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1. Drive less. Cars are THE major source of air pollution in the Bay Area. Before jumping into your vehicle, consider whether you get to your destination by walking, biking or public transit? If you leave your car home one day a week, you prevent 55 pounds of air pollution each year. And think of the money you'll save on gas!
2. Take transit. The Bay Area is served by a number of transit agencies. Take transit and let someone else deal with the traffic and the stress. Call 511 or visit 511.org for information on how local transit can get you where you're going.
3. Carpool/Vanpool. Why not share a ride? Take turns driving and give yourselves a break from road-stress a few days a week. And remember, the San Mateo County Commute Alternatives Program has a Guaranteed Ride Home program that makes cars or taxis vouchers available to carpoolers/vanpoolers and transit-takers who are registered with us in case of emergency or a situation in which your original ride might be unavailable to you. Call 511 or visit 511.org to find out more about ridesharing.
4. Telecommute. Why commute at all if you can arrange to telecommute from home? You'll save commute time and expenses. Whether you choose to do this full-time or just one day a week, you will be making a difference. It is estimated that a little over one pound of pollution is saved when you and your car stay at home.
5. Refuel in the evening and don't top off. Putting gas into your vehicle releases Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) into the air. Throughout the day, these VOCs mix with oxides of nitrogen (NOx) in the air, "cook" in the summer heat, and form ground-level ozone. Refueling in the evening decreases the opportunity for VOCs to form into ozone.
6. Trip-link. Cold engines pollute five times more than warm ones. A cold engine is one that has been sitting for over an hour. When possible, link all of your errands together into one trip to minimize "cold starts."
7. Avoid polluting consumer products. Household products, especially aerosols like hair spray, antiperspirants, cleaners, air fresheners and spray paints cause about 50 tons per day of smog-forming VOC's each day. That's more than the total VOC emissions from all the Bay Area oil refineries! Hair spray alone contributes 12 tons of pollution per day! When selecting consumer products, consider environmentally-friendly choices, such as solids, sticks, and gels instead.
8. Use water-based paints. Oil-based paints and varnishes contain a high percentage of VOCs that evaporate into the atmosphere and create smog. Water-based latex paints are less polluting and easier to wash off your hands and equipment.
9. Barbecue as much as you like - just DON'T USE LIGHTER FLUID!
Lighter fluid literally goes up in smoke, causing about a ton of smog each day in the Bay Area. Try using an electric or a chimney briquette starter instead-you'll actually get a faster start.
10. Do your garden chores gasoline-free. On an hour-for-hour basis, a gasoline-powered lawn mower produces as much pollution as 40 new cars. On Spare the Air days, don't use gasoline-powered landscaping equipment. Better yet, switch to an electric or hand-pushed mower instead.
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