Letter: A fresh approach on air quality

With the winter inversion season coming to an end, I look to what can be done now to help the issue in the future. I shouldn’t be stressed about the air my children breathe when they go out to play. It seems like we’ve been talking about air pollution for years in Utah, yet it never seems to get any better.

Parents shouldn’t have to choose between living in the Wasatch Front and protecting our kids’ health. Sadly, that’s the dilemma many families are facing because Utah’s piecemeal approach to improving air quality isn’t working well enough or fast enough. It’s time for a new strategy.

Heber City Mayor Kelleen Potter and Midway Mayor Celeste Johnson recently suggested a plan that would clean up our air and transition the U.S. economy to a clean energy future. This “carbon dividends” solution would charge fossil fuel companies a fee for their carbon emissions and return all the money directly back to the American people. It would cut U.S. emissions in half by 2035 and a family of four would receive about $2,000 a year.

I commend Mayor Potter and Mayor Johnson for discussing a fresh approach that would have a real impact on our environment. With this carbon dividends solution, our children could run outside to play any day of the year. And parents could breathe easy knowing their kids’ health is protected.

Jasmine Lawrence

Springville