Air Quality Degradation in U.S. National Parks: A Sustainable Development Goals Perspective

A report on the deteriorating air quality within Bryce Canyon National Park and other protected areas in Utah reveals significant challenges to achieving multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Over two decades of atmospheric monitoring indicate a failure to meet federal benchmarks, posing risks to environmental health, human well-being, and economic stability.

Systematic Monitoring Reveals Troubling Environmental Trends

Routine air quality assessments at Bryce Canyon National Park have identified persistent and concerning environmental trends that conflict with sustainability objectives.

• Data Collection: Weekly monitoring procedures include the collection of precipitation for acid analysis and the replacement of filters designed to capture airborne particulates from sources such as wildfires and carbon emissions.
• Key Findings: Long-term data from the National Park Service indicates that air quality in Bryce Canyon, Zion, and Canyonlands National Parks consistently fails to meet federal standards for several pollutants.
  1. Increasing levels of particulates have led to a steady decrease in visibility.
  2. Federal benchmarks for ozone, haze, and nitrogen are not being met.

Impacts on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The observed air pollution directly undermines progress toward several key SDGs, impacting ecosystems, public health, and the preservation of natural heritage.

SDG 15: Life on Land

The integrity of terrestrial ecosystems within the national parks is under direct threat from airborne pollutants, jeopardizing biodiversity and natural processes.

• Ecosystem Damage: Acidic precipitation, containing high levels of sulfur and nitrogen, has lasting effects on the park’s landscape. Lingering sulfur from past decades continues to hinder tree growth in a water-scarce environment.
• Threat to Native Flora: Elevated nitrogen levels from rainfall can create an imbalance in high-altitude environments, giving invasive plant species a competitive advantage over native flora adapted to low-nitrogen conditions.
• Erosion of Natural Heritage: Acids in precipitation accelerate the dissolution and erosion of the parks’ unique alkaline rock formations, threatening the very geological features the parks were established to protect.

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being & SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

Air pollution extends beyond ecological harm, creating significant public health risks and threatening the economic viability of communities reliant on tourism.

• Public Health Crisis: Haze is an indicator of pollutants associated with severe health outcomes. The World Health Organization links air pollution to 7 million premature deaths annually, and recent studies suggest these health effects can be passed across generations.
• Economic and Cultural Impact: Degraded air quality diminishes the visitor experience, which is a critical component of local economies. The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) estimates that pollution reduces visibility by approximately 46 miles in Zion National Park and 43 miles in Arches National Park, impacting the natural heritage that attracts global tourism.

SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy & SDG 13: Climate Action

The primary sources of pollution highlight a critical need for a transition to cleaner energy and more robust climate action policies.

• Fossil Fuel Dependency: An NPCA analysis identifies coal-fired power plants, including the Hunter and Huntington plants in central Utah, as major contributors to the regional haze affecting the parks.
• Urban Emissions: Pollution from major urban centers, including Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, and Denver, travels hundreds of miles and contributes significantly to the problem.
• Policy Setbacks: Proposed federal rollbacks of emission regulations and the elimination of satellite-based pollution monitoring systems represent a significant threat to climate action and the protection of natural environments.

Challenges and Recommendations for Sustainable Action

Addressing the transboundary nature of air pollution requires a multi-level governance approach and sustained investment in monitoring and mitigation.

Mitigation and Policy

1. Local Initiatives: Bryce Canyon National Park encourages the use of shuttle services to reduce vehicle emissions and provides real-time air quality data to the public.
2. Call for State-Level Regulation: Environmental advocates urge state legislators to establish backstop regulations to limit pollution in the event of weakened federal oversight.
3. Transition from Fossil Fuels: Experts emphasize that a fundamental shift away from burning fossil fuels is essential to protect natural resources and public health, aligning with SDG 7 and SDG 13.

Monitoring and Funding Concerns

The capacity to monitor and manage air quality is at risk due to financial constraints. Budget cuts to the National Atmospheric Deposition Program have already forced Bryce Canyon to cease one of its three weekly air sensor processes, jeopardizing the collection of data crucial for informed environmental stewardship.

Analysis of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being – The article discusses the human health impacts of air pollution, including premature deaths and generational health effects.
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy – The article identifies coal-fired power plants and the burning of fossil fuels as major sources of pollution, implicitly connecting the issue to energy production methods.
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities – The article points to urban areas like Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, and Denver as significant sources of pollution affecting national parks.
• SDG 13: Climate Action – The discussion on carbon emissions, fossil fuel regulations, and the need to cut pollution directly relates to climate action policies and their impact.
• SDG 15: Life on Land – The core theme of the article is the degradation of ecosystems within national parks due to air pollution, affecting visibility, plant life, and geological formations.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  • Target 3.9: By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination. The article directly links air pollution to “7 million premature deaths annually” and mentions a study suggesting its health effects “can continue through generations.”

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

  • Target 7.2: By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix. The article’s focus on pollution from “coal-fired power plants” and the call to “stop burning fossil fuels” points to the need to transition away from these energy sources towards cleaner alternatives.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  • Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality. The article identifies “urban pollution hotspots” like Las Vegas and Denver as contributing pollution equivalent to hundreds of coal plants, directly impacting surrounding natural areas.

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  • Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning. The article discusses the potential rollback of “federal regulations aimed at lowering fossil fuel emissions” and the call for state legislators to “set a backstop,” which are matters of national and local policy integration.

• SDG 15: Life on Land

  • Target 15.5: Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats. The article details the degradation of national park ecosystems, including how pollution hinders tree growth, gives invasive plants an advantage, and accelerates the erosion of rock formations.
  • Target 15.9: By 2020, integrate ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes, poverty reduction strategies and accounts. The park’s two-decade-long air quality monitoring program is a direct example of integrating ecosystem values into park management and planning.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• For SDG 3 and SDG 11

  • Indicator: Ambient (outdoor) air pollution. The article explicitly mentions the monitoring of “particulates,” “ozone, haze and nitrogen.” The scientist in the article swaps out “filters that capture particles from wildfires and carbon emissions,” which is a direct measurement of this indicator.

• For SDG 15

  • Indicator: Air visibility in miles. The article quantifies the impact of pollution on visibility, stating that visitors to Zion “miss out on around 46 miles of visibility” and at Arches, “it’s 43 miles.” This provides a clear, measurable indicator of air quality’s effect on the natural landscape.
  • Indicator: Levels of acids in precipitation. The scientist’s weekly task of collecting “a bucket that measures acids in the rain” is a direct measurement used to assess the impact of sulfur and nitrogen on the park’s water, soil, and rock formations.
  • Indicator: Percentage of protected areas with unsatisfactory air quality. The NPCA report cited in the article suggests “98% of U.S. national parks suffer from hazy skies,” providing a high-level indicator of the widespread nature of the problem.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: kuer.org