SMOG Until Further Notice: My Bad Air Day = Salt Lake Basin

[Coyotl]

"There is nothing more important than breathing."

Jan 25, 2014
As part of its ongoing coverage of Utah's air pollution problem, The Salt Lake Tribune asked its readers for their bad air day stories, first-person accounts about how seasonal inversions affect their quality of life and health.

Jan 27, 2014
Dr. Brian Moench of Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment addressed more than 4,000 who attended an anti-pollution rally at the Utah State Capitol Saturday, Jan. 25, 2014.

[Warpy]

1. I remember the bad old days when most central heating in the northern part of the country

was coal, filthy to have in the house and filthy to burn. Likely some of the pollution in SLC is from the huge coal fired plants in Utah and Arizona.

The worst pollution here is from forest fires, mostly out of state. Otherwise, there are fairly strict laws mandating gasohol in winter and preventing wood burning (unless the stove has a catalytic converter) on air alert days. Fines can be steep.

Utah is going to have to join in these efforts.