Get Smart - Act Now - Breathe Later

What do you picture when you think of air?

What do you picture when you think of air?

But, here’s what our air looks like.

What is in our air?

• Nitrogen and oxygen• Carbon dioxide• Sulfur dioxide• Particles (soot, plant material)• Nitrogen oxides• Carbon monoxide• Ozone• Mercury• Lead• Arsenic

How do these elements affect us?

• Oxygen is good! • Some carbon dioxide for plants is good, but tons

of carbon dioxide is really bad – this is what is causing global warming!

• Ozone causes smog which contributes to asthma.– 1 in 15 kids has asthma– 1 in 6 African-American kids has it– Asthma causes shortness of breath – sometimes, death

• Particulate matter causes aggravated asthma, allergies, chronic bronchitis and lung irritation.

These are Bad too…

• Mercury can cause neurological disorders in children.

• Lead can also cause brain damage and other problems, especially for children

Where does the pollution come from?

Where does the pollution come from?

• Tailpipes. Exhaust from cars and trucks is one of the two main sources of ozone.

• Power plants. This is the other main source of ozone – and of mercury, and particulate matter and a number of other pollutants. Especially carbon dioxide.

• Industrial smokestacks. Smokestacks emit many of the same pollutants as power plants, but on a smaller scale.

Where does the pollution go?

How can we stop pollution?

• By changing what we do!– Educate yourself and your folks about air quality in your

neighborhood– Walk, bike, skate or take the bus as much as you can– Buy local! If products are taking Shorter trips to get to you, that

means less pollution in our air– Use biodegradable hair/beauty, cleaning and lawn care products.– Reduce your energy use-less energy means our power plants

don’t work as hard.

– But come on…This won’t make all the difference...

The Government must play a Role!

The Environmental Protection agency– The EPA is under attack – because it’s cheaper for

polluters to keep polluting.– You can Let people know that the EPA needs our

help.– Share information about the impacts of dirty air.– Contact members of Congress to tell them to

support the EPA’s ability to keep our air safe.

What can we do as a community?• Hold a contest to reduce emissions at your church, school or

office• Work with local business owners to make changes and

improve their energy use• Hold a buycott• Advocate for green buildings (better energy use/less

pollution)• Hold an action to raise awareness (greentheblock.net)• Organize a ride share• Address idling busses at your local school• Advocate for better public transportation

We can All Help improve Air quality

New Sound Videohttp://bit.ly/NewSound

What Will we do?!

• What will you do individually?

• What will we work together to do?

• Lets get to work!