By Heather May | Special to The Salt Lake Tribune
Peter Bartok wanted a house made with glass and steel, an open floor plan, close to downtown Salt Lake City — and so well insulated and sealed that practically all its energy could come from solar panels on the roof.
Finding such a home — called net zero energy or zero emission — would have been nearly impossible in Utah just a couple of years ago.
But as housing developers face their growing role in the Wasatch Front’s bad air, some have started importing construction methods used in Europe and other states that are aggressively regulating energy consumption by homes and buildings.
By 2024, pollution generated by Utah homes and small businesses will overtake all other pollution sources in the winter, including vehicles and heavy industry like gravel pits, refineries and the copper mine, according to the Utah Department of Air Quality.
