Quote:
Originally Posted by Deek1978
I'm with Wasatch on this: There isn't too much more we can do about the air quality among the Wasatch Front, that hasn't been done. We have no burn days, should we have no drive days? When I was a young kid we lived in Orem before we moved to St. George. I remember my parents split a load of coal with some of our neighbors. We burned coal all winter long. Not legal anymore. The winters along the Wasatch Front used to be a lot worse than they are now. Though there was poor air quality this year, please remember that this year was an aberration, not the norm.
I'm not advocating against better air. I'm just trying to remind some of you that again, the sky is not falling.
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I would have to disagree that everything has been done that can be done. I remember when I lived in the Bay Area being able to ride the bus/train for free on the first 5 "spare the air" days of the year. On our worst inversion days, UTA could offer free transit fares with the State picking up the tab. With all the money spent on roads, I`m sure the State could spare a few million dollars to fund such a program - and it would be relatively cheap considering its effectiveness.
Another big problem is pollution from industrial sources. UT industry is subject to the same regulations as the rest of the nation when the rest of the country does not have stifling inversions to deal with like we do. We could put tougher regulations in place during the worst inversion months (mid Dec through mid Feb) much like they make gas refineries create "seasonal blends" to reduce emissions. I know Rio Tinto is taking voluntary steps to reduce its carbon foot print. Why can`t the State make it compulsory for all companies to reduce emissions, particularly during those 2 months of the year? We are in the midst of a natural gas boom - having taken Russia for 2nd place this year and poised to overtake Saudi Arabia in the next year or two. While not completely emission free, natural gas burns much cleaner than coal and oil and stays in the atmosphere for only a decade or so vs a century and a half for coal and oil fumes. UTA and school districts state-wide could convert buses over to natural gas-burning engines much like they have in Europe or Ethanol blends like they have in Brazil.
Progress never stops. If we sit here and decide that we have done everything, and there is nothing more that we could possibly do, then we might as well just say that everything worth inventing has already been invented. Why bother innovating any further?
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