Our leaders boast of winning the battle for clean air now that the EPA is claiming we meet our PM 2.5 particulate EPA goals.
I am not impressed. Pollution is not fine. Pollution even affects cognitive ability. Utah is capable of doing a thousand times more. The pandemic has shown that consumer choices affected air quality by 30 to 50%.
Our eyes still see the same story with the inversions in the winter and the forest fires and ozone during the summer. Our lungs remind us that we still can’t breathe clean air in Utah a majority of the time. This affects everyone’s health and lifespan. We must not care enough for the health of our families because we have not demanded improvements from our leaders such as embracing California emission standards, net-metering mandates to spur the adoption of roof-top solar installation and battery energy storage. Where are the windmills in our canyons? Where are the proclamations of religious leaders imploring our legislators to do more to embrace clean energy solutions?
It is time for our leaders to stop patting themselves on the back and pretend everything is fine. More aggressive changes will happen if enough people complain.
Scot Morgan, Salt Lake City