Heal Utah Podcast

The Tribune’s environmental reporter, Brian Maffly, returns to the podcast to chat all things monument. Matt and Brian have a wide-ranging conversation about President Trump’s recent decision to cut the Grand Staircase Escalante monument in half, while reducing the new Bears Ears monument by 85 percent. (For many excellent articles which Brian has written about this issue, click here.) They discuss how this contentious fight, which of course will now head to the courts, has been defined by a tremendous amount of misleading rhetoric. Brian explains the different levels of protection that varied federal land has and the two chat about the likelihood that oil, gas, coal or uranium resources will be developed at either monument in the coming years. Lastly, they chat about the role that Native American nations have played in the monument fight. Click here for Brian’s Twitter feed, the Tribune’s website or Brian’s Authory page.

Josh Edson, from Tim Dahle Nissan, sits down with Matt to chat about the electric vehicle revolution we’re experiencing. As the local car dealership’s “electric vehicle ambassador,” they talk about trends in electric vehicle sales and how the new EVs are different than the early models (they go further!) They talk about the state legislature’s unfortunate decision to eliminate Utah’s EV tax credit last session and the current status of the federal tax credit. Josh describes how efforts to expand an EV charging infrastructure are going and the pitch he uses to encourage Nissan customers to consider purchasing or leasing a Nissan Leaf. Lastly, they discuss the future of autonomous or “self-driving” cars. For more information, check out Josh on the dealership’s Web site and on Facebook.

Matt chats with Peter, an assistant professor in the Environment & Society department at Utah State University, about his research on public opinion and climate change. They talked primarily about new research, featured in the Salt Lake Tribune and more recently, in the Herald Journal, which found that while Utahns are among “the least-likely Americans to believe in human-caused climate change,” they also “strongly support political action to curb climate change.” They discuss that paradox, offering a range of possible explanations including the age of the state’s population. More broadly, Peter and Matt chat about how climate change has become such a politically polarized issue and how, oddly, local weather plays a role in climate change polling. For more information, check out Peter’s USU website, his CV and his Twitter.

Matt chats with Nick Huey about his creative efforts to increase awareness about climate change, in coordination with University of Utah students. During this year’s rivalry football game between the two universities, Huey and others lit a giant purple Y in the mountains over LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo to bring attention to climate change. Nick described his background, how he became to be involved in climate work and generally how BYU students engage on the issue. He and Matt then talk about a new organization Nick has co-founded, The Climate Campaign, to be a moderate, nonpartisan, group to push for good climate change policies. They conclude by chatting about carbon fee and dividend, the policy Nick and many others strongly support to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For more information, check out the group’s website and Facebook page.

Yoram joins Matt in the studio for a chat about comedy, bipartisan climate advocacy, and Yoram’s recent move to Utah. Bauman, who has a PhD in economics, has built a living doing humorous lectures and presentations on serious topics, including economics and climate change. He also has co-written several books, including “The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change.” In Washington state, where Bauman lived until recently, he led an (ultimately unsuccessful) effort to pass Initiative 732, a major carbon tax proposal. Matt and Yoram discuss that effort in Washington, carbon taxes in general, and why he thinks it’s a possible policy in conservative Utah. For more information, check Yoram out on Twitter and his website, which has info on booking him to deliver presentations and lectures. 

Matt chats with Michael Cundick and Darin Mann, executive director and action director (respectively) for the local grassroots effort known as Salt Lake City Air Protectors. Michael and Darin explain the origins of the new group, which grew out of the fight over the Dakota Access Pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. The new nonprofit is less interested in advocating specific air quality policies and more on building a grassroots movement, the two explained. They described how they hope to be truly community-based effort with a decentralized movement which champions diverse, local efforts. Michael and Darin describe how their effort is different than another new group that grew out of the pipeline protests, known as PANDOS, or Peaceful Advocates for Native Dialogue and Ongoing Support. For more information, check out the SLC Air Protector’s website and Facebook page.

Bob and Mary Ellen, longtime HEAL board members, talk about how they first became involved in the organization. They describe how the group’s work shifted over the years, from primarily a focus on nuclear waste issues to multiple campaigns of which nuclear now is a relatively small part. Matt asks them about the different staff and executive directors they have worked with, and what common characteristics the group’s different leaders have shared. They discuss what factors have helped HEAL grow and thrive and what Bob and Mary Ellen think are the most important criteria that make a good nonprofit Board member. For more information, check out HEAL’s Board of Directors web page and op-eds that Bob and Mary Ellen have written on nuclear waste and air quality science.

Matt talks to Chip about his new novel, Stony Mesa Sagas, which will be released by Torrey House Press on November 14th. Chip describes the plot and characters for the novel, which is a mix of genres and about the West and environmentalism. Chip said his first novel, after two acclaimed non-fiction books, was a fun experience to write. Chip then talks about several issues that have been important for Torrey, where he lives, including the communities (for now) successful effort to stop a gravel mine and ongoing issues to maintain a sustainable water supply. Matt then asks Chip about a new feature film,  “the public,” directed by Emilio Estevez, which was partly based upon a Los Angeles Times article Chip, a former librarian, wrote about libraries and the homeless. Lastly, Chip briefly previews the talk he will give at HEAL Utah’s Fall Party coming up on Thursday November 9. You can buy tickets here!

Julie Stewart, a Westminster honors college professor, joins Matt in a conversation about research she and her students did about Utah rooftop solar owners. Julie, an award-winning scholar and teacher who happens to also be Matt’s wife, describes the 200+ online surveys and 60+ interviews her team did to learn about who owns rooftop solar in Utah and why. Julie points out that their sample of solar owners was much larger than the one Rocky Mountain Power used to justify its proposed rate hike from 2016. Her team found that Utah solar owners are more diverse than the utility would like to believe, with a significant number of middle-class families in relatively small homes. Julie and Matt also discuss the attitudes of rooftop solar owners towards Rocky Mountain Power (not good!) For more information, check out the “Executive Summary: A Study of Utah Rooftop Solar Power Owners,” which Julie and her team produced.

Matt chats with David, one of the most important writers today on energy, climate and the environment, about several of his recent columns in the online news outlet Vox. First, they tackle “radical flank effects,” about whether more radical forms of activism are useful to broader movements. Next, they discuss renewable portfolio standards, a wonky but important policy tool. David then explains why he thinks discussing population growth and birth rates is a poor choice for climate activists. They chat about why it’s important to understand the  logic and economics that explain the actions of utilities like Rocky Mountain Power. Lastly, David describes how he stays optimistic in the Age of Trump. For more information, check out David’s lively Twitter feed, his indispensable Vox columns, and his Grist.org articles.

Vancouver-based journalist, Geoff Dembicki, joins Matt in the studio to chat about his new book, Are We Screwed? How a New Generation is Fighting to Survive Climate Change. Geoff explains he remains hopeful despite the current political moment, hostile to positive policy developments on climate change. His optimism is based, the author explains, on recent election results in Canada and the UK, in addition to the young activists he profiles in his new book. Matt asks the writer about whether he thinks climate activism must be driven by leftist economic imperatives and how he perceives the left’s tendency towards factionalism. Lastly, they discuss the climate divestment movement, a focus of the second part of Geoff’s book. For more information, check out a review of  “Are We Screwed,” visit Bloomsbury’s website and follow Geoff on Twitter. 

Matt chats with Tyler Poulson, Salt Lake City’s sustainability program manager, about several key climate and energy issues including Utah Climate Week, coming up October 8-14. First, Tyler offers his take on the recent rooftop solar settlement reached between Rocky Mountain Power and other stakeholders. He then updates us about how Salt Lake City is progressing on its efforts to utilize more renewable energy. Lastly, Matt and Tyler chat about how climate policy work has evolved under the challenging administration in Washington. To send a message asking Governor Herbert to sign onto the Paris Agreement, fill out our “We Are Still In” action alert. (Share it with your networks, too: https://www.healutah.org/wearestillin) For more information about Salt Lake City’s work, visit the SLCGreen website. For more information about all of the interesting activities occurring during Utah Climate Week, visit the website of the Utah Climate Action Network. To learn about the FOUR events HEAL is hosting (or co-hosting) d

Matt chats with Suzanne, the Board President of the Escalante & Boulder Chamber of Commerce, about the possible reduction of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. She describes how that region’s economy has been growing in recent years, as she wrote in a recent Deseret News op-ed. Suzanne, who owns and runs NEMO’S Drive-Thru in Escalante, talks about a growth in hotels, restaurants and other businesses directly linked to tourists visiting and enjoying the monument, which she believes should not be shrunk, as President Trump and Secretary Zinke appear poised to do.  She and Matt talk about whether grazing and fossil fuel extraction offer promise to the local economy and how some local leaders have shunned the promise of the monument’s economic benefits. For more information, visit the website of the Escalante & Boulder Chamber of Commerce — and visit the gorgeous Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument!

Matt chats with Michael about the historic rooftop solar agreement reached between Rocky Mountain Power, the solar industry and advocates like HEAL in late August. Michael, who worked nearly full-time on defending rooftop solar for the past nine months, describes the negotiating process that led to the recent settlement. He reviews the outcome, which has three parts. The first is for existing solar customers; the second, for those who sign up over the next three years, and, lastly, for those who acquire solar after 2020. Overall, Matt and Michael agree the agreement, while not perfect, should be seen as a positive outcome, all things considering. For more information, check out a video Michael made, news coverage in the Deseret News & Salt Lake Tribune, and for the true diehards, a link to the negotiated settlement itself.

Matt chats with Marisol Cortez, a scholar, writer and activist based in San Antonio, Texas. Since graduating from U.C. Davis with a Ph.D. in Cultural Studies, Cortez has returned to Texas to advocate for climate and social justice in her hometown. Matt and Marisol discuss gentrification in San Antonio and the displacement of the Mission Trails Mobile Home Park where Matt draws similarities between housing crises in San Antonio and Salt Lake City. They also spoke about a recent presentation Marisol gave at the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment conference about “resisting burnout.” Marisol is also a co-founder of Deceleration News, an online journal that reports at the intersection of climate change and social justice. Deceleration is currently seeking contributing writers. 

Matt chats about current Western environmental issues with Jonathan Thompson, an accomplished environmental journalist from southwestern Colorado. Thompson has recently reported on the battle over the Bears Ears National Monument and the coal industry in the West. Matt and Jonathan discuss the value of preserving not only the artifacts at the heart of a historic landmark, but also the landscape and physical context of a landmark, while examining Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke’s proposal to break up Bears Ears into several discontinuous sections. The two discuss another Trump cabinet member, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, and the myths which surround his push to defend coal-fired power sources. Finally, Matt asks Jonathan about the polarization of politics about the environment in the West and how we might engage in conversations with our friends and family across the aisle. To check out Jonathan’s writing and reporting, visit his author page at High Country News.

Ashley joins Matt in the studio to chat about the endeavors of Wasatch Community Gardens throughout the Salt Lake Valley. They discuss the mission of WCG to empower people of all ages and incomes to grow and eat healthy, organic, local food. They help refugees and women experiencing homelessness learn how to garden. Listen in to hear Matt and Ashley dissect issues surrounding locally grown food, the limiting factors in community gardening, and the future of urban growing. You can learn more or sign up to volunteer on their website.  Be sure to check out WCG’s Facebook, & Instagram, too.

Matt chats with Royal about his efforts on behalf of Salt Lake County to improve air quality and to work on climate change for the sake of public health. Royal discusses his involvement with the Utah Clean Cities Coalition to provide alternative fuel options and promote non-idling practices, as well as Salt Lake County’s measures to enforce wood burning regulations. You can report a wood-burning violation at any time, here. Finally, Matt and Royal explains an important effect of global climate change in Salt Lake County — heat stress, a growing public health concern. To find a place to cool off this summer in Salt Lake City, visit this interactive “cool zone” map. To learn more about the county health department’s work, check them out on the Web and on Facebook, Instagram, and their YouTube Channel.

Anne Mariah chats with Matt about the economic and environmental impacts of uranium milling and nuclear waste storage near Blanding, Utah. Anne Mariah describes the White Mesa Mill, the last conventional uranium mill in North America. Its nuclear waste pits, nearby residents and advocates say, pose some serious concerns regarding groundwater contamination and public health. While acknowledging White Mesa is a significant employer in San Juan County, Anne Mariah emphasizes the long-term economic value of protecting public health and the local environment.  For more information, check out news coverage of a recent march by White Mesa Concerned Community, a native-led grassroots organization. You can also learn more by watching a short film about the mill and by checking out Grand Canyon Trust on the Web, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Matt chats with Will about the successful brewery he founded nearly 25 years ago which has grown steadily and now sells its brews in 34 states. Will discusses Utah’s sometimes unusual alcohol laws. Matt and Will then talk about Uinta’s impressive commitment to environmental values, including acquiring renewable energy, installing energy efficiency measures and supporting many, many local nonprofits via donated product. Lastly, they talk about beer! For more information, check out the brewery’s Website and Twitter feed. And visit their brewhouse pub at 1722 Fremont Dr in Salt Lake City.