Climate fear or hope | 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This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated.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.

Note: This letter ran in Thursday's Public Forum without the author's name.

T.G."Bud" Mahas' letter ("EPA's hypothesis," Forum, Aug. 17) revealed the fear that drives many to deny what is obvious to all major scientific institutions and most Americans — that the climate is changing and humans are the primary cause.

I think I understand his concern that making the necessary changes might infringe on his ability to "enjoy and live as comfortably as possible."

On the other hand, making those necessary changes offers us hope for a better life. While we have "burned" our way to prosperity, we have also paid a heavy price: impaired health from air pollution, urban sprawl, record heat, extreme wildfires, and the list goes on.

Stanford University professor Mark Jacobson and others have shown how the world can be powered almost entirely on clean energy, eliminating the impacts of burning fossil fuels.

To transform this hope into effective action, our elected officials need to know we want clean energy. Town hall meetings are the perfect setting.

David S. Folland M.D.

Sandy