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Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Toxic dust storm sweeps across Salt Lake Valley, hitting Utah's most densely populated areas
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A dust storm carrying toxic elements swept across the Salt Lake Valley last Sunday, impacting residents in some of Utah's most densely populated areas, according to an initiative from Conserve Utah Valley, which is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting and sustaining Utah's land and water. According to a Conserve Utah Valley initiative known as 'Grow the Flow,' the storm originated from the Great Salt Lake near Saltair and the Kennecott Tailings site. The plume of dust could reportedly be seen across the valley, affecting residents in Magna, Tooele County, and Salt Lake City's west side. According to the initiative, the event went unrecorded by the state's existing air quality network due to a reported lack of dust monitors along the southwest shores of the Great Salt Lake. These strong winds carry toxic contaminants like arsenic, lead, and lithium from dry sediment. The initiative said residents' exposure to these contaminants highlights Utah's growing public health crisis, as dust from the Great Salt Lake is reportedly linked to increased respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular diseases, developmental defects, and cancer. 'We often think of the impacts of Great Salt Lake dust on our public health as a far-off, distant future. The reality is that dust storms from more than one-thousand square miles of exposed lake bed are infiltrating our communities and impacting the air we breathe today,' said Jake Dreyfous, Managing Director of Grow the Flow. 'We must take proactive steps as individuals and as a state to get more water to Great Salt Lake, if we hope to avoid widespread impacts to our health, economy, and ecology in Northern Utah.' Great Salt Lake's South Arm elevation currently stands at 4193.4 ft above mean sea level, meaning the lake is only 40% full by volume. This reportedly leaves more than 1000 square-miles of lakebed exposed. According to Grow the Flow, below-average runoff and a hot summer may cause the lake to recede below 4192 ft. this fall. This will exceed the Great Salt Lake Strike Team's threshold for 'Serious Adverse Effects.' Utah lawmakers have reportedly recently approved funding to install more dust monitors around Great Salt Lake. However, of the $651,000 requested for Great Salt Lake dust monitoring and research, only $150,000 was granted. Grow the Flow said this is enough to hire a staffer at the Division of Air Quality, but not enough to install more dust monitors or provide real-time information to impacted communities. Nonetheless, the Division of Environmental Quality is reportedly working to install more monitors with the existing funds. 'We don't know what we don't measure,' Utah Division of Air Quality Director Bryce Bird told lawmakers during a recent hearing. Until Sept. 2024, the Great Salt Lake only had four PM10 dust monitors, none of which were within 10 miles of shoreline. While there are now six, there are still big gaps in the state's ability to track toxic dust events. 'We're deeply concerned about what the shrinking Great Salt Lake means for our families and communities. More frequent and toxic dust storms, like the one on Sunday, April 27th, are carrying dangerous pollutants from the lakebed and nearby tailings piles, putting our health at serious risk,' said Carmen Valdez, Senior Policy Associate for The Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah (HEAL Utah). 'Everyone deserves clean air and a safe future, and we're committed to fighting for solutions that protect both.' 3 injured after car catches fire following multi-vehicle crash Toxic dust storm sweeps across Salt Lake Valley, hitting Utah's most densely populated areas 2 Utah breweries win awards at 2025 World Beer Cup These US cities are being called the best places to live in the country, says a new study Life expectancy in southern states barely changed from 1900 to 2000 Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
‘State of the Air': Utah among top 10 state for worst ozone pollution, according to report
SALT LAKE CITY () — Salt Lake City is in the top ten for worst ozone pollution in the U.S., according to the American Lung Association. The American Lung Association's 26th annual 'State of the Air' report finds that nearly half of the U.S. population is living in unhealthy levels of air pollution — Utah ranking #9 among the 'most polluted cities' in the U.S. by ozone pollution. Ozone is a gas molecule that is found high in the upper atmosphere, where it shields people from the sun's ultraviolet radiation, but when ozone air pollution is at ground level, where people breathe, it can lead to health problems. 'Ozone aggressively attacks lung tissue by reacting chemically with it,' the American Lung Association states. The report said that the geographical distribution of citations on the Worst 25 list follows a pattern seen consistently in the last decade, where the highest levels of ozone pollution more often occur in the west. 'Although cleanup of ozone precursor pollutants from industrial, power generation,and mobile sources has been working to reduce ozone concentrations, the impact ofclimate change has resulted in widespread wildfire disasters and has also meant highertemperatures, dry, sunny skies and more frequent stagnation events. Taken together,these conditions produced much higher numbers of unhealthy ozone days than wouldotherwise be the case,' the report said. The cities on the list of the worst 25 for ozone, year-round particle pollution, and short-term particle pollution are ranked according to their weighted average number of unhealthy air days. 'Note that some cities rank high on one list and don't show up on other lists because of the differences in their pollution problems,' the website said. The Utah Division of Air Quality admits there are challenges with ozone pollution, especially now and in the next couple of months. 'Those emissions are then acted upon by warm temperatures and sunlight, and then that forms a reactive form of the oxygen molecule, ozone that then interacts with the lungs and, of course, causes the health harm that we're really concerned about,' Utah Division of Air Quality Director Bryce Bird said. In the American Lung Association's findings, 27 counties in the U.S received failing grades for all three measures of pollution. Salt Lake is one of them. Bird said the Environmental Protection Agency scale paints a different picture. 'For a daily PM2.5, we're meeting that standard. For annual PM 2.5, we're meeting the standard and we're currently not meeting the ozone standard, but that is just a little bit different scale, a different focus, but the Lung Association is there to push policy, push action,' Bird said. 'PM2.5' refers to particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less. These are inhalable fine particles that can cause various health problems and are regulated by agencies like the U.S EPA. Bird said to focus on scaling back on emissions, especially cars and trucks, as they are the largest of those emissions and affect people. 'Extra burden on your lungs. Really, it is an irritant. Of course, it's a trigger for asthma. We see higher asthma utilization and higher hospitalization rates for asthma during those days, so it is a serious concern for us,' he said. Bird adds ozone peaks in the afternoon. So, he says exercising in the mornings and evenings can get you away from the bad air that can harm your health. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nationwide study uncovers major gaps in data about growing threat to public health: 'It's a consistent pattern'
A new study from the University of Utah uncovered the racial and ethnic inequities of air pollution monitoring in the U.S. According to the investigation, the Environmental Protection Agency's air quality monitors are disproportionately more common in predominantly white neighborhoods than in communities of color. The researchers included data from monitors that tracked particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and carbon monoxide and were active between March 2019 and March 2024. They also used census block groups from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Results showed monitoring disparities for all six pollutants, especially sulfur dioxide and lead, then ozone and carbon monoxide. All racial and ethnic groups generally had fewer monitors for nitrogen dioxide, ozone, lead, and particulate matter than the White non-Latino group. Furthermore, regions with Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations generally displayed the largest disparity, followed by American Indian and Alaska Native populations and individuals of two or more races. "If there was a disparity for just one type of monitor, it could conceivably be accidental or just poor design," co-author Simon Brewer told Deseret News. "The fact that it's a consistent pattern across all pollutants suggests that the decision-making process needs to be looked at carefully — these monitors are not being distributed equitably." Bryce Bird, director of Utah's Division of Air Quality, told Deseret News that his department is required by the EPA to distribute monitors based on locations expected to have the highest concentrations of air pollution. "They aren't located targeting specific ethnicity, but they're targeting those areas where, because of the industry or the proximity to roadways, they would be expected to have the highest levels of air pollution," he said. Nonetheless, gaps in air quality coverage could further expose marginalized communities — which are already susceptible to environmental injustices — to medical complications tied to these pollutants. Contaminated air has been linked to adverse health effects, such as respiratory illnesses, decreased cognitive function, and child mortality, and it also contributes to Earth's overheating. Do you worry about air pollution in and around your home? Yes — always Yes — often Yes — sometimes No — never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Recent studies have shined light on the extent of environmental injustices suffered by people of color. For example, Stanford University found that particulate matter has killed more Black Americans than any other group in the country. Meanwhile, NASA reported that Black and Hispanic residents living in the U.S. have been disproportionately affected by nitrogen dioxide produced by warehouses. This coverage can help spur legislative action to hold responsible parties accountable. GreenLatinos Colorado is leading a lawsuit against the state's air quality commission for failing to protect vulnerable populations from major air polluters, while a group of young Hawaiians sued the state's transportation system for producing "untenable levels" of planet-warming gases. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
