The Gubernatorial race is heating up and we’re seeing a disturbing trend – leading candidates from both parties taking weak stances on environmental issues.

On one side, we have Scott McInnis with his long established ties to the oil and gas industry. McInnis has been building his campaign on distortions about the effects of the new oil and gas rules, claiming that the industry is abandoning Colorado because we want to protect public health and the economic momentum that our natural places provide. It just isn’t true. Colorado issued as many new drilling permits last year as Wyoming and North Dakota combined. While the industry was undoubtedly down in 2009, blame lies with the economy and dramatically lower natural gas prices; the new oil and gas protections are not the reason we’ve seen a dip in production.

On the other side, we have Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. Mayor Hickenlooper has an outstanding record on environmental issues during his tenure with the Mile High City. But, recently he has made surprising comments that are off base. To hear a man of science claim that a snow storm may be discrediting climate change is troubling. It is worrisome to think that someone with a strong environmental track record like Mayor Hickenlooper would play politics with something as serious as climate change.

When Governor Ritter announced that he would not be running again, the environmental community knew that we were losing a great champion. Governor Ritter has sought balance for all Colorado’s industries – including renewable energy, tourism, and oil and gas – while always keeping an eye on protecting our state’s environment now and for the future. Scott McInnis and John Hickenlooper should stick to the facts and do what is right for Colorado by working to protect our environment and the economic benefits that come with that.

Pete