents bike, walk and use public transportation instead of driving are essential to getting people out of cars and reducing carbon emissions. The report, issued Thursday by Environment Colorado, says current city development patterns are key contributors to climate change, largely because they force people to drive. Since the 1997 city plan, Fort Collins has tried to reduce urban sprawl, said Mayor Doug Hutchinson. "The city is doing a lot toward infill and redevelopment," Hutchinson said. Small shopping centers throughout town with several different types of stores provide residents easy access, he said. Projects like Penny Flats, a multi-use development on the north end of Mason Street downtown, also take up less ground space. "We are going up instead of out," Hutchinson said. According to the report, shifting 60 percent of new growth to compact patterns could save 85 million metric tons of carbon annually by 2030 because people would drive less. "A third of our (climate change) problems are from our transportation sector," said Pam Kiely, land use advocate for Environment Colorado. Because of urban sprawl, Colorado residents are driving 114 percent more than they were in 1980, ranking Colorado 11th-highest in the nation for growth in vehicle miles driven.
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