OGDEN, Utah – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell was at the Weber State University campus Thursday as part of a summit promoting sustainability in the region.
Jewell was speaking at the annual Intermountain Sustainability Summit, and her message included a call for cooperation between state and federal governments.
Jewell said issues like climate change and scarcity of resources like water and land necessitate that state and federal governments come together, which may include creating new regulations.
Jewell said people sometimes use “regulation” as a dirty word but then get upset when certain problems come forward that could have been prevented by regulations–like spills into rivers or E. coli outbreaks.
“It’s not an easy answer, but I think public servants are committed to serving the public good,” she said. “Regulation is one way that we do that. If we take a little heat and get a pummeled a little bit, so be it. It is an important tool.”
Jewell also stressed the importance of water conservation on all levels. Other topics discussed at the summit include, energy efficiency, renewable energy, air quality, pollution, recycling, waste reduction and others.
The summit continues Friday. For more information, visit the summit’s website.
