Air Quality
For Utahns, poor air quality is the greatest negative attribute of their quality of life and one of their strongest concerns. A resounding three out of four Utahns voted for a future in which we reduce emissions by 40% from today, even as Utah’s population nearly doubles. To achieve this reduction Utahn’s vision a future in which we drive 25% less, one third of Utah’s cars have zero tailpipe emissions, existing buildings are retrofitted to be 30% more efficient, new buildings are 50% more efficient, and all water heaters are ultra-low emissions. Utahns also want to increase the convenience of getting around without a car by locating housing closer to destinations, expanding public transportation options, and making it easier to walk and bike in communities.
Learn more about the Your Utah, Your Future vision for air quality →
Bearing in mind the results of Your Utah, Your Future, Envision Utah has prioritized clean air and brought together representatives from across the state in health care, business, nonprofit organization, government, academia, transportation, and more to form the Clean Air Action Team. This group of leaders worked together to provide a set of broadly supported recommendations to improve air quality.
The Clean Air Action Team has had several successes including leveraging support to convert many of Utah’s major petroleum refineries to the production of Tier 3 fuels, leading to the Provo Clean Air Toolkit, creating a pilot program to help Utah car dealers educate buyers on the air quality impacts of new vehicles, and more.
Envision Utah is currently facilitating the Clean Air Action Team to create a statewide Clean Air Toolkit and a building retrofit program for efficiency and air quality upgrades.