A grant of more than $430,000 will fund efforts to help northwest Colorado transition away from an economy based on coal-mining and coal-fired electrical generation.

The Office of Just Transition within the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment announced a grant award of $430,145 to fund the operations of the Northwest Colorado Development Council for two years. The office previously awarded the council nearly $73,000 as a partial match for a grant provided by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs.

The NWCDC is a collaborative effort formed through an intergovernmental agreement to address challenges arising from the regional transition away from coal and promote economic diversification. In addition to Moffat, Rio Blanco and Routt counties, the agreement includes the cities of Craig and Steamboat Springs as well as the towns of Hayden, Meeker, Oak Creek, Rangely and Yampa. Routt County serves as fiscal sponsor for the organization and will receive and manage the grant.

“The NWCDC has shown the power of regional collaboration around coal transition projects. We are pleased to be able to support these efforts and to reinforce the State of Colorado’s commitment to communities and workers grappling with this difficult economic transition,” said Wade Buchanan, director of the Office of Just Transition.

Tim Redmond, a Routt County commissioner who serves as chairman of the NWCDC, called the grant a game changer. “OJT’s funding allows the Northwest Colorado Development Council to continue working together as a coal-transition region to diversify the regional economy in order to create new industries and new jobs. Nearly 2,800 families in northwest Colorado could lose their livelihoods in the coal transition. With the support from Governor Polis and the Office of Just Transition, we can give hope to these families that better days are ahead of us.”