DENVER, CO – Village of Questa Mayor John Ortega visited Denver in April to attend the Cities Summit of the Americas, a gathering of municipal leaders from across the American continents —from Bakersfield, California, all the way to Costa Rica and Chile in South America — to talk about Questa’s transition from a mining town to a community which embraces new and diverse economic opportunities.
The subjects discussed at the Summit ranged from mobility, transportation, migration, housing, energy, climate and environmentalist politics, and finance and investment into healthy communities. The Summit was held at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver and the Denver Art Museum.
Hydrogen-based energy sources have been discussed by the international community such as the G20 and COP26 (26th Conference of the Parties summit in 2021) as one way countries all over the world can decarbonize their economies and transition to clean energy sources.
Hydrogen has potential as an energy source simply because of its abundance in the universe — it is the most common element. Hydrogen as a fuel source has traditionally been produced with fossil fuels. So-called green hydrogen is distinguished from traditional sources of hydrogen power because it is produced with renewable energy sources through the electrolysis of water (the process of splitting the H2O water molecule into its component parts of hydrogen and oxygen).
The International Energy Agency (IEA) describes the importance of hydrogen as thus: “Hydrogen can help to tackle various critical energy challenges, including helping to store the variable output from renewables like solar PV and wind to better match demand. It offers ways to decarbonise a range of sectors — including long-haul transport, chemicals, and iron and steel — where it is proving difficult to meaningfully reduce emissions. It can also help to improve air quality and strengthen energy security (IEA report, June 2019).”
The Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act passed by the 117th United States Congress in 2021 allocated $8 billion dollars for the development of hydrogen hub projects across the United States and Governor Michelle Lujan-Grisham has stated her intentions to take advantage of that opportunity with a “hydrogen hub vision (NM Hydrogen Hub Roadmap, Defining and Envisioning a Clean Hydrogen Hub for New Mexico, January 2022)” for the New Mexico.
