>>ANNOUNCER: Promoting a healthy environment
It's the air we breathe Clean, safe water
Responsible management of our natural resources We protect and restore
For a sustainable future Environment Matters.
>>Tony Cavalier: "those pollutants are naturally
going to occur after we heat our homes, drive our cars.
Where do they go?
They collect in the atmosphere and then the meteorology takes over either to push them
along or to allow them to sit and the problem, of course, is when they sit"
>>NARRATION: How weather can affect air quality -- and why for sensitive individuals, paying
close attention to the forecast can have a definite impact on their health.
Plus: >>Sherrie Hunter: "In twelve school years,
we have cumulatively recycled 37-hundred tons of recycling and schools have earned $169,000
dollars from what would have been in the trash."
>>NARRATION: Turning trash into treasure -- how one area school district is making a difference
-- one student at a time.
>>KATHY COSCO: Hello everyone and welcome to Environment Matters.
I'm Kathy Cosco with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection.
For many individuals — especially sensitive groups including children, the elderly, and
those who suffer from asthma and other respiratory and cardiovascular problems — knowing forecast
levels of air pollution can make a significant difference in the quality of their lives and
how they plan their daily activities.
The DEP's Greg Adolfson joins us now from Charleston and Greg, most people think of
air pollution as a big city problem but that's not always the case.
>>GREG ADOLFSON: Kathy, ozone and fine particle pollution can also be problems in rural areas.
It's helpful if you think of our atmosphere as an ocean of air -- with currents that can
move and disperse but also occasionally trap and concentrate harmful pollutants.
>>NARRATION: When the forecast calls for rain, most people bring along an umbrella.
When the UV index is high -- it's smart to apply sunscreen.
But what about the Air Quality Index?
It's estimated that exposure to high concentrations of fine particles in the air and high levels
of ground level ozone contributes to tens of thousands of premature deaths every year.
>>FRED DURHAM: We'll start with fine particulate matter.
When you see dust, that's particles, but the dust that you can see settles out.
So that's not really the fine stuff.
The really fine particulate matter stays in the air and you breathe it in.
And the stuff we're looking at is two and a half microns in diameter and that's very,
very, very, very small -- smaller -- probably about 1/30th of a human hair and I don't have
a lot of human hair.
OK.
So this stuff gets past your defenses - You've got your natural defenses, your nose -- you've
got all the mucus membranes, etc., that this particle stuff gets past that - gets deep
into your lungs and it causes health effects.
>>NARRATION: Studies show that fine particle pollution contributes to heart attack and
stroke and can weaken the body's immune system.
So how does weather affect that?
The answer is in the form of a simple rhyme.
>>TONY CAVALIER: The solution to pollution is dilution.
So pollution forms and how do you get rid of pollution?
You dilute the atmosphere.
You can do it with a good heavy rain -- just think of pollen counts when they come up -- you
get a good rain and all of the sudden folks breathe much better.
Well, the same happens with pollution.
Pollution gathers and if there's nothing to disperse it, the rain comes along and cleanses
the atmosphere.
And of course the other part of the cleansing or the dilution is dispersion -- blowing the
pollution away.
>>NARRATION: WSAZ Chief Meteorologist Tony Cavalier has a lot of experience monitoring
and predicting West Virginia's weather patterns.
He says the state's mountainous terrain is also a significant factor.
>>TONY CAVALIER: What happens is the mountains act as barriers.
Wind will blow whatever is in front of it.
Now here in Appalachia, the steep hills in a light wind regime, you might be able to
push a concentration of a pollutant or anything toward the base of the mountain but if there's
not enough wind to get it to go over the mountain, the pollutants will get trapped against either
the East or the West slopes of the mountains depending on the wind direction and speed,
in which case you have a higher concentration of pollution.
>>NARRATION: Another weather event that can affect air quality is what's called an inversion.
That's when a layer of cool air forms over warmer air at the ground.
>>FRED DURHAM: And that inversion can act as a cap and actually trap pollution that's
being emitted beneath the cap in that area and so what happens is if you've got an industrial
source or sources in that inversion and we're in a perfect situation for that here in the
Kanawha River Valley susceptible to having that type of inversion happen...
>>TONY CAVALIER: The ability to produce pollution in the atmosphere is always there.
Now you get the right meteorology and in the summer it's hazy, hot and humid but in the
winter it's light winds with the air warmer in the mountains than it is in the valleys
and when that occurs the pollution will concentrate, it will collect and that concentration will
go bigger and bigger...
>>NARRATION: Ground level ozone or smog is another pollutant that is affected by the
weather -- it's typically a summer phenomenon in our part of the country.
It's formed when what are called precursor pollutants, nitrogen oxides or NOX and volatile
organic compounds, also known as VOCs, combine in the presence of sunlight.
Ground level ozone is an irritant to the lungs.
On high ozone days, limiting outdoor exposure is recommended.
>>FRED DURHAM: On a high ozone day even if you're healthy, you don't want to get out
jogging and exposing your -- over exposing your lungs to that ozone because it's like
getting a sunburn on the inside of your lungs and it can cause, at some point, irreversible
damage to your lungs.
>>GREG ADOLFSON: Now the good news is that the air quality here in West Virginia is actually
improving -- and has been for the last several years.
Kathy, finding the Air Quality Index is fairly easy -- it's available on the web and on many
local TV weather forecasts -- especially on days when it rises to unhealthy levels.
>>KATHY COSCO: Thanks, Greg.
The Air Quality Index is based on five pollutants regulated by the Clean Air Act -- in addition
to ground level ozone, particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide mentioned in Greg's story,
the Air Quality Index also looks at carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide.
The index is divided into six categories and color coded to indicate increased levels of
health concern.
You can find out what the air quality index is in many parts of the state by checking
out our website dep.wv.gov and clicking on the Division of Air Quality's Air Quality
Index link.
You can also get information for other parts of the country by going to the U.S. EPA's
site -- airnow.gov.
Nearly every day, each one of us contributes a little to air pollution -- often without
even realizing it.
The DEP's Sarah Alford joins us now with some simple changes we can make to help the planet
breathe a little easier...
>>SARAH ALFORD: Kathy, they are little changes that -- taken together -- can make a big difference...
It starts with a cleaner commute -- and the easiest way to do that is to share a ride
by taking part in a car pool -- not only will it reduce the amount of pollution by reducing
the number of cars on the highway -- it will save you money, too.
Using mass transit, where available, is another good option.
If your work schedule allows it -- alter your schedule to avoid the morning and evening
rush hour.
Driving in lighter traffic will allow you to drive more efficiently -- with fewer starts
and stops -- and for the ultimate in savings -- see if your employer allows telecommuting.
Avoiding the drive into work -- even for just a few days a month can make a big difference.
When you do drive, try to combine all your errands into one trip -- and avoid unnecessary
idling when not in traffic -- places like drive through lines at banks and fast food
restaurants and while waiting to pick up passengers or waiting for a train at a railroad crossing.
Letting your engine idle for just one minute produces as much carbon monoxide as the smoke
from three packs of cigarettes and idling just 5 to 10 minutes a day can add up to 1
to 2 tanks of fuel wasted each year.
And speaking of fuel -- refueling in the morning or evening, when it's cooler, can prevent
gas fumes from heating up and creating ozone.
And when you're filling up -- stop when the pump clicks off.
Topping off your tank just releases more gas fumes into the air.
It can also harm your car's anti-pollution devices.
Finally, make sure your tires are properly inflated.
Under inflated tires create more rolling resistance -- making your engine work harder, burning
more fuel and creating more pollution.
Maintaining you vehicle by following the manufacturer's recommendations for changing air and oil filters
and tune up can keep it running longer and cleaner.
Kathy, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation more than 25 percent of all
air pollution nationwide is created by motor vehicles on the road.
They also say the average American household uses about three gallons of fuel every day
so not only will taking these steps make it easier to breathe, it can save you money,
too.
>>KATHY COSCO: Thanks, Sarah.
Another area where you can help reduce air pollution is through using less electricity.
Once again, here's Division of Air Quality Deputy Director Fred Durham.
>>FRED DURHAM: You don't see the effect at the home; you see the effect at the power
plant that had to produce that electricity and that hits all the pollutants.
It hits NOX, it's not so much VOC at the power plant but NOX, sulfur dioxides and greenhouse
gasses are all reduced when you reduce your electricity.
So if you insulate better, you plug air leaks in your house you get a more efficient air
conditioner or heat pump in place of electric heating you're going to reduce your use of
electricity and most of the utility companies have special programs where they will actually
come out and audit your house and the have on-line audits that you can do like in 10
or 15 minutes that you can do to see where you are in the spectrum.
Changing out light bulbs at your house.
Going from incandescents to fluorescent or LEDs --
>>KATHY COSCO: For much more information -- you can download a copy of the latest Air Quality
Report from the DEP.
It contains detailed data on individual pollutants, air monitoring and additional resources available
to the public.
Just visit our website dep.wv.gov and click on the link for the Division of Air Quality.
Coming up: >>PATTY HICKMAN: People are afraid to invest
their money and redevelop the property because they don't know what kind of liability they
are taking on...
>>NARRATION: Turning old, abandoned commercial properties into valuable community assets
-- how a DEP program is improving the economic climate in communities all across the state.
Plus: >>Karen Wynne: We're citizens of the Earth
so we are stewards of the Earth.
So we're trying to get across to the students to be respectful of our environment and part
of that is by not littering, by not cluttering the landfill with things that don't need to
be there...
>>NARRATION: Lessons in recycling -- how one area school is bring that message home.
Those stories and more when Environment Matters continues.