If saving the planet isn’t incentive enough, think about the kids.
Parents are encouraged to turn vehicle engines off and cut back on idling for the health of their children in a new City of Red Deer print and radio ad campaign called Spare Our Air.
Lauren Maris, the city’s environmental program specialist, said many schools have already done a good job of sending the no-idling message and creating idle-free zones.
“But at the end of the day, it comes down to parents making the choice to turn the key. So they’re the ones who are really in the driver’s seat.”
Children are more susceptible to the health effects from air pollution, she said.
They are smaller, breathe faster and suck in more air per kilogram of body weight than adults.
Not only that but they are shorter and closer to tail pipes.
“They’re definitely susceptible and of course as parents we want to protect them.”
Maris believes the children-focused campaign offers a different perspective on the issue.
“I think a lot of people haven’t thought about it before. Hopefully, we can communicate to them what an easy choice this is and how there are so many benefits to just making that simple choice of just turning the key.”
On a global front, vehicle emissions pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and are a greenhouse gas linked to climate change.
Modern engines only need a minute to warm up so there’s no reason to run them for lengthy periods.
The campaign is just the latest initiative since the city launched its idle-free program in 2009.
An anti-idling policy covers all city vehicles, and schools, churches, businesses and the Alberta Motor Association have also joined the effort.
Clean air cannot be taken for granted.
Air quality in the Red Deer area was found in need of improvement, according to results released earlier this year of an assessment by Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development.
Measurements taken at a Riverside Drive Air Monitoring Station operated by the Parkland Air Management Zone (PAMZ) were higher than acceptable Canada-wide standards on airborne particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometres in diameter.
This happened during a higher-than-normal frequency of stagnant air episodes in the winters of 2010 and 2011.
Besides the particulate matter, PAMZ is keeping a watch on local ozone, which was found to be at levels warranting surveillance.
For more information, go to www.reddeer.ca/idlefree
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com