Donald Jarvis has been retired from teaching Russian at Brigham Young University for years, but that has not slowed him down. He has dedicated himself to researching pollution and how each of us can contribute to creating a cleaner and healthier environment.
Donald Jarvis has worked as the Provo Mayor’s Sustainability Advisor since 2011. As pollution has gotten worse over the years, he said he and his wife, Janelle Jarvis, have become motivated to reduce the pollution their 23 grandchildren and soon to be 5 great-grandchildren will face.
“I've been doing this for 13 years with no pay or anything except the emotional pay of doing the right thing for our kids,” Jarvis said.
Though he is not paid, Provo city still recognizes the efforts Donald Jarvis has made for over a decade. Earlier this year he received the Forward-Looking Award at the State of the City Address for his sustainability efforts, and said he appreciates the affirmation.
Jarvis has worked for the last several years to get rebates for citizens who switch to electric powered systems.
Provo residents can receive $1,000 from the city for switching to an electric heat pump system and $500 for switching to a heat pump water heater — not to mention federal tax credits, Donald Jarvis said.
“So in general, putting in our heat pump stuff ends up being not much more expensive than putting in new gas stuff because of these rebates,” Donald Jarvis said.
One of the city’s most popular rebates is a $300 rebate citizens receive for switching to an electric lawn mower. Thousands have switched to electric lawn tools, Donald Jarvis said.
“The thing about these differences — they're expensive and that's why you don't do it unless you need to do it,” Donald Jarvis said. “So you gotta get people thinking long term… just have them thinking, "Okay, when my water heater goes out, I don't want another gas.'”
Throughout his time working as Sustainability Coordinator for the Mayor, his main role has been educating the public about what they can be doing and buying to reduce pollution, Donald Jarvis said. His second role is encouraging and negotiating with Provo Power “to do the right thing.”
Provo’s electricity source is unique among the majority of Utah cities. Provo is one of six cities part of one of the smallest municipal power systems in Utah.
Provo Power is a public power provider with roughly 50% clean electricity, compared to Rocky Mountain Power that is under 20% clean, Jarvis said. Not only is Provo's electricity cleaner, but it is also cheaper.
“We're lucky that Provo power is (run by) a bunch of environmentalists,” Jarvis said. “They're environmentally sensitive in addition to being good businessmen.”
It is extra important for Utah to be environmentally sensitive since Utah has the third worst air quality in the U.S. following Arizona and California, according to housefresh.com.
Janelle Jarvis visits elementary schools and teaches students about why Utah’s air quality is so bad.
Utah’s foggy winter skies are the product of inversion. An inversion occurs when a layer of warm air traps colder air near the ground, preventing pollutants from dispersing, according to the Utah Department of Environmental Quality web page. This often occurs after a snow storm.
“If you go skiing or something and you look down over the valley, you can see this grayish brown layer down there,” Janelle Jarvis said. “Every person is producing this, and it's worse here because we have a bowl shaped valley and not a lot of wind.”
Gas run cars and other transportation are currently the main source of pollution in Utah — putting out about 60 to 70 percent of pollution — but as vehicles are getting cleaner, homes are becoming the most pressing issue, Donald Jarvis said.
To decrease the amount of fossil fuel pollution they personally produce, the Jarvises have switched to an electricity-run home. The first thing they bought was an electric clothing dryer when their gas run dryer was getting too old.
Though they admit the dryer took some getting used to due to its smaller capacity, they say it is very efficient and — most importantly — good for the environment. Jarvis is also particularly passionate about their “solar powered dryer," or clothes line.
The next thing the couple installed were heat pumps to replace their gas furnaces and air conditioning. Heat pumps are efficient at transferring heat from one place to another, depending on where it is needed. During winter, they move heat from outside to inside and vice versa in the summer.
“A lot of people think that a heat pump won't work well when it's cold,” Jarvis said. “It really worked great.”
The only gas powered utility left in their house was the water heater.
“Our plumber said, ‘Nope, not going to last much longer.’ So we took it out, ordered a heat pump water heater from Home Depot,” Jarvis said.
After putting in all of their electric appliances, the Jarvis's electric bill went up 72%, but their bill for heating and air conditioning was $16 less than average, making their overall monthly bills cheaper than before. This is not including the extra money they save from their solar panels.
“It's a greater efficiency,” Jarvis said. “Of course, the whole point of this is to stop burning fossil fuels and adding to pollution (and) climate change.”
Though most of Jarvis's sustainability suggestions are for homeowners, he also has suggestions for how college students and home renters can contribute to a cleaner environment.
“They could walk more, ride bikes more, run more … there's cleaner cars they can afford, they can turn their thermostats down a little bit,” Donald said. “68 degrees in the winter and in the summer. Don't try to make it ice cold.”
Renters can also sign up for the Shared Solar program, where certain amounts of solar power can be purchased from a community solar farm.
“You can brag that all your electricity is solar,” Donald said. “It might not be too attractive for students because it's going to cost them something, and it's really just so you can feel that you've done the right thing.”
Provo residents can learn more about sustainability and Provo’s efforts towards a cleaner environment at this link.