Aspen’s Environmental Health and Sustainability Department presents 2025 budget

The Environmental Health and Sustainability Department on Monday presented its budget requests and priorities for 2025. 

The requests focused on several key areas, including Building IQ, the Renewable Energy Mitigation Program, and the Community Office for Resource Efficiency.

Environmental Health requested $1,450,720 for consumer protection, water and air quality monitoring, public health programs, education and outreach, recycling and waste management, and the single-use bag program. 

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An additional $884,650 was sought for climate action and resiliency programs, as well as general administrative expenses.

“We’re doing policy and on-the-ground implementation of climate mitigation to help with greenhouse gas emissions,” said CJ Oliver, city of Aspen’s environmental health and sustainability director. “We do this through work on buildings, transportation, waste, and other areas where we can have a substantial impact.”

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One of the transportation initiatives aims to expand Aspen’s electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure. The city plans to add to its existing 23 charging plugs, aiming to bring the total somewhere between 35 to 45. The department is requesting $71,000 in 2025 for the EV infrastructure project. 

EV registrations in Aspen have seen an average 40% year-over-year increase. 

Another major funding request was $750,000 for the REMP Fund and CORE. The REMP fee is levied on developments with excessive outdoor energy consumption, such as heated driveways and outdoor spas. 

“We look to collect fees from things like outdoor heated driveways, outdoor spas, and those sorts of things,” Oliver explained. “Dollars get collected to mitigate energy use through solar panels, almost as a local offset, to go towards renewable energy and energy efficiency within the community.”

CORE uses these funds for energy efficiency assessments, rebates, grants, and case study development for multi-family buildings. Pitkin County recently approved $783,750 for CORE. 

“CORE provides decarbonization throughout the Roaring Fork Valley by accessing mitigation fees that come through the renewable energy mitigation program through the county and city,” said CORE CEO John Dougherty. “We support both commercial and private business owners with energy efficiency, electrification, and resiliency planning to reduce carbon emissions.”

Building IQ, another key program, assists building owners with benchmarking reports, scorecards, and connections to grants and rebates. This program has provided free scorecards and assessments, helping owners improve energy efficiency without needing to hire private engineers.

“We have worked with local businesses, nonprofits, SkiCo, APCHA, and others, where we have supported them in a variety of ways for the past 30 years,” said Dougherty. “We are in our third year of supporting the city of Aspen’s implementation of the Building IQ ordinance.”

Since its launch in 2022, Building IQ has achieved 100% compliance with energy benchmarking, covering 36% of the community’s square footage. The program seeks $420,000 in 2025 to continue supporting building owners with performance standards and reporting.

“We have benchmarked 130 commercial properties over the past three years,” said Dougherty. “After one more year, the city will decide on how to use the data collected to help incentivize or support businesses in improving their greenhouse gas emissions and impact on the environment.”