I can’t imagine being told to remove my contact lenses because, “if the wind changes and brings that (chlorine emissions) down to ground level, it could melt your contacts.”
The very idea that there is something being released into the environment that could “melt your contacts” seems absurd, yet it is the reality at US Magnesium.
Now, after making a fortune extracting from the Great Salt Lake minerals and whatnot, US Magnesium claims bankruptcy and simply walks away.
Oops — we’re broke; too bad, so sad; thanks for everything though (those tax breaks were great); see ya later alligator.
Is that how it works now? We’ve seen this story so many, many times over! There’s a reason we have regulations. They are to prevent these business failings from happening, and walking away from their legal responsibilities.
And the most irritating part is we only have ourselves to blame. Not holding our Legislature accountable has its ramifications. They’re the ones that do away with those regulations. After all, regulations impede business growth, and that’s most important.
Now we have a festering cesspool of the most toxic, nasty brew — “it’ll melt your contacts” — simmering away out in the west desert.
Peter A. Orum, Salt Lake City
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