Chaffee County commissioners voted to support submitting a letter of intent to the Colorado Energy Office for the Impact Accelerator grant program to advance local waste diversion policies and equipment purchases.

Julie Mach, contractor to the city of Salida for the regional sustainability initiative, told the board the proposal combines a policy stream — including preparing for extended producer responsibility and construction-and-demolition diversion — with a project stream that could fund equipment such as sorting and chipping machinery to create end markets. Mach said the program offers a low-budget option (roughly $2 million) and a vision budget up to $5 million; the grant requires a 5% match, which can be partly in-kind or supplied from other grants such as the county’s SWIFT award.

County staff framed the effort as complementary to a SWIFT grant and to planned materials-recovery and transfer-station work at the county landfill. Commissioners said the proposal could reduce landfill volumes, help lengthen the landfill’s useful life and mitigate anticipated state monitoring or infrastructure costs. The board directed staff to file the letter of intent by the Colorado Energy Office’s August 1 deadline and gave the board chair signing authority.

Why it matters: staff and commissioners said the grant could provide policy development and equipment funding that would reduce waste sent to the landfill, help comply with state rule changes, and avoid or delay costly landfill system investments.

Next steps: staff will complete the letter of intent by Aug. 1; if invited to submit a full application, the county would prepare proposals and identify match sources before awards are made, with contracting expected in early 2026 if funded.