The National Park Service recently warned that a coal plant proposed for Delta could wash out dramatic views from Utah's national parks, including some star-gazing opportunities considered so exceptional they are featured in marketing campaigns designed to lure tourist dollars to Utah. While just saying no to such a proposal would seem to be an economic no-brainer, the state's Division of Air Quality has tentatively approved the proposal, pending the final public input it receives by July 1.

The warning was detailed in comments the National Park Service recently submitted regarding Intermountain Power Agency's plan to build a new 950 megawatt power plant at the existing Intermountain Power Plant near Delta, Utah. In the letter, the National Park Service warned that emissions threaten visibility at Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, Zion, Canyonlands and Arches national parks.

The letter notes "expansive panoramas full of color and texture are the hallmark of these parks and vital to visitor enjoyment. Parks in this region have outstanding nighttime visibility. These parks experience some of the best visibility anywhere in the country, and light-scattering by fine particles can affect visibility during the day and night." In addition, the comments noted that these parks "are among the darkest in the conterminous United States," and that the parks "utilize this night sky as a tourist draw."

IPP has two existing coal-fired boilers that can generate 950 megawatts each (one megawatt is enough electricity for approximately 1,000 homes). And, in a bitterly ironic twist, the letter from the National Park Service notes that Utah is proposing emission limits so loose they would allow the new proposed boiler to pollute more than either of the two existing boilers!

Utah's economy is heavily dependent on tourism dollars generated by the national parks. For example, 27 percent of Wayne County's employment is dependent on visits to Capitol Reef and other parks. Nearly 1.5 million people visit Bryce Canyon National Park annually. Garfield County, in which most of Bryce is located, has the highest unemployment rate in the state of Utah and is heavily dependent on tourism for employment.

The Division of Air Quality should not issue any air emission permits for new coal-fired power plants in Utah until a comprehensive impacts analysis is performed that measures the potential air quality impacts to our treasured national parks. The new coal-fired power plant is a clone of the 1970s technology being used in the existing facilities. If the coal plant is built, Utahns will be breathing the emissions of the new, 1970-style unit for 50-plus years.

There is also serious debate about whether any new coal-fired power plants are needed to meet the future electricity demands of the western United States. Western Resource Advocates, a regional think tank, recently issued findings from an exhaustive energy study based on a utility industry computer model, which found that a mix of renewable energy and energy efficiency resources can be used to meet growing electricity demands across the West at lower cost than current trends that rely primarily on new coal and natural gas-fired power plants. These findings were presented last week at the Western Governors Association meeting, at which governors unanimously voted to pursue a clean energy strategy for the West to hold down consumers' energy bills and clean up the environment. Utah doesn't need another dirty coal plant that would sacrifice our state's national parks in order to ship electricity to California. It's time to just say no.

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Kathy Van Dame of Salt Lake City is with the Wasatch Clean Air Coalition.