Protestors carry a makeshift coffin toward the Governor's office. Clean air activists gather to to protest against tar sands and to call out Governor Herbert Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2013 at his office in the Utah State Capitol.
Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
How frustrating it is to read about groups demonstrating at the Utah Capitol building about "air quality" ("Tempest swirls around Utah's dirty air problem," Feb. 5). If it weren't so illogical, it would be humorous. How can anyone hold the governor responsible for our annual temperature inversions?
Since time immemorial, we have had temperature inversions with the accompanying air pollution. During the early days, there was wood smoke. Now we have automobiles and jet airplanes and diesel trucks. We also have industrial emissions — which, by the way, have been quite well filtered — and besides, we have people.
The fact is that when we have several hundred thousand people living in a relatively small bowl, we are going to have air pollution. The only cure would be to stop living in the bowl during those temperature inversions. Wouldn't it be nice if we could outlaw them?
The only real point I am trying to make is that we need to stop going to the government to try to solve our problems. The real problems come when the government gets involved. In about 99 percent of the cases, when government becomes involved, things get worse.
Russell Bender
Nephi
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"The real problems come when the government gets involved. In about 99 percent of the cases, when government becomes involved, things get worse."
Please don't make such provocative statements without backing them up with More..
Temperature inversions may be natural, but pollution isn't. The fact that the Salt Lake Valley is prone to temperature inversions that trap pollution makes it all the more imperative to make efforts to clean up the air - not a reason to dismiss More..
First of all the letter comes from someone who doesn't live in the "dirty bowl", and secondly ECR is exactly correct. Through government action as bad as the air is it's better than it was. It's true on a bad day you More..