News Nuggets

Check these articles:

School Bus Fumes

from: ScienceNetLinks.com

http://tinyurl.com/lewjx

School Bus Diesel Fumes Fueling Kids' Cancer Risk?

from: Life.FamiliyEducation.com

http://tinyurl.com/h4oho

School Bus Diesel Fumes May be Cause of Rise in Asthma from: Mindfully.org

http://tinyurl.com/gey6h

Protect Children From Diesel Fumes from: the Minnesota OEA and MPCA

http://www.moea.state.mn.us/ee/noidle.cfm

The Office of Environmental Assistance and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency states on their web site...

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has determined that diesel fumes contain 40 toxic chemicals, including 15 carcinogens."

http://www.moea.state.mn.us/ee/noidle.cfm

Accolades to the Minnesota State Legislature for passing a bit of legislation that benefits and protects children.

"In May 2002, Minnesota adopted legislation to protect the health and safety of children from harmful diesel bus emissions. This law calls for schools to reduce the unnecessary idling of school buses in front of schools, and reroute bus parking zones away from air-intake vents or if necessary, relocate the air-intake vents)."

http://www.moea.state.mn.us/ee/noidle.cfm

What is going on here?

"Toxic chemicals in diesel emissions increase the risk of asthma, lung and heart disease, and are responsible for as many as 125,000 cancers nationwide. Yale University's Dr. John Wargo recently found that students on school buses are exposed to 5 to 15 times the levels of particulate pollution than at nearby monitoring sites. Bus idling and bus queuing (back-to-front line-up of buses) increases the concentrations of harmful particulate pollution inside school buses."

http://www.moea.state.mn.us/ee/noidle.cfm

What these articles also state is:

• Older busses have higher concentrations of noxious and toxic chemicals


• Some school busses that were tested were built in 1975, and are still on the road


• Concentrations of toxic and noxious chemicals are higher in busses when the windows are closed

What these articles don't mention that:

• In times of high fuel prices (maybe for the foreseeable future), idling busses get 0 miles per galleon, and fuel economy dissipates faster than the noxious fumes




• The busses do not have to idle to keep the air conditioner in operation (Does anyone know of a school district that has air conditioned busses?)


• Maybe the bus drivers want to keep the heater running during the Minnesota winters!




• The fumes outside the bus are unhealthy for teachers who are required to perform bus duty


• The gasoline powered vehicles of the parents who wait in a cue to pick up their children donate a lot of fumes to the parent pick up area, too


• Some states have moved school bus fleets to the use of natural gas as a cleaner, more environmentally friendly, alternative to diesel fuel

It is nice that some attention is being paid to the health of our students in one state out of 50.

And, what about seat belts on school busses? If we care so much for our students, wouldn't seat belts make sense?

No, it turns out. The cost retrofitting seat belts on school busses would be too high. And, if two seat belts were placed on a seat, then they wouldn't be much good when three students have to sit on one seat because of over crowded routes.

One author states that school busses are safer than private transportation, and that parents shouldn't pull their children from the busses.

Sure, it is better for some children to die a lingering cancer death years later than for our school districts to spend the money to do what protects them now. The number of children that acquire cancer from school bus riding will only be a small percentage, as compared to the huge number of students that benefit economically from going to school.

And, what is the reason that school districts keep busses running for thirty years? Could tight budgets be the culprit?

The saga of bureaucracy and management is the endless compromises that are caused by budget shortfalls, and a "Let's do something, even though it isn't enough" reality.