Conduct an education campaign that teaches citizens about link between air quality and health.

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Purpose
Conduct an education campaign that teaches
citizens about link between air quality and
health.
Teach people how to reduce their loved ones
exposure to air pollution and to reduce air
pollution through individual actions.
Advocate policy change for cleaner air.
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Why Is Air Quality Important?

• As important as water quality
• Knows no boundaries
• Affects everyones health
• children
• elderly
• those with existing lung and health ailments

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What Do We Mean by Air Quality?

• EPA establishes limits for pollutants that are
  harmful to
• public health and the environment.
• Limits or standards are to protect public
  health, including
• sensitive populations.
• Pollutants regulated by EPA Ozone, Particulate
  Matter,
• Carbon Monoxide, Sulfur Dioxide,
• Nitrogen Oxides, Lead.
• Pollutants of concern in GA
• Ozone and Particulate Matter

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Ground-level OzoneFormation
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
Nitrogen Oxides (NOx)
Ozone (O3) Smog

Combustion Processes
Fuels, Paints, Solvents, Vegetation
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Ozone

• Only a problem in summer because sunlight and
  heat are required

• Only a problem outside

• Causes asthma attacks

• Reduces lung function even in healthy people

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Particulate Matter (PM)
Photo courtesy of SACE
Photo courtesy of SACE
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What is PM?
A complex mixture of extremely small particles
and liquid droplets
Hair cross section (70 mm)
Human Hair (70 µm diameter)
M. Lipsett, California Office of Environmental
Health Hazard Assessment
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Particulate Matter (PM)

• Problem year round outside and indoors

• Increases mortality-
• causes lung cancer
• triggers asthma attacks
• heart disease

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Living in a region that fails to meet PM 2.5
standard increases a persons risk of dying of
lung cancer by about the same amount as being
frequently exposed to second-hand smoke.
EPA estimates that achieving the federal
standard for PM would save 23,000 lives a year.
Studies by Brigham Young University, New York
University, and the Environmental Protection
Agency
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• PM from power plants in GA
•   shortens the lives of 946
• Georgians each year
•   causes 156,763
• lost work days
• results in 837
• hospitalizations
• causes 26,442 asthma attacks,
• 1,369 severe enough to
• require emergency room visits

Studies by American Cancer Society, Harvard
School of Public Health
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What Does This Mean for Georgia?

• 11 of Georgias children have asthma

• 15 of Fulton countys children
• have asthma

• Atlanta is the 4th most challenging city to
• live in with asthma

• Atlanta is the 4th worst city in the country for
  soot pollution

• 1 reason for admission to Childrens
  Healthcare of Atlanta

• Asthma is the 1 reason for school absences
  nationally

• In 2003, 88,000 children missed 540,000 school
  days

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How Can I Protect My Family?

• Limit outdoor activities on bad air days

• Obtain a copy of Childrens Healthcare of
  Atlantas
• smog activity matrix available at
• www.choa.org/Menus/Documents/wellness/ozone.p
  df

• Sign up for Clean Air Campaigns Smog Alert
  Day
• email at www.cleanaircampaign.com or call
• 404-362-4909 to get the current air quality
  report
• (Atlanta, Savannah, Athens, Columbus,
  Macon, Augusta)

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What Can I Do To Reduce Air Pollution?

• Drive less- carpool, take transit, walk, bike

• Combine errands into one trip
• Park and walk into fast food
• restaurants and banks instead
• of using drive-thrus
• During the summer, refuel
• between 7 PM and 7AM

• Conserve energy by turning off lights,
• computers, and appliances when
• not in use

• Buy Energy Star appliances and
• compact fluorescent light bulbs

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What Can I Do At My Childs School?

• Establish anti-idling rules for school buses and
  carpool lanes

• Host a performance by the Better Air BAIR

• Empower students through environmental education

• Encourage school system to become part of the
  Adopt-A-School
• Bus program and the Clean Air Campaigns
  Better
• Air Schools Program

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How Does Mothers Others for Clean Air Fit In?

• Education
• Making the link between air quality and health
  effects
• Learning how to protect your family
• Learning things you can do to improve air
  quality
• www.georgiaconservancy.org/mothers

• Action
• Practicing new actions to improve air quality

• Advocacy
• Mobilize you to affect policy by asking
  decision makers (principals to legislators) to
  implement better policies that will clean our air.

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How Do I Fit Into Mothers Others for Clean
Air?
Network
Partnership Council
Partners
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Mothers Others for Clean Air Pledge
I pledge my support for cleaner air and
healthier communities
through education,
voluntary action,
and policy change.
Felicia Davis fdavis_at_gaconservancy.org or
404-876-2900 x 108 Sanders Moore
smoore_at_gaconservancy.org or 404-876-2900 x 109