Garfield County commissioner candidate Jankovsky on windmills and gas rigs

A Republican ski area general manager challenging an incumbent Democratic county commissioner in gas-rich Garfield County says winter sports, outdoor recreation and tourism there are no more threatened by drilling than other parts of the state are impacted by alternative energy.

Originally from Sterling on the state’s wind-rich eastern plains, Tom Jankovsky, the GM of Sunlight Mountain Resort near Glenwood Springs, is challenging Trési Houpt in November’s general election. Houpt has pushed for more environmental safeguards in the most drilled county in the state, and Jankovsky is running on a more pro-drilling plank.

“You drive up out of the valley in Sterling and there’s a thousand windmills up in the high plains, and you don’t think those have an impact on wildlife and a visual impact?” Jankovsky said in an interview. “Those windmills are there for a hundred years, while a gas rig may be here for a year, then they pull out and it’s relatively unobtrusive.”

“As far as our guests, those oil and gas jobs are good-paying positions,” Jankovsky said. “That’s why they’re important for Garfield County as well, and that’s why we have those guests at our resort.”      - More –