Regarding the May 5 Associated Press article, “U.S., states slow to filter diesel fumes of school buses,” about potential health hazards that children face from school bus diesel emissions: The article did not address what is happening in Washington. That’s too bad, because we have a success story to share with your readers.
We know that diesel exhaust – which is made up of tiny, highly toxic particles – harms health more than any other air pollutant in Washington. People with health problems such as asthma, heart disease and lung disease have more problems when exposed to diesel exhaust. Children are especially at risk because they breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults.
The Washington Department of Ecology and the state’s seven local clean air agencies have developed one of the nation’s most comprehensive school bus retrofit programs. The Washington Clean School Bus Program installs emission controls on buses to reduce fine particles and toxic emissions.
School districts are enthusiastic partners in this program. To date, contractors have retrofitted more than 5,000 school buses with emission controls at a cost of $18 million. As a result, the health of tens of thousands of children has been improved. Gov. Chris Gregoire and the Legislature provided money to retrofit another 3,000 buses over the next 18 months to safeguard thousands of additional children.
For more information about Washington’s efforts to reduce diesel exhaust, see www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/air/cars/DieselEmissionPage.htm.
Seth Preston
Public Information Officer
Air Quality Program
Washington Department of Ecology
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