This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Live. Climb. Repeat. It's a phrase often recited here at Black Diamond, where we work every day to create innovative products that help get people and families, young and old, outside to enjoy wild places like Utah's "Mighty Five" national parks.

The bedrock of our commitment to outdoors recreation and its benefits to people and the economy is protecting wild places for everyone's enjoyment. Utah's parks are national treasures for adventure and recreation, with stunning landscapes that attract people locally, nationally, and from around the world. On any given day I may meet a veteran climber venturing into one of our wilderness areas, a local outdoor retailer or guide whose livelihood depends on the sanctity of our public lands, or a family preparing for its first trip to Bryce, Canyonlands or Arches.

These parks are part of our state's heritage and a vital part of our economy. So I was surprised to learn that Utah is the last state in the country to require coal-fired power plants to reduce hazardous emissions that foul our air and diminish views at our iconic national parks.

What's worse, the plan put forward by state regulators would threaten clean air in Utah by allowing Rocky Mountain Power's Hunter and Huntington coal plants, two of our state's biggest polluters, to continue spewing dangerous, haze-causing pollution into our air and across our public lands. Our communities and our parks deserve better.

With a final decision looming, I call upon EPA Regional Administrator Shaun McGrath to put our families, our health, and our economy first by protecting the state from coal-fired pollution in Utah.

Utah's stunning national parks are integral to the continued vibrancy of Utah's critical recreation industry. In my work, I come across many outdoor-recreation businesses in gateway communities like Moab and elsewhere. For them and many others, our parks are the engines that drive local economies. With the 2013 federal government shutdown and associated park closures still fresh in our minds, we Utahns are acutely aware of the financial importance of our national parks.

Every year, thousands of outdoor-recreation companies gather in Utah for the biannual Outdoor Retailer show, injecting over $40 million into our economy and reminding us of the immense value of the outdoor industry for our state. In 2014, more than 10 million visitors came to Utah's national parks, adding $730 million to our economy. Altogether, Utah's travel, tourism, and recreation sectors contribute $7.4 billion in economic benefits and employ over 129,000 people. People come here for our spectacular landscapes and stunning views, not to suffer dirty air and haze-shrouded vistas.

More than just dollars, our national parks are part of our way of life. They're why so many choose to settle here, to raise families here, to grow old here. This is a part of our heritage that's worth protecting.

Fortunately, we have a solution before us. Other western states have already enacted affordable, common-sense pollution controls at their coal plants. Utah can and must require the same protections. Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and even Oklahoma have required dirty power plants to cut haze-causing emissions with modern pollution controls.

Utahns deserve the same protections from damaging coal pollution that other states afford to their residents. By installing modern controls on the Hunter and Huntington coal plants, we can cut dangerous emissions by more than 75 percent.

Protecting our national parks is about protecting our economy and the communities that depend on those parks. It is time for the EPA to clear the haze.

Peter Metcalf is CEO and president of Black Diamond Inc.