Happy Holidays from Clean Air NY

The holiday season is here, bringing parties and shopping trips in abundance. It’s no secret that the holiday season also brings traffic. This year, the New York City Department of Transportation declared seven Gridlock Alert Days in December alone. The 2009 holiday traffic plan can be found here.

But remember – more traffic = more air pollution. Roughly one-third of greenhouse gas emissions are caused by cars and trucks, but the extra travel required in December does not mean air quality has to suffer. We’ve put together some special holiday tips to help you keep the air clean, even during a high-traffic season:

-Take Mass Transit. Traffic congestion in New York is an issue during winter. Beat the holiday rush and take mass transit. Taking mass transit reduces carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming by more than seven million tons a year.
-Share a Ride. When traveling to holiday parties, share a ride by carpooling or vanpooling to your destination. To find a carpool partner or vanpool, visit 511ny.org or nycommute.org .
-Combine Trips. Vehicles are more fuel efficient when they are warmed up. You could end up saving twice as much on gas consumption by taking one multipurpose trip instead of many short trips. Combine your errands into one trip and you’ll make your holidays less hectic, while helping keep New York’s air clean.
-Cut Back On Idling. Whenever possible, don’t let your car idle. For example, go into a fast-food restaurant to pick up food rather than waiting in the drive-through lane.
-Work from Home. Avoid weather hazards and spend more time with your family while working from home. If just one in 10 commuters in the New York metro area worked from home just once a week, emissions of ozone precursors would be reduced by about 5,100 tons each week – that’s the weight equivalent of 720 elephants.

You can click here to download our print-ready holiday tip poster to display around your workplace, school, community center, etc. to help educate others on the simple steps we can all take to improve New York's air quality.

Our Facebook page also has some great pre-made badges and Facebook profile pictures to help you spread the Clean Air NY holiday cheer! Check them out here.

Happy Holidays from Clean Air NY!

Kids Should Learn About Clean Air, Too – They’re the Drivers of the Future!

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/07/livable-streets-education-anti-idling-rap-new-york-city-video.php?dcitc=th_rss

A few days ago, I came across this video. A Park Slope, Brooklyn, middle school documented what the students learned from a unit their teacher did on transportation and air pollution. I shared it with my Clean Air NY colleagues and we can’t get enough of it!

Here are the top five reasons this is a great video, and a great project:

5) The kids were able to express what they learned creatively. Some sang, some danced and others drew. By combining what they learned with their interests, they made the project more interesting and more memorable.

4) They worked to spread the word. Beyond producing this video and simply keeping it, they were able to get it onto a popular blog, Treehugger. This teaches them at an early age that when you have an important message, you need to spread the word!

3) The climate change journal is a great idea. Requiring the kids to monitor the air quality each day allows them to really notice when the air quality is poor. They’ll most likely to continue noting the quality of the air each day, simply by habit. You can stay current on air quality with our widget, located on our Web site.

2) This project was very hands-on. Instead of being told that idling releases carbon pollution into the air, they measured the pollution. Instead of being told that typical vehicle occupancy is one person, they did a survey and found out for themselves.

1) Kids don’t learn enough about the negative effect vehicles can have on air quality. Because they can’t drive yet, we assume that we don’t need to teach them. I think if people are taught clean-air actions early, they are more likely to incorporate them into their daily lives. It’s a lot easier to start off with good habits than it is to change bad ones. These students are likely to remember what they have learned from this video project once they begin driving. They know now to carpool when possible, to stop idling, etc. Hopefully, these actions will be incorporated automatically into their driving habits.

All you teachers and parents – take a lesson from this lesson. Make sure your kids know about transportation and air pollution. They are, after all, the drivers of the future.

Amanda Moss, Clean Air NY Outreach Coordinator.

Your Clean Air Actions Can Help Increase the IQ of New York Children…

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/20/health/main5173842.shtml

Today, an interesting – and disheartening – study was released by the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health. The study followed 249 pregnant New York City women and tracked the quality of the air they would breathe each day through a backpack air quality monitor. Five years later, their children were given an IQ test. The study showed that the children of mothers who were exposed to a higher level of air pollution scored significantly lower than those whose mothers were exposed to less air pollution.

Don’t worry – according to Dr. Michael Msall, a pediatrician with the University of Chicago, the study doesn’t mean that children exposed to air pollution "aren't going to learn to read and write and spell."

However, while the study may not mean that poor air quality = low IQ, it does show that it is most likely an influence of some kind.

The study points to vehicle exhaust as the primary source of the air pollution that the pregnant mothers were exposed to. This just reiterates the importance of our simple, everyday clean air actions.

It seems that we can add pregnant mothers to the list of groups that are most at-risk to the negative effects of poor air quality (already on the list: children, teens, senior citizens, people with pre-existing cardiovascular or respiratory issues, diabetes, or other chronic health problems). These groups should be most careful on Air Quality Action Days, and try and stay indoors whenever possible.

What else can we do? Next time you go to a fast food restaurant, go inside instead of idling your car in the drive-thru window. Take the train instead of driving. Carpool with a friend whenever you can – you’ll get to use the HOV lane and you’ll cut back on vehicle exhaust emissions.

These actions – as we now know – can help all New Yorkers – even the ones who haven’t been born yet!

Amanda Moss, Clean Air NY Marketing and Outreach Coordinator.