| OCR Text |
Show - Opinion and commentary c- SNCE Attitudes, habits need to change Like their neighbors living in other parts of Salt Lake County, residents of West Valley City, Magna and Kearns have a serious wastewater treatment problem. Of the nine sewage treatment plants in the county, five are overloaded and two are operating at capacity. The Granger-Huntplant, designed for a plant-flomillion 7.5 of gallons of wastewater capacity has an average daily flow of 10 per day, currently er w million gallons per day. Designed to treat 1.5 million gallons per day, the Magna plant is operating at capacity. The overloaded treatment plants have two options: treat the whole amount inefficiently, or, dump raw sewage into the Jordan River. If the latter were to happen, the Jordan River would become an open sewer, time and money spent on the parkway project will have been wasted, any flooding would create tremendous public health problems, the Great Salt Lake (a great natural wonder and tourist attraction) will become even more contaminated, and Farmington Bay will become contaminated and will no longer be suitable for recreation. Additional treatment facilities are definitely needed but federal funding for two new plants has been cut in half. Even when additional funds are non-ride- rs. roOiag To many motorists, UTAs smelly, snorting beasts are annoying at best. But to 40,000 others in the valley, UTA is a lifeline connecting to jobs, grocery stores, schools, doctors' offriends fices, retirement centers, homes, welfare offices, etc. For those who couldt arrange other rides, the shutdown meant a three-da- y "house arrest. Mori people probably suffered no on than having to scrounge around the refrigerator for dinner, if the store is out of walking distance. But two people I talked to at bus stops this morning were job hunting, because they lost their jobs last week. Said one, a West Valley City resident who moved to the valley three weeks ago, "My boap just said, If you dont have a rcSable way to get to wort, we cant count on you to thorn up and he fired mis." That wasnt the only loss. Dave Orr, r RMLY TO FLUSH THEIR TOLER OUT Am. DICE SOEMEirTOil UFE ZJ3 CJBCirT CD. IfmKBKrifS A7CUTE, ID( IW 15 MONtWy the fat cats in the office wouldn't let them. They all drive to work. la Cads." A lot of others were angry at UTA management even those who had no idea what the contract dispute was about. "AO I know is, they abandoned us, said George Seeon of Kearns. No business that abandons customers is going to survive. UTAs survival is a moot question right now, but not because of the drivers demands. The system faces bankruptcy in 1983 or 1984 because federal money was cut completely, not because bus driven make exhorbitant wages. More funding will be necessary to maintain UTA anyway. When UTA goo to the state legislature next month to ask to be put on the November general election ballot, theyll have to have a survival plan calculated to impress legislators and reassure patrons and voters. In the meantime, UTA may lose some more customen who no longer think of the bus as a reliable fora of transportation. 1 dont know about the other 39,999, but Im buying a used car. Roving reporter WEST VALLEY OTY-Ah- nort all Salt Lake County residents surveyed by the Wet Mountain Tima Monday at Valley Fair Mall said they woe already conserving water but they were all willing to try harder, too. Mori seemed vaguely aware that the County has a wastewater-treatmeproblem, but didnt know the cause or magnitude of it. Of Salt Lake Countys nine (sewage) plants, six are operating over capacity. Sewer district officials say the problem must be solved now or the Jordan River and Ormt Salt Lake will suffer the pollution consequences of pariialy raw nt water-treatme- nt flow. County residents said they're ving already taking ahoetcr Burners, letting laundnr pde up so that loads are bigger, watering their lawns at One Magna rerident, deploring the taste of grid, "We dont drink any water Uras conserving! FMa and Jan of West Valley Gty havent gone quite to that lhkha in conservation, but theyre bout k. They me the same Wcxs for baths (He's dirtier than I ms. so I go fint," Jan mid.) and have purchased a toiet that mes less water. Other rattans havent inverted in but say they watting ftm-o- f West VaSey by hand and rinkfid of water, rather stream from the rin-the- m in than in a a ftn' Scott Fococfc of TayknvBe says he conserves "once in a while, when I drink about k. 1 remember a couple of yean ago, when we didn't have any." Some families have obviously rater conservation before. Crime of South Jordan, asked about shorter showers, mid, "I do." Then, pointing to his two daughters, "They don Moat importantly, everyone 1 interviewed mid they would be wi&iag to pay for a water conservation kk district officials an preparing for tale in local stores. It would a showerhead water-floredaction device, a toilet --tank "balloon to reduce water flow there and pomMy other coueervatioa aids, and would cost 50 cents. If the kits didnt reduce water flow sufficiently to relieve the treatment plants, district officials are V w Sorting K foot Yotbj, Magna, and Kaamt WEST MOUNTAIN TIMES turns mi Oubhttm JOHN RANDOLPH SENG Bailor A$$s fen Uubhther W. GLEN FAIR CLOUGH, JR. DEBRA CURRY Reporter Mvortiotng Manager RANDY PETERSEN Letters Dear Editor, i As a resident of Magna and aa employee of Gold Cross Ambulance, 1 would like to respond to Chick Paris address to the Magna Community Council as reported ia the Dec. 10 editioa of the Wat Mountain Tuna. te Mr. Paris made two grossly statements. First. Mr. Paris states that if the Magna ambulance is removed, the nearest transport system would be 10 to IS minutes away. This is not true. Gold Cross oow repoods into Magna from West Valley Gty when the Magna ambulance it out with response timet of around five minutes. Cold Cross will continue to provide prompt response timet if the Magna ambulance is permanently removed. By prompt. I mean considerably lest than 10 to 15 Second. Mr. Paris contends that replacing the Magna ambulanrr with paramedic uait is a threat to the residents of Magna. Again, this is not true. Mr. Paris uses the reasoning that an ambulance it better thaa n paramedic unit ia Magna because paramedics only respond to heart attacks, uncow- mac-cura- REGINA COATS 4140 West 541$ Published weekly on Thursdays, with offices A1 South ia Kearns, Utah Ml IS. Telephone (801 1 rights reserved. 966-444- Application to mail at second class pottage rates is pending at Salt Lake Cay, Utah and additional offices. POSTMASTER end change of address so 4140 West 5413 South. Reams. Utah Mill. Yearly subscriptions are U, SIO outside Utah. AJvertimg deadline: 5 p ar Monday for the fo&owinf Thursday edition. For rases cal (SOI) 964444. Send correspondence to 4140 West 5415 South, Reams, Utah Mill. Newt item front dufaa, churches, and ether organizations are welcome. The deadline is 3 pm. Monday for the faBowmg Thursday edition. CaB (801) 906 MSS for freelance pay rates. Not tetpontibte far unsolicited pictures and twwt articles. Dy Anne Keir County residents willing to conserve TOJCTB. E YOUK ly tfs.v.tte TO TREATMENT FACILITIES ARE five-perce- nesday and finals all next week. Last I beard, buses were supposed to be a reliable form of transportation sometimes late, often inconvenient, true, but they always got you there eventually. A public service on which so many depend should not be shut down, particularly without due cause. A few acts of vandalism over a much more intense contract dispute several years ago was construed by UTA officials to mean that it wouldnt be safe to operate the buses until this years contract quarrel was settled. Thats a pretty hefty extrapolation. The bus drivers I talked to said that the vandalism of several years ago was committed by a very few, and for reasons which werent involved in this years standoff. The drivers willingness to work won them a lot of public support, especially from their patrons. Magna resident Olive Walker mid, "They showed up to work Monday. They weren't going to let us down. They wanted to work. But YtP U$ 5EWM3E. City-Count- a University of Utah student who lives in Dixie Valley, said he couldnt get to the library Ust three nights week nights that he badly needed to study, since he had a paper due Wed- OE-Tiu- OUR fKESENT INAPEQUATE, WERE ASK1NS EACH raised locally, adequate new facilities will take time to construct. Though not a permanent solution, voluntary conservation measures will help reduce the immediate problem of overloaded treatment plants. y Board of Health has The Salt Lake instituted an educational campaign to reduce the wastewater treatment load by 16 percent. To achieve this goal, public attitudes and habits need to be changed. The average American uses 60 gallons of water in the house each day. Toilet flushing accounts for approximately 40 percent of the indoor water used in the most homes; bathing, 30 percent; laundry and dishes, 20 percent; lavatory and sink, and drinking and cooking, five percent. A successful wastewater reduction campaign can mean: savings to the community by delaying exfacilities at pansion of wastewater or water-suppa cost of hundreds of millions of dollars; substantial savings to consumers in energy costs as well as water-suppl- y and wastewater charges; averting the nuisance or crisis stemming from overloaded treatment plants; enhance fish and wildlife, recreation and aesthetic benefits of the Jordan River, Farmington Bay and Great Salt Lake; and increase the number of services that can be supplied from existing facilities. UTA earns animosity Forty thousand people times four days is 160,000 disgruntled bus And I was one of them, because 1 depend on bus service to get me to and from the Wat Mountain Tuna office. This week the UTA silver steeds are 17, 1981, PAGE TWO THE WEST MOUNTAIN TIMES, DECEMBER drastic measures, including mandatory restrictions on water use. County residents were almost evenly divided on that idea into those with special needs and those without. Special needs included die big lawn Different-size- d owned by HoOoway. homes have different yards, so they need said different amounts of water, Yards are pretty, but they arent a neoenity. to Moat county residents werent wiping give up their hums quite ao readily, but some mid they wouldnt mind a reinstatement of the oddcven-da- y watering plan. County raridcots were sharply divided over another solution tentatively Holloway. proposed by sewer dutrict offirialr a Another special need was voiced by tmtirting moratorium to stop al new construction until the Opemhaw of Magna, who has building problems that necessitate her wastewater problems are solved. immersion in hot water often. RestricCrane, wlm is planning to build again tions "would be terrible for people with soon, would be vwy unhappy with a wmitifi problems, she id moratorium, he said. MaMberg. the Eager Rmmmmn, of Wert Jordan, among thoae I surpointed out a problem with mandatory veyed, mid, "If things got reaSy bad, water-us- e restrictions. "It wont wort, it'd be the right thing to do, but you said because they cant dont want to hold bock progress. Id restrict the water you uae inride your hate to see industry shat out. house you need that. And they cant Othen were in favor of n bafTteg ted (by reading the water meter) which is moratorium. "1 ddnk theyre bnBdhg which. too fast anyway, said HoRowuy. Joa er . Others were ia favor of irater Biarvllra, of TaytonvOe, said he'd partirulariy thoae who auppott a temporary moratorium. And Poouck-SGpea- d. already taking conservation "They should "Id go along with restric- take care of one problem before creating tions, mid Magna resident Harvey he mid. supcr-couserv- er rertric-howev- West Valley Gty Commission CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 report. la Iris report. Gfimmey the citys a $411,842 defied fund. But, he arid, it's venr easy to be more than that much over aa budget. There ate a lot of ifariainn that mart be made. "In the citys fint yew with ia the mnouati and no beckgomd on expenditures would be, yon have had a pretty admirable resuk. "It's not too bad for a fint ."he to comply srith that pots arts The lax reduction w3 go into effect Jan. I. Because the dty budget has already been set, the ml levy wd be nriaad to make up the difference as the franchise tax goes down, mid Jerald Wagstaff, i "Were locked into k. It won't do any said good for people to compken, Wagstaff. Comaussioaen also voted ia favor of a remiudon of for Dayia Corporation for d development of an Atwoods Home Improvement Center at Gksameycr said the defick was prinapafiy by revenue rttortfafls. He also 4700 South 4CC0 Wert. The Ahrootfs Center would be budt in expenditures for dvi service durktg a with a South's Food Center. In other cky gasoKne leak, a contract adjustment for to rent the two eart bays of a Sak crease ia vacation pay far city emCounty Fee Station on 4100 I South. Other West Valley busmess included a They abo decided to store road sak icsaiutioa railing far die execution of a needed during the winter on the west contract to allow the city use of a fire ride of the dty at Arnold Development station oa 4100 South. Company. iSSO Wen 4100 South. In their Dec. 10 meeting, die city Gty meetings scheduled Dec. 22, 24. commission voted to reduce the citys 29 and 31 have beea canceled became of utility tax from six and a half percent to thehofidays. ployees. Your opinions matter or Paramedics are dispatched on anything that is thought to be a critical life or death skaatioa. Them are die tioa and these are the skaatious that directly benefit from the advanced measures that only paramedics caa provide. Paramedics carry equipment aad are trained to provide medical care far beyond that provided by the emergency medical technicians oa the ambulance The sooner a paramedic unit gets to a critical patient, the better off that patient wiH be. The doseat paramedic uak to Magna now responds from 4200 West 4100 South ia Wert Valley Cky. Therefore, k is only logical that (he residents of Magaa win directly benefit from a life-supp- Situations not daarified as life or death may not need the services provide, and these paramedics skaatioas could be easily handled by Gold Crom alone. Sincerely, Galea Webb, Magna Dear Reader: This space has been reserved for you, since the letters section of a newspaper belongs to its readers. Tdl us whats on your mind, and well help you tdl the rest of the community. There are no restrictions on subject matter or length, only on taste. Type or print neatly on standard-size- d paper ana send your letter to The Editor, West Mountain Times, 4140 West 5415 South, Kearns, Utah Ml 18. Induded must be a tdephone number for verification and a signature. Names will be withheld upon request if a reason is given. We hope that not only will the Times let you know whats going on, but that you will let cadi other know whats on your minds. Take advantage of the space weve provided for your thoughts. All it costs is the price of a stamp. The Editor |
