Ah, clean air | The Salt Lake Tribune

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Sunday night, a storm cleared the Salt Lake Valley air. Monday morning, I looked out over our beautiful landscape with no haze or smog. I envisioned a time when residents could enjoy such vistas almost every day of the year.

Is this dream far-fetched? Not really. While we debate the many necessary short-term steps to help clear the air ("Clean air bill passes House," Tribune, March 1), the ultimate solution must address another problem — climate change.

To prevent the most severe damage from a warming Earth, we urgently need to transition to abundant, renewable energy. Powering our society with clean energy will not only mitigate the changing climate, but also allow us to breathe healthy, clean air.

Fortunately, some of our country's forward-looking legislators are leading the way to stimulate the needed transition to clean energy. U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, have introduced the Climate Protection Act (S.332). This bill would gradually impose a tax on carbon, with most of the proceeds being returned to the American people.

It is time to throw our bipartisan support behind such solutions to our human-caused air pollution and climate change.

David Folland

Sandy