Utah’s air quality has long been a concern. But a bill from this year’s recently concluded legislative session could help move the state toward cleaner air.
During winter inversions, a layer of warm air will trap cold air in valleys below, preventing pollution from escaping into the atmosphere. A major contributor to this air pollution is halogen emissions — chemical compounds that react with other substances in the atmosphere.
“Chlorine and bromine are a couple of these halogens," said Sen. Kirk Cullimore, "and they are two that are of particular concern because their interacting chemistry worsens our winter time inversions on the Wasatch Front by 10 to 25%.”
Cullimore, the floor sponsor of House Bill 420, explained that almost 90% of halogen emissions in the state come from a single source — the U.S. Magnesium facility located on the shore of Great Salt Lake. The facility was temporarily idled in November last year due to a decline in lithium prices, but is set to resume operating again once market conditions improve.
HB 420 is a response to House Bill 220, which was passed in 2023, and aimed to regulate halogen emissions through the Utah Division of Air Quality — or DAQ.
“HB 420 simply allows DAQ to work with the major halogen polluter," Cullimore explained. "This is simply implementing what we passed two years ago.”
Cullimore said the pollution controls being implemented were designed with input from major halogen polluters, and were meant to be cost effective. He said these pollution controls would cost roughly $500 per ton of pollutant, and would reduce halogen emissions along the Wasatch Front by 75%.
In contrast, Cullimore explained the petroleum industry in Utah uses pollutant controls that cost about $38,000 per ton of pollutant removed.
"So in short," he said, "this bill will have immense benefits for our air quality at a minimal cost."
HB420 passed the House and Senate and is now on its way to the governor’s desk for signing.
