There are a number of actions that individual Iowans, communities, and companies can take to help reduce the amount of fine particles in our environment. Reducing fine particles can help:
Keep our air clean and reduce the number and severity of health related impacts.
Keep our communities vibrant and growing by preventing “nonattainment” declarations and the stigma and growth limitations that accompany it.
The following sections suggest measures and strategies that individuals, local organizations, and business and industry can employ to help reduce PM2.5 concentrations locally and for neighbors living downwind.
Maintain your vehicle Regular maintenance and tune-ups, changing the oil, and keeping tires properly inflated can improve gas mileage, extend your car’s life, and increase its resale value. It can also reduce traffic congestion due to preventable breakdowns and reduce your car’s emissions.
Drive smart Avoid idling as you get zero (0) miles per gallon. Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration, and hard braking) wastes gas. It can lower your highway gas mileage 33% and city mileage 5%. Energy-saving tips.
Slow down Gas mileage usually drops rapidly at speeds above 50 mph. The www.fueleconomy.gov website shows how driving speed affects gas mileage. Using cruise control on the highway helps you maintain a constant speed and, in most cases, will save gas.
Do more on one trip Combine your errands into one trip. It helps you get things done efficiently while reducing traffic congestion and air pollution. Starting a car after it has been sitting for more than an hour causes up to five times more pollution than starting up when the engine is warm.
Take the bus or carpool Even if you do it just once or twice a week, you’ll reduce traffic congestion and pollution and save money. Including the cost of car ownership and maintenance, the average driver spends more than 50 cents per mile.
Ride your bike or walk It’s a great way to travel and it can help you and the air get into better condition.
Telecommute Working at home will save time and money, and reduce emissions and traffic congestion.
Get an energy audit A home energy audit is often the first step in making your home more efficient. Conduct an audit to see what steps you can do to save energy and reduce heating and cooling bills. For more information, visit the Energy Star website.
Reduce or eliminate residential burning Backyard burning emits PM2.5 in addition to other air pollutants. Additional information on residential burning is available on the DNR's open burning webpage.
Reduce lawn mower emissions Lawn mowers, like any engine, need proper maintenance to reduce pollution. When purchasing a new mower, consider purchasing an electric mower. Utilize native plants and landscaping to reduce the area to be moved. EPA provides additional information about lawn equipment, your yard, and cleaner air.
Opportunities abound for communities to help address existing and future air quality issues. Working to replace aging diesel fleets with new school buses, road maintenance vehicles, and higher fuel efficient biofuel or hybrid powered vehicles can have a significant impact on air quality. Providing incentives for greater use of mass transit, helping minimize open-burning and vehicle idling, and addressing community-specific areas of concern can help maintain good air quality. Developing community-based plans for sustainable growth that consider air quality impacts will help assure appropriate air resource planning.
The Iowa DNR, in cooperation with the Iowa Economic Development Authority, has published Community Land-Use Planning for Air Quality as a guide for planning officials to accomplish air pollution reduction and protect citizens from unnecessary exposures.
Here are excellent examples of communities that have formed these groups:
Additionally, EPA's Advance Program provides communities a means to collaborate and obtain support to take proactive steps to keep their air clean. The program promotes local actions to reduce ozone and/or fine particle pollution.
Proactive steps can help promote good air quality, support community efforts, and save on energy costs. Developing mass transit and carpooling incentives, providing employee education, developing specific operational plans for poor air quality days, managing fleets for best economy and fewer emissions, establishing idling limits appropriate to equipment use, and managing energy consumption and efficiency are just some of the ways businesses and industries can help. Consider joining the Blue Skyways Collaborative or other organizations that develop and support clean air practices.
Control Emissions
Control or prevent fugitive emissions
Utilize renewable energy sources and energy-efficient power generation
Promote and encourage public transportation, carpooling, and/or telecommuting Provide reduced or free bus passes to employees. Create a carpooling forum so co-workers can efficiently find interested parties. Offer a telecommuting option to save time and money.
Explore retrofits for diesel vehicles, replacing inefficient diesel engines, and replacing old diesel vehicles EPA’s National Clean Diesel Campaign seeks to reduce diesel emissions from on-road and non-road vehicles.
Maintain fleet vehicles Regular maintenance and tune-ups, changing the oil, and keeping tires properly inflated can improve gas mileage, extend your car’s life, and increase its resale value. It can also reduce traffic congestion due to preventable breakdowns and reduce your car’s emissions.
Buy smart Research vehicle fuel economy at www.fueleconomy.gov before buying.
Drive smart Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration, and hard braking) wastes gas. It can lower your highway gas mileage 33% and city mileage 5%. Energy-saving tips.
Slow down Gas mileage usually drops rapidly at speeds above 50 mph. The www.fueleconomy.gov website shows how driving speed affects gas mileage. Using cruise control on the highway helps you maintain a constant speed and, in most cases, will save gas.
Idling reduction Visit EPA’s Smart Way Transportation Partnership to learn more about EPA’s innovative collaboration with the freight sector designed to improve energy efficiency and reduce air pollution.
Effects of Fine Particles
Health Effects
Exposure to fine particulate matter can lead to a variety of health effects. For example, numerous studies link particle levels to increased hospital admissions and emergency room visits, and even to death from heart or lung diseases. Both short-term and long-term particulate matter exposures have been linked to health problems.
Short-term exposures for several hours or several days can aggravate lung disease, causing asthma attacks and acute bronchitis, and may also increase susceptibility to respiratory infections. To those with heart disease, short-term exposures have been linked to heart attacks and arrhythmias. Long-term exposure has been associated with problems such as reduced lung functioning and the development of chronic bronchitis and even premature death.
Environmental Effects
PM2.5 is the major cause of reduced visibility or haze in parts of the United States, including at national parks and wilderness areas that receive special visibility protections. Fine particulate matter can be carried long distances by wind and then settle on the ground or in the water. The settling or deposition can make water bodies acidic and can damage sensitive forests and farm crops.
