The Insite - Spaceship Earth

All I Need is the Air that I Breathe

Unlike any other known planet, Earth's air has just the right combination of oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen (and a bunch of other gases) so that we can take a deep breath and... live! Unfortunately, our air isn't the cleanest. In many of the world's cities, cars, trucks, and buses (as well as certain factories) cause awful air pollution. But we've all got places to go and people to see, right? So how else are we going to get there if we don't drive?

It's only one car!

Maybe your car's emissions don't do much damage to the air but add them to mine, along with the 150 million other cars in America (plus the millions driven in other countries) and we've got a global problem. Who needs a nuclear war to destroy the planet? We've got more than enough gas-burning vehicles sending millions of tons of toxins into the atmosphere to do the job just fine!

Exhaust from cars creates:

smog - pollutants, including those from cars, trapped in the atmosphere near the ground, cause people serious breathing problems.
acid rain - rain with large amounts of pollutants, including those from cars, causes major destruction to plant life.
global warming - too much carbon dioxide traps the heat that Earth normally releases into space and causes higher planetary temperatures. Why is this happening? Increased burning of fossil fuels... from cars!

Aside from creating exhaust fumes that choke the air, too many cars...
jam up roads, which stresses people out and causes accidents.

Also, fossil fuels are a limited natural resource. We'll eventually use them up so we might as well start kicking the gas habit now.

What can you do?

Plenty! If you must drive a gas dependent car (or be a passenger in one) you can:

Practice eco-driving. Don't drive faster than 55 mph - it burns less fuel and causes fewer accidents.
Practice eco-maintenance. Keep your car in good working order, it will burn gas, use oil more efficiently, and be less polluting.
Recycle used automotive products. Changing your oil? Don't dump it! Bring it to a gas station. They'll recycle it.
OR
Car-pool. Share the ride. With fewer cars on the road you'll get there faster and help keep the air cleaner. You'll also spend less on gas, tolls, parking, and car maintenance!
Use public transportation. Subways, trains, buses, ferries are relatively cheap and on schedule. Plus you don't have to stress about parking. And each person on the bus represents one less car on the road!
Use non-vehicular forms of transportation! (Huh?) You know, like bikes, roller blades, skateboards, cross country skis, horses! Walking and running works, too.
Get an electric car. These are battery-powered electric vehicles that can run without polluting the air at all. Or do they? How is the electricity generated where you live? If it comes from fuel-burning power plants, then all you may be doing is moving the pollution generation from your vehicle to the plant! In any case, electric cars are still pretty expensive. Also it's difficult to produce one with the speed, acceleration, and range drivers are used to.
Get a hypercar. The Rocky Mountain Institute pioneered the concept of these superefficient, ultralight, hybrid-electric cars that use both an electric engine and a small gasoline engine, allowing the car to get 80 or more miles per gallon!
Get a hydrogen cell car. Still in the experimental stages, a mass produced clean machine with all the speed and driving range of a traditional car may be powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. Electrons from hydrogen will be used to form electricity. Right now the costs are still too high to be practical, but some day...

QUIZ: What's the ultimate mileage machine?

What can you do... long term?

People love cars, but in the long run, they probably love breathing clean air more. Attitudes definitely have to change around the world and that starts with you! Use alternative forms of transportation whenever possible. (That means stop being one person in one car!) And encourage your family and friends to do the same thing. At least one day a week, do not drive solo to school, work, or anyplace! Start a movement in your community. (All you need is an idea who's time has come and a willingness to talk it up and get others involved.) Do whatever you can to get some of the world's millions of cars off the road. That way we'll all breathe a lot easier.

Pollution Solutions!

If you are doing your part to kick the car habit, you are a "ride" model and people are noticing! That's why we want to hear from you! So tell us how you got somewhere using an alternative form of transportation.

Post your "Air Pollution Solutions" right here!

These groups are actively involved in saving the oceans.

Contact any one of these organizations and get involved too!

TAKE A DEEP BREATH

(don't forget to exhale!)

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