Environmental Overview of the Beehive State
Salt Lake City sustainability efforts are a bright spot in a state that is not exactly a frontrunner in green policies and practices. Utah faces significant challenges in moving towards sustainability.
- WalletHub has our state ranked 27th in their 2023’s Greenest States; Consumer Affairs placed us at 37th in their rankings.
- U.S. News & World Report ranks Utah at #46 in the ‘natural environment’ category; #38 for air and water quality, and #44 for pollution.
We know global climate change and other environmental issues are a major problem, but what does this look like locally? Why should we care, and what can we do?
Utah land issues
- According to Alliance for a Better Utah, our state is expected to double in size by 2060, adding nearly one million people by 2030. Currently, landfills around Salt Lake City are expected to last only until 2065. But those predictions do not factor in increased consumption or increased population size. In 2022, our state generated 42 tons, or 85 million, pounds of trash. This is the equivalent of 17,000 Teslas. Our landfills may reach capacity much sooner than 2065.
Find local recycling resources and other ways to decrease waste here.
- Higher temperatures brought on by climate change leads to problems like increased drought, frequency and severity of wildfires, and the decreased ability of trees to withstand pests, such as the bark beetles that infested 50,000 acres of Utah forests in 2012 and continue to do damage.
Salt Lake City air quality
It’s old news that Utah air quality is terrible. The inversion is awful, and it doesn’t appear to be getting any better. The American Lung Association’s 2023 State of the Air report ranked Utah 10th worst ozone pollution in the U.S. and 19th for worst short term particle pollution. The days of the Salt Lake City inversion being a short period of poor air quality seems like a distant memory.
One of the biggest sources of these particulates is US Magnesium, the largest magnesium producer in the country. They are responsible for an estimated 25% of air pollution in northern Utah. In addition, they along with Compass Minerals, deplete the most water in the state.
Air quality in Salt Lake City is most affected by emissions produced from on-road vehicles. While already responsible for about 40% of man-made pollution, the likelihood of this improvement remains slim with projects on the horizon like the proposed I-15 expansion. More focus and funds should be placed on improving public transit and transitioning to renewable energy. The Rio Grande Plan is a fantastic proposed alternative.
With the growing exposure of lakebed from the shrinking Great Salt Lake, we face the added threat of toxic lake dust storms, laced with arsenic, copper, and mercury.
Landfill gas is another significant contributor to emissions. In the United States, landfills are the third-largest source of human-related methane emissions, accounting for approximately 14.5 percent in 2020.
Utah’s water shortage
Utah high water usage coupled with drought and decreasing snowpacks remain a top issue throughout the state. Increased temperatures from climate change result in a higher evaporation rate. These factors contribute to the Great Salt Lake drying up; it hit a historic low level in 2022. The potential loss of the lake has dire implications for air quality, animal habitat, snow quality, and the local economy.
In December 2023, I attended a lecture given by by Dr. Bonnie K. Baxter, a leading expert on the Great Salt Lake and Director of the Great Salt Lake Institute.
Key points:
💧The Great Salt Lake water level has been receding 6’ per year since the 80s. The plentiful snowpack from winter 2022-23 raised the level 5.5’ but simply bought the lake more time—a drop in the bucket.
💧Around 70% of the water loss is due to consumptive use.
💧With rising global temperatures and increased evaporation as a result, water levels are unlikely to improve without intervention.
💧The lake’s ecosystem is at risk from the elevated salinity, from algae to brine shrimp to the 10 million birds that stop at the largest saltwater lake along the Pacific Flyway migratory path.
💧Maybe you’re not a wildlife person, but do you love skiing? Because the increased dust from the growing exposed lakebed causes snow to melt quicker, as the layer of dust absorbs sunlight, rather than reflecting it as normal. (Think sunburn from skiing on a sunny day.)
💧The ski industry and tourism are big parts of Utah’s economy, and there are many other jobs tied to the lake, $1.32 billion in annual revenue at stake. Real estate prices in a dust bowl also are at risk.
💧As you’re probably aware, the dust also contains multiple elements such as arsenic, copper, and selenium that are harmful to our health. That alone is something that should cause every single living being along the Wasatch Front to care.
Take steps to decrease water usage at home and in your yard.
Water pollution
Water issues in Utah also include pollution. Globally, eight to ten million metric tons of trash make it to the ocean every year. By 2050, it is estimated that the amount of trash in the ocean will outweigh the sea life. Utah’s waterways aren’t exempt from pollution: 32 tons of trash removed from the Jordan River in one year’s time, and on a single morning in 2022, volunteers removed one ton of trash from the Great Salt Lake.
Utah water quality issues extend even further. In 2022, the nonprofit group Environmental Integrity Project found that Utah ranked 3rd in the country for the length of rivers and streams that are potentially harmful to aquatic life. They also placed Utah at 7th for the amount of rivers and streams deemed too polluted for swimming and recreation. Local regulators have also found about half the state’s waters are impaired in some way.
Is Salt Lake City water safe to drink?
Salt Lake City’s drinking water is primarily sourced from mountain streams and reservoirs. According to the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities (SLCDPU), water meets and exceeds all of the state and federal standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) Tap Water Database assessed Salt Lake City tap water quality from 2013-2020. A total of 36 contaminants were found, 14 of which exceeded EWG health guidelines. Note that EWG’s standards are more stringent than the federal government’s. Additionally, tap water assessed in 2021 was in compliance with federal health-based drinking water standards.
The 2024 Salt Lake City water quality report can be found here.
Lead enters drinking water via old pipes, and Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities (SLCDPU) was approved for a $39 million loan for lead service line inventory and replacement throughout the City service area’s drinking water system. Visit the city’s Copper and Lead Program to for more information about how to address exposure concerns in your own home.
Salt Lake City is among the first 25% of water systems to test for a wider range of PFAS (poly- and per-fluoroalkyl substances), also known as forever chemicals, and present these results to the public. The good news is that these harmful chemicals were not detected in the surface water of 90% of our water supply. They were, however, detected in two of the 20+ groundwater wells utilized by the city during high-demand months (about 10% of supply), but one of these wells has been out of commission for years. The other is the 4th Avenue well, which supplies water to much of downtown during the summer. The EPA and SLC are working to remove PFAS from the water system.
If you have concerns with the drinking water, all of the contaminants found may be filtered out with a reverse osmosis filter.
How sustainable is Salt Lake City?
Salt Lake City itself has an awesome, albeit small, sustainability department. This enthusiastic group cares a lot about our local environment and they make the most of the resources they have. They work hard to educate the public on how to do better, including their very informational slcGreen blog. They teach a free Master Recycling program every spring, which I completed Summer 2023. We had guest speakers and toured different facilities. I highly recommend it–it was a lot of fun and I learned a lot.
In 2022, 37% of SLC residential waste stream was diverted from the landfill through recycling and composting. SLC actually has a pretty robust recycling program, but it needs more participation. The city has a goal to be zero waste by 2040, and we all need to jump on board in order to achieve that. If you’re interested, you can read Salt Lake City’s Climate Positive 2040 action plan.
I know we can all do better–we have to–and I sincerely hope that this resource will make it easier to connect with the people and information you need to do your part. C’mon SLC, Let’s Go Green!
Please, by all means, let me know if I missed anything. I am always adding more information.