Kebron Moges

Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

Issue Pt. 1: Air quality in Salt Lake City

Root Causes Pt. 2:
The Salt Lake valley is extremely beautiful with mountains surrounding the city like a
ginormous football stadium, sadly these gorgeous walls trap our polluted air making Salt Lake
City on of the most polluted cities in the United States. This causes an inversion which means a
layer of warm air acts as a lid, trapping cooler air below holding the air pollutants with it.
According to the Marron Institute of Urban Management and The Salt Lake Tribune “if national
air pollution regulations were tightened, 72 fewer people in the Salt Lake City area would die
every year, according to a recent study of the health impacts of bad air.” This is concerning
because people are losing loved ones, missing school/work and suffering from health conditions
that could be prevented if there were stricter regulations. I discovered the main causes for the
built-up pollutants besides the inversion is the use of transportation, small infrastructures like
homes and industrial buildings.
Mobile sources like cars, planes and lawnmowers is the largest contributor to our air
pollution problem providing 57% of total emissions. According to Alan Matheson,
Environmental Advisor to the Governor of Utah “cold starts create the vast majority of vehicle
pollution. When you start your vehicle, your catalytic converter is cold and it’s not working. It
takes a few minutes of operation to warm up to the point that the catalytic converter is removing
the emissions. It's that first couple of minutes when 60 percent of the emissions on a trip are
created.” So, planning your trips better actually reduces the amount of pollution your car
releases, starting your car before the engine cools down releases less pollutants because your
catalytic converter works best if its warm.
Pollution created by homes, small businesses and restaurants are referred to as area
sources. These area sources contribute 32% of the harmful gases released in our atmosphere.
Heating our house plays a large part to the issue especially homes that use wood burning stoves
and fireplaces. According to Kerry Kelly and Dr. Robert Paine of the Program for Air Quality,
Health and Society stated in 2013 that houses that used wood to heat contribute 3,000 times more
pollution than heating your home with natural gas. This is extremely higher than I anticipated, I
honestly never thought using wood for heat is more harmful than natural gas.
To my surprise industrial buildings, refineries and large mines were the smaller
contributor to our air pollution. These types of sources are recognized as point sources which
means it occurs in a small area while producing a lot of pollution. Due to state and federal
regulations on these types of industries they must maintain a tolerable level of pollution while
keeping it contained in that same specific area.
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

References
Health of the Air. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://healthoftheair.org/.
Kued. (2015, January 7). Pollution Sources. Retrieved from https://www.kued.org/whatson/the-
air-we-breathe/background/pollution-sources.
Mackenzie, J. (2019, October 4). Air Pollution: Everything You Need to Know. Retrieved from
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-need-know.
Understanding the sources and causes of Utah's air pollution. (2019, June 13). Retrieved from
https://deq.utah.gov/communication/news/featured/understanding-utahs-air-quality.
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

Addressing the Issue Pt. 3:

The largest contributor to Salt Lake City’s air pollution is mobile sources like planes,

cars and lawnmowers creating 57% of the city’s total emissions. According to Alan Matheson,

Environmental Advisor to the Governor of Utah “cold starts create the vast majority of vehicle

pollution. When you start your vehicle, your catalytic converter is cold and it’s not working. It

takes a few minutes of operation to warm up to the point that the catalytic converter is removing

the emissions. It's that first couple of minutes when 60 percent of the emissions on a trip are

created.” A catalytic converter is a mobile part that helps reduce pollution created by the vehicle.

It takes in harmful gases like hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides and turns them

into water, carbon dioxide and nitrogen. This process can only occur once the converter is

warmed up enough so that the little metal particles can work correctly. So, planning your trips

better actually reduces the amount of pollution your car releases, starting your car before the

engine cools down releases less pollutants because your catalytic converter works best if it’s

warm. Or you could run all your errands at once, when you leave work, school or hanging out

with friends. I think the best way to address this issue is by spreading that message because until

this project I never knew it made a huge difference. Educating the public on “cold starts” through

radio commercials, billboard signs, tv commercials and even mailing pamphlets could do a lot.

This could push individuals to schedule trips better and could help plan their days more

efficiently. If this is our largest contributor and if others knew how simple it is to do your part, I

think we can see a slight improvement.

Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

After doing research I was pleasantly surprised to see that many people and groups have

been working towards more information and solutions for our air pollution problem. Legislators

passing the House Concurrent Resolution 7 last year has made topics about the environment and

air quality more of a priority as it should be. The Utah Department of Environmental Quality

who have investigators, scientists and other staff working to protect public health and the quality

of our environment like air, land, and water by monitoring, enforcing, studying and addressing

new information. This year Utah legislators provided more than $200,000 to Kem C. Gardner

Policy Institute at the University of Utah to research air quality and climate research. They were

given six months to find any “intervention strategies” that would help address Utah’s air quality

and environmental issues. These suggestions were argued and reviewed by experts in many

different backgrounds. After the document was submitted, they asked for the public’s and

interest group’s feedback which I found interesting and smart.

There are many professors at the University of Utah studying our air quality and

environment trying to search for solutions. Michelle Hofmann an assistant professor in the

Department of Pediatrics helped orchestrate the Utah Clean School Bus Project which helped

reduce emissions that were created by old diesel buses with new ones that are up to date with the

strictest emissions standards. Daniel Mendoza a research assistant professor in the Department of

Atmospheric Sciences has participated in the biannual clean air festivals in low-income and

communities of color. The festival educates the community on air quality and environmental

exposure issues with bi-lingual information while providing gifts like LED bulbs, window

insulation kits, low-flow showerheads and breathing masks to protect against air pollution.
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

Utah legislators and researchers are focusing on our air quality for solutions, predictions

and more research. The information and data they collect, and the laws created will save lives

and our earth, but we all need to join and do our part by reducing our own emissions. We know

most of the emissions are created by vehicles, but we all have places to go so its important we

are mindful about our travel. If we can reduce our own emissions by 60% just by going to the

grocery store or laundromat right after work, then we should. The issue is no one is aware of this

information or even know what a catalytic converter is. We need to spread more information and

make sure the public is already aware of the inventions that were already originally created to

help air pollution. I believe this could be a start because most people want to help but don’t know

many ways they can.

Citations

Air Quality/Changing Climate Roadmap. (2019, November 4). Retrieved from

https://gardner.utah.edu/air-quality/.
MacDonald, C. (n.d.). 6 University of Utah professors studying air quality issues in Utah.
Retrieved from https://www.ksl.com/article/46492387/6-university-of-utah-professors-studying-
air-quality-issues-in-utah.
U experts on air quality and related environmental issues. (2019, February 10). Retrieved from
https://unews.utah.edu/air-quality-and-related-environmental-issues/.
Utah Clean Diesel Program 2018 State of the Environment Report (AQ). (2019, January 3).
Retrieved from https://deq.utah.gov/communication/state-of-the-environment-report/utah-clean-
diesel-program-2018-state-of-the-environment-report-aq.
Health of the Air. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://healthoftheair.org/.
Kued. (2015, January 7). Pollution Sources. Retrieved from https://www.kued.org/whatson/the-
air-we-breathe/background/pollution-sources.
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

Mackenzie, J. (2019, October 4). Air Pollution: Everything You Need to Know. Retrieved from
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-need-know.
Understanding the sources and causes of Utah's air pollution. (2019, June 13). Retrieved from
https://deq.utah.gov/communication/news/featured/understanding-utahs-air-quality.

How Can You Help Pt.4:

Currently the issue of air quality and air pollution is being addressed through scholarly

journals/research, news articles, news broadcasts and among legislatures. The state government

and other research organizations have been working to combat the issue and address it by

providing information on the causes and effects of air pollution. The data informs the public how

air pollution works and its severity. All the information states air pollution is a problem and

suggests the public to be aware and to stay inside on days the air is bad. They provide the

different gases that are presents, their roots and how it affects our health. They may mention the

phenomena with cold starts, but this part of information isn’t widely shared. I believe that if we

were to inform more of the public on cold starts it would encourage them to drive less by running

all their errands at once, the first time they leave the house.

When you look at Salt Lake City’s largest contributor to its air pollution problem, mobile

sources (like planes, cars and lawnmowers) created 57% of the city’s total emissions. When you

look at that list think about what we use the most individually, our car obviously. We use our

cars every day, some of us all day. We need to go to work, school, shop, we explore, we go out

to dinner, we go to so many places with our cars, which only contributes to our air pollution
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

problem. Instead of warning the public to stay inside, which is pretty hard to do all the time I

think we should focus on cold starts and educating the public on how to effectively use their

catalytic converters. According to Alan Matheson, Environmental Advisor to the Governor of

Utah “cold starts create the vast majority of vehicle pollution. When you start your vehicle, your

catalytic converter is cold and it’s not working. It takes a few minutes of operation to warm up to

the point that the catalytic converter is removing the emissions. It's that first couple of minutes

when 60 percent of the emissions on a trip are created”. I never knew this until I did research for

this assignment and that bothered me. This should be basic knowledge, especially for individuals

who live in cities like Salt Lake City.

I decided the most impactful way I can help address this issue is by spreading

information on cold starts to the public through billboards, radio and tv informercials, social

media and sharing through word of mouth and group chats/forwarding messages. I realized

spreading information through a billboard or informercial will be impossible without some

money. But in this day and age I don’t need money to share information, all I need is the internet.

I made informative posts on my Instagram stories, which allows my other followers to share on

their Instagram stories. I had my boyfriends and 4 other followers repost my post, which will

reach even more people. My post included how catalytic converters work and its positive effects

it can have on our air quality. I also made a group chat with all my family members, my

immediate and the ones I still stay in contact with and shared the same information. Most of

them found it interesting, especially my dad, uncle and brother who all work on cars. They were

aware of the catalytic converter and its function but never gave much thought about it in regard

to our environment. They all said they would be more concise on the way they travel. I believe
Kebron Moges
Civic Engagement
POLS-1100
12/05/2019

this was really effective because its caused people to be more concise on the way they travel

which essentially could prevent an extra 60% of carbon emissions being released. I can move

forward with this by continuing making posts every Friday and maybe creating a GoFundMe to

raise money to have a billboard or radio commercial.

I can suggest others who want to be involved to take the same steps I’ve taken. I plan

before I leave the house and run all my errands in one day. I also leave a note on my white board

in my kitchen, this is a list of different places I need to stop at by the end of the week. This can

be the postal office, the bank, beauty supply store, gas station or grocery store. Making this list

keeps me organized, saves me time and helps the environment. I would suggest others make

similar posts on their social media and have friends repost them. Others who want to contribute

can help to raise money to purchase a billboard or a radio informational which would help spread

the message a lot further.