It seems we have a public awareness campaign about our dirty air. Billboards, radio and TV ads and daily air quality reports are good. To her credit, Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski will make UTA more available, and UTA advertises gas- and electric-powered buses.
I read about cities developing, implementing nifty solutions that I don't fully understand. It's likely safe to say that to make headway into cleaner air, we will need some innovation, technical solutions and the cooperation of polluting industries.
Lots of things I don't know, like whether state leaders acknowledge air quality as a big problem now, or if doing so is still a violation against their party. I don't know if or how state leaders weigh public health against economic gains, or whether the Division of Air Quality has anything in process to help us get clean air.
Maybe some things aren't widely publicized. I don't know what, if any, priority businesses give to operating in a clean way, whether, say, Rocky Mountain Power looks out at our dirty air and says, "Nah, we just can't add to that."
I hear some businesses create environmentally friendly buildings. I don't know whether today, after breathing filthy air for more than a decade, "environment" is still a dirty word. I don't know if we are now full throat behind getting clean air.
Carla Coates, Holladay
