This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
If you truly want to vote for change this fall, Bill Barron is your best bet. Barron is running for U.S. Senate and bills himself as a "single issue candidate focused on the need to address climate change while promoting a legislative solution." I would submit that his keen focus on climate change is not a single issue.
Among other crises, accelerated climate change causes unprecedented heat waves, droughts, floods and the spread of disease in plants, animals and humans through insect migration and longevity. The primary cause of this acceleration is excessive amounts of carbon emissions caused by human activity. Locally, we experience the ill-effects of these emissions in the polluted air we breathe, especially those who live in the lowest part of Salt Lake, many of whom are economically challenged. We also experience negative results in polluted streams and lakes supporting fish, wildlife, human thirst and recreation.
My abbreviated list of the negative outcomes of climate change encompasses health, environmental, tax based and poverty issues. Barron's platform is based on a legislative proposal to create a carbon fee and dividend system which would slow the effects of climate change while invigorating our economy. This proposal could be a bi-partisan decision to deal with climate change and its catastrophic effects and would cut down on emissions by 50 percent by 2035. Also, according to the REMI study (citizensclimatelobby.org/remi-report/), this fee would add 2.8 million jobs to our economy. So, check Barron's candidacy (voteforclimate.us) and vote for change.
Andrea Henkels Heidinger
Holladay