A conflict of visions was on display last night at the Colorado gubernatorial debate hosted by the Colorado Springs Gazette.

That conflict was readily apparent during the discussion of energy issues facing Colorado.

The section on energy runs from 39:48-45:12.

Some highlights:

-Republican candidate Ganahl called for encouraging local oil and gas production which she said is the cleanest in the world.

-Called for an embrace of nuclear power and chided Colorado Democrats for killing a bill last session that would have studied nuclear’s potential in Colorado

-Criticized the reliance on wind and solar which she said is not held to the same reliability standards as coal, gas, and nuclear. She also called the Governor out on costs associated with wind and solar including intermittency, battery storage, and transmission lines.

-Governor Polis (D.) highlighted the continued cost declines in wind and solar (using his favorite misleading cost statistics)

-He criticized natural gas and coal for being vulnerable to global shocks in upstream fuel costs

-He highlighted his work with Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon (R.) to encourage the use of clean, baseload geothermal energy for both heating and electricity

-He suggested that the transition to 100% renewable energy would actually save Coloradans money, rather than cost them.