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  Lesson 7: Calculate Your Contribution  
     
  Objective:  
     
  Students will be able to calculate the impact of their personal and collective transportation habits on air quality.  
     
  Core Learning Goals:  
     
  Science:  Goal 6 - Environmental Science.  The student will demonstrate the ability to use the scientific skills and processes and major environmental science concepts to understand interrelationships of the natural world and to analyze environmental issues and their solutions.

Expectation 6.3.  The student will analyze the relationships between humans and the earth’s resources.

Indicator 6.3.1.  The student will evaluate the interrelationship between humans and air quality. At least — ozone, greenhouse gases, volatile organic compounds (smog) ; acid rain; indoor air; and human health

Government:  Goal 4 –Geography:  Students demonstrate understanding of the effects of interactions between human and physical systems and the changes in meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.

Expectation 4:  Students demonstrate understanding of the effects of interactions between human and physical systems and the changes in meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources

Indicator 12:   Explain the possible global effects of human modification of the natural environment, including how technology has expanded human capacity to modify and adapt to the physical environment.

  
  Materials/Resources:  
   
  Background:  
     
  Transportation is essential to our economy and lifestyle, but different transportation choices bring different environmental and economic costs. Read “Getting There from Here,” in Picture Maryland for a brief summary of the links between transportation and sprawl development.  
Vehicle emissions are a major component of air pollution, which contributes to both human health problems and the deterioration of the Chesapeake Bay. Maryland’s most persistent air pollution problem remains ground-level ozone from vehicle emissions and smokestacks. This “bad” ozone can cause shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, headaches, nausea and eye and throat irritation.  Cartoon graphic of a transit bus
  
 
  Moreover, air pollution contributes to the development and severity of asthma. Nationwide, asthma is the main reason for emergency room visits, and the number one reason why kids miss school. Asthma mostly affects the very young, very old, and very poor, and it is rapidly becoming more common. Air pollution also contributes to worsening water quality. Scientists studying the Chesapeake Bay estimate that a quarter of the total nitrogen load to the Bay comes from atmospheric deposition. In addition, increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other “greenhouse” gases are contributing to global warming, expected to have significant impacts on our climate in the coming decades.  
     
  Activity:  Tailpipe Tally  
     
Keep a diary of your transportation behavior for one week (including the weekend). Include mileage, form of transportation, make and year of car traveled in, and note how many people were in the car. Include all trips, whether they were by car, transit, foot, bicycle, or any other mode of transportation. Use this information to calculate yearly emissions, using the Tailpipe Tally website. Calculate annual emissions for your class. For school bus emissions, check with your school system to get information on fuel efficiency. Then extrapolate emissions based on the car emissions information in Tailpipe Tally and divide by the number of riders.

Photo of Baltimore City's Light Rail Train
 

  Explore local, regional and global impacts of air pollution. What are the current concerns, and what can technology and behavior change do to improve air quality?   
 

 
  On the EPA website, compare US per capita emissions of greenhouse gases to those of other counties. Discuss how our lifestyles, including our land use patterns, contribute to these emissions (e.g. energy consumption, availability of trains and mass transit, etc). 
Check out the following websites: 

www.mde.state.md.us/arma/
 http://www.chesapeakebay.net/info/air_pollution.cfm
http://www.epa.gov/globalwarming/

http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/globalwarming.html

 
 
  Assessment/Evaluation:  
     
  Evaluate your transportation behavior and identify ways that you can change your behavior. 
  • Combine or eliminate trips?
  • Carpool?
  • Use alternative transportation (e.g. bicycle, walk, or mass transit)?
  • Choose alternative destinations (e.g. closer stores for shopping)?
  • Other options?

Estimate the reduction you could achieve in miles traveled, and re-calculate yearly emissions.

     
  Taking Action:  
     
  What are the biggest opportunities to cut vehicle emissions in your school?  Use Lesson Plan 13, “Conducting a Survey” to have students conduct a survey of transportation use in the school.  An additional follow-up activity could be to coordinate carpools or encourage other transportation alternatives (e.g. walking and bicycling), or learning about clean fuel alternatives  See attached model survey.  
   
     

Contents | Calculate Your Contribution | Student Worksheet:Transportation Diary | Sample Survey
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