| Southern Ute execs give lecture on renewable resources |
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| Written by Andrea Silvers, The Shorthorn staff | ||||
| Wednesday, 18 November 2009 08:55 PM | ||||
  Bruce Valdez, Executive director of Indian Tribe Growth Fund for the Southern Ute Tribe, leads students and faculty members in a Native American prayer Wednesday in Science Hall. Valdez, along with Rebecca Kaufman, President of Southern Ute Alternative Energy, spoke about the algae biofuel company they created called Solix Energy, which has made the Ute tribe one of the wealthiest in the United States. (The Shorthorn: Meghan Williams) Bruce Valdez, the Southern Ute Growth Fund executive director, spoke about his tribe’s efforts to turn algae into renewable biofuels, which drew standing room only for 139 students and faculty. The tribe, whose reservation is in southwest Colorado, is one of the richest tribes in the U.S. due to its diverse investment portfolio including natural gas and real estate, Valdez said. “The Southern Ute tribe recognizes the environment, Mother Earth is very sacred to tribal people,” he said. “Renewable energy is our way to do something for the people and Mother Earth.” The tribe, working with Solix Biofuels, has taken the carbon dioxide in the wastewater from its natural gas plant and used it to feed crops of algae. The algae is then harvested, a third of it turning into lipids for oil with the remaining two thirds going into animal feed or being burned for more energy, Valdez said. Schedule of EventsNative American Heritage Month festivities:Eugene Brown will play his handcrafted flutes When: noon to 2 p.m. Nov. 25 Where: The Gallery, University Center Growing with Tradition Gallery Show When: Nov. 27 Where: The Gallery, University Center The tribe owns the Red Cedar Gathering Co. which drills for natural gas, and Red Willow Production Co., which cleans the gas, both create wastewater which is then fed to the Solix plant to be cleaned by the algae, Valdez said. “We’re trying to look at things that are going to impact generations, not the next quarter,” he said. The tribe’s companies employ 700 people and hires most of its employees from the Ute tribe, keeping unemployment rate low, between 5 to 7 percent, he said. Valdez and Kauffman have traveled to conferences, reservations and schools all over the country sharing their tribe’s business model for making money on renewable energies. “If it’s a cold, windy and stark landscape that’s where the Indians got pushed,” Kauffman said. “If there was gold on that land, they got pushed further. That’s why the Indians have been matched up with lands that have an abundance of resources for renewable energy.” Environmental science graduate student Vinodh Valluri was excited about the information on renewable energy and the prospect of working in this field. “The carbon dioxide mitigation is important even if global climate change is not true,” he said. “These are the kinds of jobs we’re looking for in the future.” Elder Eugene Brown closed the event with his words of wisdom. “Things are tough right now out in the world,” he said. “Don’t get discouraged and quit. The Ute people have just shown us what an education can do.” Views: 403 | E-mail
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