By Sydney LaPine
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As Utah smog has continued to worsen, making it unsafe for vulnerable individuals to venture outdoors on some days, lawmakers have started searching for solutions. Health experts have found that the poor air quality in the state can lead to severe health consequences including lung cancer, chronic bronchitis, a weakened immune system, and heart disease.[1]<\/sup><\/a> Because of the cold temperatures and long winters, locals are accustomed to seeing foggy skies and inversions. An inversion refers to when warmer air traps cold air in the valleys, partly because snow on the ground keeps the lower altitudes cooler. But cold air is not the only thing that gets trapped\u2014so does pollution and emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Policymakers\u2019 main proposals for reducing emissions have been to incentivize residents to buy cleaner cars, to offer free public transit, prohibit wood-burning stoves, and tighten emission requirements for both residential and non-residential buildings.[2]<\/sup><\/a> But all of these measures are relatively modest and would be likely to burden individual residents while doing little to improve overall air quality. These policies also ignore the true culprit of Utah\u2019s dirty air. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently conducted a study that found that the company US Magnesium is responsible for up to 25% of the pollution that contributes to smog along the Wasatch Front, a mountain range in North-Central Utah.[3]<\/sup><\/a> The Great Salt Lake is responsible for almost all of the United States\u2019 supply of magnesium and approximately 14% of the world\u2019s supply.[4]<\/sup><\/a> Upon release of the study, Utah\u2019s Governor, Spencer Cox, asked that the EPA add U.S. Magnesium\u2019s land into Utah\u2019s Northern Wasatch Front ozone nonattainment area. The Utah Department of Environmental Quality and other state agencies must develop a plan for how they will improve the air quality in nonattainment zones in order to meet EPA standards and these areas may be subject to more frequent monitoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In September of 2023, US Magnesium agreed to a $430,900 settlement with the Utah Department of Environmental Quality for several pollution violations, with the oldest occurring in 2015, but members of the Utah Air Quality Board felt that this amount was a weak punishment.[5]<\/sup><\/a> The low amount is likely a result of the $50,000 donated to Governor Cox\u2019s campaign by Renco, a company with investments in US Magnesium.[6]<\/sup><\/a> Aside from the settlement, the DEQ\u2019s Division of Air Quality has a record of at least 30 violations involving US Magnesium since 2013. Utah House Bill 220 which was sponsored by Democratic Representative Andrew Stoddard was intended to significantly reduce emissions by targeting US Magnesium primarily through more stringent regulation of bromine. After undergoing revisions in Congress, the bill now only mandates that a study of all <\/em>halogens be conducted to identify and measure point sources of air pollution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The resulting information from the study required by Utah HB 220 is only helpful for mitigating pollution if such data is used to support legislation that will have more power to regulate US Magnesium emissions. Unfortunately, this seems to be a case in which politics are harming the health of the environment, as well as the health of Utah residents. Furthermore, other studies have determined that West Salt Lake experiences the worst air quality and highest levels of pollution.[7]<\/sup><\/a> It is no coincidence that West Salt Lake is also where more low-income families and people of color reside.[8]<\/a> Ensuring US Magnesium is more harshly punished for violations and more carefully regulated is one step toward achieving environmental justice in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [1]<\/sup><\/a> Mariah Maynes, \u201cProtecting Your Health during Utah\u2019s Inversion Season,\u201d KSLNewsRadio, December 6, 2023, <\/a>https:\/\/kslnewsradio.com\/2063064\/protecting-your-health-during-utahs-inversion-season\/#:~:text=Exposure%20to%20unhealthy%20air%20quality<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [2]<\/sup><\/a> Sean Higgins, \u201cAfter Last Week\u2019s Bad Inversion, Here Are Utah Lawmakers\u2019 Air Quality Proposals,\u201d KUER, February 7, 2023, <\/a>https:\/\/www.kuer.org\/politics-government\/2023-02-07\/after-last-weeks-bad-inversion-here-are-utah-lawmakers-air-quality-proposals<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [3]<\/sup><\/a> Ibid<\/p>\n\n\n\n [4]<\/sup><\/a> Adam Small, \u201cUS Magnesium Plans to Challenge Study Naming Them as Major Polluter,\u201d KSLNewsRadio, June 26, 2023, <\/a>https:\/\/kslnewsradio.com\/2014707\/u-s-magnesium-challenging-study-naming-them-major-polluter\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [5]<\/sup><\/a> Ben Winslow, \u201cUtah Settles with U.S. Magnesium over Years of Environmental Violations,\u201d FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU), September 13, 2023, <\/a>https:\/\/www.fox13now.com\/news\/local-news\/utah-settles-with-u-s-magnesium-over-years-of-environmental-violations<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [6]<\/sup><\/a> Leia Larsen, \u201cUS Magnesium Avoided Paying Millions for Alleged Air Quality Infractions and Gave Big Donations to Utah Lawmakers,\u201d The Salt Lake Tribune, February 16, 2024, <\/a>https:\/\/www.sltrib.com\/news\/environment\/2024\/02\/16\/us-magnesium-avoided-paying\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [7]<\/sup><\/a> Bridger Beal-Cvetko, \u201cEnvironmental Justice Report Shows Air Quality Disparities on Salt Lake City\u2019s West Side,\u201d www.ksl.com, July 25, 2023, <\/a>https:\/\/www.ksl.com\/article\/50694228\/environmental-justice-report-shows-air-quality-disparities-on-salt-lake-citys-west-side<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [8]<\/a> Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah, \u201cNeighborhoods – University Neighborhood Partners,\u201d www.partners.utah.edu, accessed March 4, 2024, https:\/\/www.partners.utah.edu\/about-unp\/neighborhoods\/#:~:text=A%20large%20majority%20of%20west<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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