In June of 2024, the Green House Connection Center partnered with Jack’s Solar Garden, an innovative agrivoltaics farm in Longmont, Colorado, to host the Pollution and Solutions: Hope for the Future Tour. This event showcased how we can reimagine land use by integrating solar energy with regenerative farming practices to create a more sustainable and hopeful future.
The first stop highlighted our current extractive energy practices of today by visiting Kathy Kemper’s home, located next door to an active fracking site. Kathy shared her deeply personal and troubling experiences from the past few years. She described how she has been "oil and gaslit" into doubting her own observations, despite the undeniable evidence of two oil spills, the most recent of which occurred in April of 2024. Her story was a stark reminder that oil and gas can impact residents across the state, not just those in Disproportionately Impacted Communities (DICs).
Andrew Klooster from Earthworks provided further insight into the unseen dangers of oil and gas emissions. Using an Optical Gas Imaging (OGI) camera, Andrew offered participants a rare and unsettling glimpse of the emissions released into the air daily at sites like the one near Kathy’s home. These emissions, invisible to the naked eye, are a persistent threat to air quality and public health.
The tour concluded at Jack’s Solar Garden, where attendees discovered the transformative potential of agrivoltaics. This groundbreaking approach combines solar energy production with regenerative agriculture, demonstrating how innovation and sustainability can coexist. Jack’s Solar Garden stands as a beacon of hope, offering a tangible vision of how we can combat climate change while nurturing the land.
Adding to the day’s uplifting atmosphere was the musical presence of Elias Garcia from ‘Los Mocochetes’. Their performances provided a powerful reminder of music’s role in fostering hope and healing, infusing the tour with a sense of community and resilience.
The Jack’s Solar Garden Pollution and Solutions Tour was an inspiring and enlightening experience, highlighting both the challenges posed by industrial pollution and the innovative solutions that can guide us toward a brighter future. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all who joined us, especially Kathy Kemper, Andrew Klooster, the youth from Denver Public Schools for Climate Action, youth from Spirit of the Sun and the team at Jack’s Solar Garden. Together, we are finding ways to heal our planet and communities, one step at a time.
Find the full mini-documentary from the day below:
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