News

Metro to Host “I Heart Clean Air” Event for National Clean Air Day – March 16th

WHAT:
Metro and the Sierra Club, along with the American Lung Association in Missouri, Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and other clean air advocates, will participate in a National Clean Air Day event at the Civic Center MetroLink Station. Participants will distribute “I Heart Clean Air” postcards and a sweet treat as a “thank you” to Metro riders for helping to keep the air clean by choosing transit.

WHEN:
Tuesday, March 16 – 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

WHERE:
Civic Center MetroLink Station located at the corner of 14th & Spruce in downtown St. Louis

SIGNIFICANCE:
National Clean Air Day is a nation-wide event sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to support President Obama’s proposal to set stronger standards for ground-level ozone, a deadly pollutant that is one of the main contributors to smog. Coal-fired power plants and cars are the two biggest sources of smog pollution. Motor vehicles contribute 25% of the hydrocarbon emissions in the St. Louis region which, when mixed with air, form ground level ozone. Each work day, Metro takes an average of 45,000 vehicles off the road.

According to the American Public Transportation Association, U.S. greenhouse gases from transportation represent 28% of total U.S. emissions. When an individual switches to public transit, they can reduce their daily carbon emissions by 20 pounds per day, or 4,800 pounds per year.