Going Green This Spooky Season

It’s that time of year again where Halloween fun is right around the corner, but the holiday has become a bit scarier for the environment. From decorating our homes and painting pumpkins to hosting frighteningly fabulous parties and passing out loads of candy to trick-or-treaters, these popular traditions that we know and love can wreak havoc on the environment, and ultimately our air quality.

Rather than buying mass-produced products that take a lot of resources to manufacture, you can invest in quality costumes and decorations – or even make them yourself at home to last for years to come. Here are some helpful tips to consider for those upcoming spooky festivities without creating a nightmare for the planet and your wallet!

  • Rent, Swap or Make Your Own Costume – Total spending for Halloween is expected to reach $9 billion this year in the United States alone. Browse thrift shops, flea markets or gather some inspiration from your own closet instead to save money. Avoid buying store-bought costumes that are often made up of nonrecyclable petro-chemical based plastic and synthetic fibers that release harmful toxins in their creation and breakdown. Going for a greener option this Halloween will ultimately help to improve the air quality.
  • Choose Eco-Friendly Decorations — Make a dent in the waste this Halloween by creating your own homemade decorations with recycled household items. Also, use solar-powered or LED lights that will conserve energy, as will refraining from using inflatable ghouls and goblins that require electricity to operate. Doing so will help save on electricity costs and cut back on emissions to help clean the air.
  • Green Up Your Halloween Pumpkins – Remember to compost your pumpkins this Halloween to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions that result from rotting in landfills. Save the pulp from inside the pumpkins for pies, muffins, soup and other tasty recipes, as well as the seeds that make for a great fall snack when roasted with a little oil and salt!
  • Host a Green Halloween Party – Your party this year can be as Spooktacular as ever without negatively effecting the environment. Send out electronic invites instead of paper to guests to help save time, postage and trees. When shopping for supplies, look for recyclable or compostable plates, cups and utensils rather than the kind that end up in the trash and put out recycling bins for any bottles and cans.

By making sustainability a part of your Halloween celebrations, you can do your part to help the St. Louis region breathe easier. To learn more about the link between living greener and our air quality, visit our website the tips section at www.cleanair-stlouis.com, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @gatewaycleanair.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, REPEAT!

When it comes to the three Rs, we always encourage people to Reduce and Reuse first, but for those who also find themselves with items to recycle, the process could be changing very soon. With China no longer taking U.S. recycled materials because it was receiving too many non-recyclable items, a policy change has some local cities worried about the future of their recycling programs.

 

Many fear that this could cause the cost of local curbside recycling programs to go up and lead to cancellations. Experts say the best way to prevent that from happening is for residents to be more vigilant about cross-contamination of mixed recyclables. All too often plastic bags, styrofoam and other miscellaneous items are making their way into recycling containers where they don’t belong.

 

To help combat this issue, the city of Kirkwood and St. Louis County are providing helpful tips to area residents, along with a full list of items eligible for curbside, single-stream recycling. The more material that gets properly recycled, the less that goes into landfills, ultimately reducing greenhouse gas emissions for cleaner air. For more information on changes coming to local recycling services and details on how one community is responding, visit http://www.kirkwoodmo.org/ and help spread the word!

RideFinders Driving Home Change for Cleaner Air

The Clean Air Partnership is focused on motivating area residents to take voluntary steps to clear the air this fall by taking advantage of the numerous options to reduce the number of solo commutes.  RideFinders is just one of the many organizations that proudly serves the St. Louis region with a mission to improve air quality and reduce traffic congestion by encouraging alternate transportation options.

With transportation-related emissions being one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, RideFinders offers a path to reduce those emissions by providing a free carpool and vanpool ride matching service for commuters to help improve the overall quality of the air. RideFinders works with employers, colleges, trade schools, municipalities and virtually any other type of organization to help commuters rideshare to and from work and school.

Fewer vehicles on the roads and highways means fewer automobile emissions, reduced traffic congestion and improved air quality, making communities across the St. Louis region better places to live, work and study.  But the benefits go far beyond that. By sharing a ride instead of driving alone, commuters can also save money and have a more relaxing ride or catch up on work when they are not behind the wheel.  Here’s a look at just a few of the ways RideFinders is helping area residents choose a cleaner commute:

  • Carpool & Vanpool Matching – RideFinders offers these services to match eligible commuters with other nearby commuters who also share a similar route to work or school and have similar commute schedules. Carpools remove nearly 4,500 vehicles and 150,000 driving miles from our region’s roadways daily – easing traffic congestion for everyone.
  • Guaranteed Ride Home Program — This program provides ridesharing commuters with four free taxi rides home per year in the event of an emergency or if they must stay late or leave early from work or college – guaranteeing peace of mind.
  • Employee Transportation Coordinators (ETCs) – Becoming an ETC with RideFinders is a great way to help promote commute alternatives to fellow co-workers and distribute air quality and transportation related information within a company or organization. Over 900 St. Louis area employers, colleges and other organizations participate in RideFinders as “ETCs” to help thousands of commuters rideshare and clean the air.
  • Save Money – Not only is ridesharing helpful in the fight for cleaner air, but it also helps reduce the cost of gas, maintenance and parking fees for commuters who are sharing the ride There is no cost or liability to join or participate in the program as RideFinders operates as a free public service for the region through federal funding!

For more information about RideFinders check out their website at http://www.ridefinders.org/.

Make This School Year a Greener One

The summer days are drawing to a close, and many area students are already back in the classroom. While the cooler nights and more pleasant daytime temperatures on the way make it less likely that the quality of our air will be top of mind, the St. Louis area continues to struggle with  ozone and particle pollution, so it’s important to not lose sight of the fact that there are various things we can be doing during the school year to help keep the region’s air clean year-round.

The good news is all of us can play a role in helping to reduce emissions to improve our region’s air quality by practicing greener habits in our daily lives. Now that parents and kids are getting settled into their back-to-school routines, here are some helpful tips to consider for keeping the air clean:

  • Walk, bike or take public transit when possible: When weather conditions are favorable, kids that live close to school can replace car trips with walking, bicycling or using public transit to help reduce air pollution. Fewer vehicles on the roads result in less pollution in the air.
  • Nix bottled water: Did you know that up to 80 percent of water bottles in the United States never get recycled? Purchase refillable water bottles that you can fill up at any water fountain instead of throwing away a new bottle. This will help cut back on pollution caused from waste that ends up in landfills, making our air cleaner one less bottle at a time.
  • Limit waste at lunch: When packing a lunch for school, use sandwich containers rather than plastic baggies and consider investing in a reusable, insulated lunch box instead of brown bags that may also just get thrown in the trash.
  • Go paperless: Take down notes from class electronically to save money and eliminate paper waste to save a significant amount of energy that leads to cleaner air. Printing double-sided and using an online calendar or scheduler to keep assignments organized are also great ways to reduce paper consumption!
  • Power down: Computers, tablets and many other electrical devices still use electricity when plugged in, even though they may be idle. When you are not using your electronic device, turn it off and unplug the device because energy production is a key source of air pollution. Doing so will help clean the air by reducing harmful emissions.

The Clean Air Partnership is proud to play a role in raising awareness about all the ways we can reduce emissions. To access a wealth of air quality information and tips designed to help area residents do their share for cleaner air, parents and kids are encouraged to visit the tips section of our  website, like the Clean Air Partnership on Facebook or follow @gatewaycleanair on Twitter.

Summer Hacks to help Clean the Air

The season of summer barbecues, vacations and days spent poolside is in full swing, but the hotter temperatures that make those activities such fun can also lead to an increased risk of poor air quality conditions. With that in mind, we’ve come up with a list of easy summer hacks to help reduce overall emissions and improve air quality:
  • Go old-fashioned and use a clothesline to finish up the laundry process. The scorching heat acts as a natural drying machine for clothes, reducing energy that would have been used from an actual dryer. Less energy used means reduced emissions and better air quality.
  • If you’re headed out on a summer vacation and find it necessary to rent a car, opt for a hybrid or flex-fuel vehicle. Every gallon of gas saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, reducing emissions to keep the air clean.
  • Hosting a summer barbecue? Make sure to use a gas barbecue grill instead of a charcoal grill. Charcoal grills release about twice as much carbon dioxide per hour as gas grills do. Using a gas barbecue grill this summer is a step in the right direction for cleaner air.
  • Use a reusable water bottle instead of multiple plastic bottles to keep hydrated in the grueling summer heat. A reusable water bottle will reduce waste outputs and less in landfills is better for cleaner air.
  • Avoid using a gas-powered lawn mower. In summer, grass seems to grow quicker than ever, but using a gas-powered lawn mower for one hour is equal to emissions released when driving a new car for 200 miles. If you must use a gas-powered lawn mower, make sure to mow before 10 a.m. or after 7 p.m. to avoid peak ozone formation hours.
  • If you’re a pool owner, use a pool cover whenever it is not in use. Pool covers provide insulation, reducing the amount of energy needed to keep the pool heated and warm if you want to extend its use into the late summer or early fall.
By making simple changes this summer, you can do your part to help reduce emissions and promote better air quality. For more great tips on how we can work together to achieve cleaner air this summer and year round, visit https://cleanair-stlouis.com/air-quality-tips .

Many Options Available to Help Reduce Auto Emissions

Now that the prime of summer has reached us, the importance of keeping the region’s air clean is at an all-time high. The Clean Air Partnership, along with several other organizations, helps play a significant role in raising awareness about all the ways people in the St. Louis region can reduce emissions to help keep the air quality in healthy ranges. With transportation being one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, much of the focus is on communicating the many benefits of alternative transportation options, such as transit use or carpooling, or walking or riding a bike when air quality conditions are good.

Thankfully there are plenty of resources available to help members of the St. Louis community take voluntary steps that can improve the quality of the air we breathe and improve our health overall. Area residents are encouraged to check out the following:

    • The region’s public transit system is designed so riders can walk to a nearby stop, or park and take a train or bus, or a combination of the two, to get where they’re going – safely, comfortably and conveniently.  (metrostlouis.org or www.mct.org)
    • Citizens for Modern Transit offers a Guaranteed Ride Home program as an incentive for commuters that allows employees to take transit/bicycle while providing them a “safety net” – an assurance they can get home and not be left at work if a situation arises. (www.cmt-stl.org)
    • RideFinders provides free carpool and vanpool ride-matching services for commuters in the St. Louis region to save money, reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality. They also offer a version of the Guaranteed Ride Home program! (www.ridefinders.org)
    • Don’t let worry about potentially needing a car during the day derail plans to share the ride. Consider carsharing opportunities to get to and from midday errands and meetings when needed. Visit www.enterprisecarshare.com for more information.
    • Visit gatewayguide.com or use MoDOT’s 511 travel information number to get real-time traffic information and use it to better plan your route to avoid traffic tie-ups and construction zones.
    • LimeBike and Ofo are bike-sharing companies that offer a great alternative to hopping in your car for short trips. Users download one of the smartphone apps to find a bike nearby. When they get to the bike, they can enter a code to unlock it via their phone, pedal where they need to go, lock it up and leave it for the next user. (http://www.stlbikeshare.org)
    • Ridesharing services such as Uber and Lyft match drivers of private vehicles to those seeking transportation and are a great option for group outings to eliminate the use of multiple vehicles.

    For more information and additional tips to clean the air, visit www.cleanair-stlouis.com, like the Clean Air Partnership on Facebook or follow @gatewaycleanair on Twitter.

MoDOT – Guiding the Region to Cleaner Air

As the Clean Air Partnership works to encourage activities that reduce emissions, we continue to spotlight organizations in the St. Louis region that share our passion. With transportation being one of the largest contributors to air pollution, the efforts carried out by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) are crucial in championing clean air.

MoDOT oversees a total of 33,856 miles of roadway throughout the state and, while commuting by automobile is necessary for many, MoDOT recognizes the importance of keeping congestion-related emissions at a minimum.  Considering idling vehicles emit 20 times more pollution than a car traveling 30 miles per hour, alleviating congestion that causes stop-and-go traffic is key in promoting cleaner air.

Here is a look at several of the initiatives MoDOT has implemented to help keep traffic flowing, decrease emissions and clear the region’s air:

 

  • Gateway Guide – This initiative combines several tools to provide motorists with real-time traffic updates. Traffic sensors alongside the road provide information on upcoming traffic speeds and volumes. MoDOT utilizes over 100 Dynamic Message Signs across the state which are permanent message boards located along state highways used to broadcast information regarding travel times, interstate closures, vehicle crashes and congestion. The @StLouisTraffic Twitter feed shares real-time information on closed lanes and roads. Closed-circuit cameras positioned throughout the region also provide real-time footage of area highways. These cameras provide video to help direct emergency response forces to quickly and safely address incidents. More importantly, the camera footage is streamed on Gateway Guide. MoDOT’s intent is that motorists will use this information to take alternate routes when traffic is heavy. By shifting traffic flow in various directions, congestion can be alleviated or avoided, ultimately reducing vehicle emissions.

  • Ozone Information – During the ozone forecasting season, MoDOT operates eight portable message boards alongside roadways in the St. Louis region. These, along with the Dynamic Message Signs, present the daily ozone forecast and often provide motorists with air-friendly tips. For example, when the air quality is poor, the message board not only notifies motorists of the red state of the air, but it might also encourage motorists to avoid filling up with gasoline until after 7 p.m., to help prevent the development of ground-level ozone. These boards have the potential to reach more than half a million travelers in just one day and encourage the community to take part in activities that keep the air cleaner.

 

  • Modification of Daily and Internal Operations – When the air quality is predicted to be poor, MoDOT works especially hard to alleviate congestion. This means halting routine maintenance operations on state highways that might create congestion and vehicle idling when the air quality is red.  MoDOT also encourages their staff to use alternative forms of transportation and has a carpooling program in place for employees to team up to share the ride. These modifications further help to reduce pollution and improve the quality of the air we breathe.

For more information about MoDOT and their work, check out their website at www.modot.org.  And keep an eye on our blog for a future spotlight on the Illinois Department of Transportation to learn about their commitment to cleaner air. 

A Few Facts About Air Pollution

Every day, the average human breathes in approximately 2,000 gallons of air. As a source of life, it is important to be aware of the air one breathes, as breathing in polluted air can impact one’s health. Air pollution is a critical environmental concern that affects all of us, with ozone pollution being of greatest concern in our area during the hot summer months.

While ozone is not visible to the naked eye, the effects it has on one’s health are crystal clear; and those effects can be from both short-term and long-term exposure to ozone air pollution. Here are five facts about air pollution you might find interesting:

  1. Children are more susceptible to the negative impacts air pollution. Because they are so active and breathe in a great deal of air, the negative impact of poor air quality can be greater on kids. As children’s lungs continue to develop, air pollution can hinder the development of their lungs, and lead to them having a decrease in lung function as adults. Developing lungs are also more prone to infection from exposure to air pollution. It can even affect babies while they are still in the womb, with studies revealing increased exposure to particle pollution resulted in a higher risk for preterm birth and lower birth weight.
  2. There’s a link between poor air quality and cardiovascular disease. Studies show that air pollution can increase the risk of both heart attacks and stroke.
  3. Going outside for a breath of fresh air might be more dangerous than you think. Depending on the day, breathing in air on a poor air quality day can be more harmful than staying inside. During times of orange and red air quality days, it is advised to skip the run in the park and opt for indoor exercise.
  4. Where you live matters. Studies have shown long-term exposure to traffic pollution can lead to poor cognition and may increase the risk for dementia. Those living near busy roads and highways are at the most risk with an increase of air pollution from vehicles expanding up to one-third of a mile away. Asthma attacks can be another linked effect of traffic pollution.
  5. You can make a difference. Air quality can be improved by reducing pollutants in the first place, which can limit the negative effects on health and the environment. Carpooling, using transit, telecommuting and supporting programs to limit idling can all help reduce emissions, as can using less energy at home and avoiding the use of gas powered equipment when doing yardwork.

Knowledge is power. Knowing more about the air you breathe can help make a difference for everyone. To learn more about health effects of exposure to air pollution and actions you can take to reduce emissions visit, cleanair-stlouis.com or www.lung.org.

Stay Lung Healthy when Outdoors this Summer

Our lungs are always hard at work. In just one day, a healthy person breathes nearly 25,000 times. For those with lung ailments, each and every breath can be a challenge, particularly when the air they breathe is unhealthy.

 

Many areas in the United States produce enough ozone during the summer months that it can be felt right away. Immediate problems – in addition to increased risk of premature death – include shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing; asthma attacks; increased risk of respiratory infections; increased susceptibility to pulmonary inflammation; and increased need for people with lung diseases, like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), to receive medical treatment or go to the hospital. Anyone who spends time outdoors when ozone levels are high may be at risk, but some are especially vulnerable to the effects of breathing ozone: children and teens; anyone 65 and older; people who work or exercise outdoors; people with existing lung diseases; and people with cardiovascular disease.

There are a number of things individuals can do to help keep their lungs in shape. Aerobic exercise helps improve lung capacity. Specific breathing exercises can also help improve your lung function if you have certain lung diseases, like COPD. But, perhaps one of the best things people can do is make sure they are breathing in clean air and avoiding exposure to pollutants that can damage the lungs. That’s where the Clean Air Partnership comes in.

 

The Clean Air Partnership releases daily air quality forecasts to let residents know what the air quality will be during the summer months. Signing up to receive the air quality forecast via email at www.stlouis-cleanair.com helps to ensure that area residents know what the next day’s air quality will be and if they should alter their outdoor activities to minimize exposure to polluted air.

 

The Partnership also helps raise awareness about all the ways people in the St. Louis region can reduce emissions to help keep the air quality in healthy ranges. Given that auto emissions are a key contributor to poor air quality, area residents are encouraged to:

  • Carpool with friends or coworkers or utilize public transit.
  • Bike or walk instead of driving when air quality conditions are favorable.
  • Avoid vehicle idling – idling vehicles emit 20 times more pollution than a car traveling 30 mph!
  • Visit www.gatewayguide.com or use MoDOT’s 511 travel information number to get real-time traffic information and use it to better plan your route to avoid traffic tie-ups construction zones.
  • Combine errands into a single trip to minimize car use.

 

Bikesharing Finally Comes to St. Louis

The Clean Air Partnership advocates for activities that reduce emissions leading to poor air quality. Since transportation is one of the largest contributors to air pollution, new bike-sharing programs here in St. Louis provide an exciting opportunity for area residents to have a positive impact on the quality of the air we breathe.

 

Bikesharing is a service that provides members of the community with bikes for shared use. Essentially, users can borrow bikes for a short period of time by paying just a small fee.

 

Ofo and LimeBike are two bike-sharing companies that entered the St. Louis market in recent weeks. Both companies have initially provided the city with 750 bikes each, but that number is likely to grow. Members of the community can utilize the bikes for their daily work commute, to get to school, exercise or for touring around the city of St. Louis. Unlike other bike-sharing options in other cities, Ofo and LimeBike do not have fixed docking stations, which means bikes are scattered in many locations across the entire city, making them a convenient option and a great way to complete the first or last mile between a transit stop and point of origin or final destination.

 

Bike-sharing is a way of getting around that offers great advantages over other modes of transportation. Choosing a convenient bike trip instead of driving a personal automobile means fewer vehicles on the roads, resulting in fewer emissions to combine with heat and sunlight to create ozone pollution that leads to poor air quality. Helping to keep the air quality in healthy ranges can minimize the negative effects poor air quality has on health, as high concentrations of ground-level ozone can cause shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, headaches, nausea, and eye and throat irritation.  Other benefits of the service include lower transportation costs, faster trips and the ability to fly past traffic jams.

 

To take advantage of this ecofriendly opportunity, area commuters simply need to download the app for either company. Because LimeBike and Ofo do not have fixed docking stations, all bikes are tracked using GPS. Users can locate a nearby bike through the apps. When an individual arrives at the desired bike, they use the app to scan a code on the bike which unlocks the brakes. The bike is now ready for use and customers can ride the bike to their desired stopping point. When users arrive, they simply leave the bike in a safe spot at the destination, lock the bike wheel and are charged by the company based on the amount of time the bike was in use. The bike is now ready for another user. Ofo charges $1 per hour and LimeBike charges $1 for each half-hour, making the programs quite affordable.

 

So next time you are headed to the grocery store for a last-minute item, want to visit a nearby friend or need to get across town for an appointment, consider picking up a bike from LimeBike or Ofo instead of hopping in your car.  Learn more about how to incorporate bikesharing into your routine at http://www.stlbikeshare.org/  or download the LimeBike or ofo bike share smartphone app.