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May-July 09 Team 2
Free Air
<A breath for the earth>
Team Members
| Jessica Cuello |  | Leader |
| Yilda Lopez |  | Secretary |
| Ricardo Schilling | | Technology Investigator |
| Luis Urdaneta | | Spokeperson / Administrator |
Photos
Luis Urdaneta
Jessica Cuello / Ricardo Schilling ![[Untitled]](http://image.wetpaint.com/image/1/rtOY7GucZWM8AwI1vPJlXw11544/GW319H325 "[Untitled]")
Yilda López
Mind Map Of the Project
The Problem
Every day, the average person inhales about 20,000 liters of air.
Every time we breathe, we risk inhaling dangerous chemicals that have found their way into the air. Air pollution includes all contaminants found in the atmosphere. These dangerous substances can be either in the form of gases or particles. It can be found both outdoors and indoors. Pollutants can be trapped inside buildings, causing indoor pollution that lasts for a long time. The sources of air pollution are both natural and human-based. As one might expect, humans have been producing increasing amounts of pollution as time has progressed, and they now account for the majority of pollutants released into the air.
Air pollution has been a problem throughout history, even in Ancient Rome people complained about smoke put into the atmosphere. The effects of air pollution are diverse and numerous. It can have serious consequences for the health of human beings, and also severely affects natural ecosystems.
Because it is located in the atmosphere, air pollution is able to travel easily.
As a result, air pollution is a global problem and has been the subject of global cooperation and conflict. Some areas now suffer more than others from air pollution. Cities with large numbers of automobiles or those that use great quantities of coal often suffer most severely from problems of air pollution.
Methodology
There are many actions people of all ages can take to reduce their emissions. Below is a checklist of things you can do in your home and at your school to keep the air clean and pollutant free for humans and the planet. Place an ‘x’ in the box next to any positive actions you already do. Then choose a few others you would like to try, and challenge your family, friends, and teachers to do the same. If we all work together, we can make the world a cleaner and greener place to live! At Home
□ Compost food waste outside or in an indoor compost bucket.
□ Start a family or community garden to grow the vegetables and herbs you eat most often.
□ Ask your family to buy products packaged in recyclable materials or products that use less packaging
□ Take reusable bags, such as cloth or canvas, when you go to the supermarket.
□ Recycle all paper, newspaper, plastics, glass, aluminum and other metals.
□ Turn off the water while brushing your teeth.
□ Take a 4‐5 minutes shower instead of a bath to save hot water.
□ Encourage your family to install a low flow showerhead (1.6 gallon per minute or less).
□ Use a refillable water bottle, canteen or thermos instead of purchasing bottled water.
□ Ask your parents to install rain barrels at downspouts and use captured rainwater to water the yard.
□ Leave grass clippings on the lawn or use them as mulch for plantings.
□ Water gardens and flower beds in the evenings or mornings to reduce evaporation and allow more water directly to the plants.
□ Turn off interior lights whenever you leave the room for more than two minutes.
□ Replace burned out light bulbs with compact fluorescents or LEDs.
□ Ask your parents to order renewable energy, such as wind power or solar power, from your power company.
□ Turn off appliances (TV, stereo, computer, etc.) when not in use. Turn off at the switch or wall socket instead of leaving them on
standby.
□ Unplug your cell phone charger when not in use.
□ Purchase rechargeable batteries to reduce hazardous waste.
At Your School
□ If you live close to your school, walk, bike, carpool or take the bus at least twice each week.
□ If you take your lunch to school, pack your lunchbox with reusable containers, silverware and cloth silverware and cloth instead of
paper napkins.
□ Purchase folders and notebooks made from recycled fiber.
□ Use refillable pens and pencils made out of recycled materials.
□ For art projects, purchase crayons made from nontoxic soybean oil and water‐based markers with refillable heads.
□ Buy backpacks, raingear and gym shoes that do not contain polyvinyl chloride (PVC) - a toxic chemical that can damage your immune
system.
□ If you have the option, purchase used textbooks instead of new to save both paper resources and money.
□ Use both sides of paper to reduce paper waste when writing or printing a report or making copies for class.
□ Turn off the lights in your classroom when leaving for lunch, recess or any time during the day when there are no students in the room.
□ Turn off school computers when they are not in use.
□ Keep windows and outside doors closed when the school is being air‐conditioned or heated.
□ Wear temperature appropriate clothing so you are comfortable in school.
□ Recycle all paper, plastics, glass, aluminum and metal at your school. If your school does not have a recycling programs, start one!
□ Encourage your school to start an educational garden where classes can experiment with growing native plants, vegetables and herbs
and also learn about soil productivity and small wildlife.
□ Ask your teachers to plan nature‐focused field trips, such as visiting your school or local forest, a nearby lake or river system, or the city botanical gardens, so you can observe the importance of keeping the planet’s many ecosystems healthy and functioning properly.
Engineering Solution
What can we do about this issue?
There are many ways to reduce gas emissions and therefore air pollution.
If you work in any industry of any type, try to make them more conscious about air pollution.
Make people around you aware of this issue, make them know any support is valuable.
One of the most important efforts being made right now is the Kyoto Protocol, it is an agreement between several countries to reduce gas emissions.
The industries should apply Air Pollution Control and Air Purification. They should always use mechanical dust collectors to fabric filtration systems, from electrostatic precipitators (ESP's) to coal preparation plants, from gaseous and particulate scrubbers to flue gas desulphurisation systems (FGD's) and from dust and fume extraction systems to air purification systems for removal of corrosive, toxic and odorous gases.
Media presentation and video of the presentation
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, Jul 27 2009, 2:47 AM EDT
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