Utah's state of environment report highlights milestones

SALT LAKE CITY — The year 2011 brought the 20th anniversary of the state's establishment of an environmental regulation department, and a number of milestones were achieved this year aimed at cleaning up Utah's air, water and land.

Even the little things — like recycling old tires — add up in big ways. The state Department of Environmental Quality reports that nearly 100 percent of all tires collected in Utah were recycled or reused, amounting to 43,000 tons or 2.6 million tires that escaped the fate of landfills or dumping grounds.

In its annual "State of the Environment Report," the regulatory agency also noted an increased public awareness over the dangers of radon during 2011, with an uptick in both the number of tests performed and the number of radon mitigation systems installed in homes.

As an example, in 2011 there were 4,326 radon tests — up from 2010's 3,353. The department's radon program operates in conjunction with multiple partners, including Intermountain Healthcare's Women and Newborn Services, as well as the American Cancer Society and the state Department of Health.

The year 2011 also saw the establishment of an innovative renewable energy rebate program that saw an upfront infusion of $1.2 million become fully tapped in just under three months, leveraged by more than $5 million in private investment through jobs and support of businesses.

Utah homeowners, in the meantime, took advantage of residential audits to retrofit their dwellings to cut down on energy use and pocket the savings. Through the Utah Home Performance Program, nearly 1,300 homes had retrofits to see annual average energy savings as much as 29 percent in the years to come.

In the area of water quality and resource protection, regulators launched a cooperative monitoring agreement for the Great Salt Lake. The goal is the implementation of a more unified approach to compiling data essential for the management of the largest saltwater lake in the Western hemisphere.

Regulators, too, reached out to the public in a pair of surveys gauging public perceptions of what "clean" water means, and how it impacts choices related to recreation destinations or quality of drinking water.

The findings underscored the critical economic link established with the appeal of "clean" water in contrast to visitor deterrence caused by shore-hugging algae blooms in impaired waters.