In 1990 the Deseret News shared an article on health impacts and economic costs of air pollution. In November 2020, BYU and the University of Utah published an article citing an extensive study from 23 top Utah researchers. This work estimated that air pollution costs the people of Utah a staggering $1.8 billion annually and contributes to over 2,500 premature deaths/year.
These stats may seem distant and abstract because breathing polluted air is not something we can see like we can see someone vaping/smoking. But breathing air pollution is what Utahns do day after day, year after year. Numerous studies show air pollution kills more people than smoking and heart disease combined. Air pollutants increase the incidence and severity of numerous heart and lung diseases, notably impacting 7% of Utah children with asthma.
How long do we wait for meaningful improvements? Thirty more years? That would cost over $60 billion in health care and impact us all, particularly our children. “The payoff of reducing pollution would be huge in economic terms, and the benefits would be incalculable in terms of human life and health,” emphasizes Ben Abbott, professor at BYU.
Addressing this long-standing and complex issue takes everyday actions from each of us such as driving slower and minimizing idling. However, a significant part of the solution lies in the hands of our political leaders. One major opportunity is for each of us to contact Sens. Mike Lee and Mitt Romney, and Reps. John Curtis, Blake Moore, Celeste Maloy and Burgess Owens asking them to support the bipartisan Big Wires Act. It’s a call to action that goes beyond individual habits, emphasizing the need for systemic change. This legislation will make our energy grid more resilient and encourage Utah to build infrastructure needed to transition to clean energy.
Andrew Watt
Sandy