This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah DAQ has it backwards.
When Bryce Bird stated in a Salt Lake Tribune article ("Utah Grapples with Toxic Water…" Aug. 24), "Until we asked questions and started pressing the issue with Danish Flats, maybe they didn't know the full extent of their emissions."
He apologized for their ignorance of toxic issues. "Maybe they didn't know"? The responsibility of industry is always to know before any activity. But the Herbert administration is historically industry friendly at the expense of the health of Utah's citizens.
The Legislature is also to blame. Recently the legislative inclination was clearly stated by Rep. Mike Noel in response to the issue of lowering the pollution bar to be more strict than the EPA: "Industry is not for this." Of course industry is not for this, Mr. Noel, and looks to legislators like you to prevent solutions to the air quality issue over the entire state.
So we have the governor and many legislators protecting the polluters while our children develop a variety of illnesses, our grandparents die sooner, and everyone in between is affected in the near- and long-terms. We the citizens are responsible for their protecting industry at our expense. When the citizenry rises against this administration and Legislature, the air will be clear, that is clear.
Terry Marasco
Salt Lake City