Matt Law of Black Diamond Equipment
Over 30,000 people signed a petition asking the EPA and to put Utah's families, health, and economy first by guaranteeing the same fair and equal protection from coal pollution as they’ve afforded other states under the Clean Air Act through better enforcement and technology. Toxic pollution from Utah’s coal-fired power plants threatens air quality and quality of life for Utah residents and the 10 million national park visitors contributing $730 million to the Beehive State, home to the "Mighty Five®"; Canyonlands National Park, Arches National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Zion National Park.
Coal mines in Carbon and Emery counties have been operating since 1881, and despite reductions in coal mine dust concentrations, coal miners still suffer from preventable occupational lung diseases. Utah's Mighty Five National Parks are subject to unacceptable levels of coal-fired power plant pollution, due in part to the emissons from the largest coal-burning facilities in the state, Rocky Mountain Power's Hunter and Huntington plants. State regulators have proposed legislation to allow the coal industry to continue to pollute Utah air, threatening Utah's $12 billion outdoor recreation economy.
In celebration of this support for Utah, the Sierra Club, Black Diamond Equipment, Protect Our Winters, the National Parks Conservation Association, and other members of a coalition of 100 winter sports athletes, outdoor recreation businesses and brands, and tourism leaders, called on EPA Region 8 and Regional Administrator Shaun McGrath to require Rocky Mountain Power’s Hunter and Huntington coal-fired power plants to reduce dangerous coal pollution by installing modern, cost-effective, and achievable controls, as in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. The coalition delivered a letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy in their presentation for clean air for Utah in Washington, D.C., last week.
Pictured below, the press conference:
Listen to Angel Collinson, professional freeskier from Utah, speaking on Fox- KSTU-TV (UT). Read her Op-ed for Outside Magazine.
Sign the petition at sc.org/cleanair4utah.
Follow the #CleanAir4Utah movement to protect Utah's parks on twitter, on instagram and on facebook.
Share posts with your networks to help ensure Utah National Parks a future free from coal pollution via social media!
Read the Salt Lake Tribune Op-ed by Peter Metcalf, CEO and president of Black Diamond Inc., pictured above with Sierra Club volunteer activists.