RED
DEER
ADVOCATE
SPECIAL
FEATURE
Air quality in Red Deer is everyone’s concern
than five minutes. You can further reduce warm up time by getting a block heater timer that will heat your engine before you need it. A final, and timely, recommendation to improve air quality involves yard waste and spring clean up; yard waste should be composted rather than burned. The City of Red Deer has a bylaw banning back yard waste burning and offers a yard waste pick up pro-
Lauren Maris, Environmental Program Specialist for the City of Red Deer below the exceedance level. There are many opportunities to address the issue and everyone has a role to play.” An advisory committee made up of organizations most influential on nitrogen sources (a chemical precursory of particulate matter) and local stakeholders, such as Red Deer County and Lacombe County representatives, has been assembled. The advisory committee met in January to discuss the issue and have planned another meeting for June. The June information session will welcome the public and invite feedback. The purpose of the June meeting will be primary education, to provide updates, and to share recommendations for the public, municipalities, industry, and provincial government on how to change behavior, activities, and policies to improve air quality in Red Deer and surrounding areas. Right now, the easiest thing the public can do to improve air quality is to not idle their vehicles. Environment Program Specialists in Red Deer recommend and that if you are going to be stopped for more than one minute, except in traffic, turn off the engine. Another recommendation involves warming up vehicles; even in the coldest weather, modern engines don’t need to be warmed up any longer
Water correctly Watering a lawn can do more harm than good if the lawn is not watered correctly. Excessive watering is a waste of water and can cost homeowners money while harming the environment at the same time. Water that is not absorbed by the lawn can result in runoff, which causes nitrogen in the grass, any fertilizer that was applied and chemicals in the water itself to run into gutters and eventually pollute streams, rivers and oceans. In addition, grass needs
Air quality in Red Deer is among the worst in Alberta and has recently exceeded the Canada-wide standard for fine particulate matter.
oxygen in the soil to grow properly. But when a lawn is overwatered, the oxygen between the soil particles is pushed out, depriving roots of the oxygen they need to grow in strong. This leads to shallow root systems, which make a lawn more susceptible to stress, disease and insect infestation. But overwatering can also be unsightly, as lawns that are overwatered tend to have more weeds, robbing even the greenest of lawns of its aesthetic appeal. (MS)
gram. “Nobody owns air but it affects everyone. Its really challenging to find ways to actively engage people in promoting air quality.” concludes Maris. For more information on air quality and upcoming public meetings visit www.reddeer.ca/environment.
COMPOST!
& Keep up with the Joneses the Johnsons, the Penners, and the Morins Congrats to these amazing Red Deer families who have been composting for nearly a year after joining the Composting at Home program. Dennis Burriss Tiffany Crone Jimmy Kennedy Deanna Doan Karen Gardiner Cristina Stewart Lisa Goltz Louise Munn Jolene Arsenault Joanne Palecek Mitchell Sargent Vanessa Gilbertson Leah Christiansen Lesley Stafford Harley Richards Danielle Bustamante Kyla Courte Kim Tang Tera Katrenicz Lou Trudgeon Linda Znak Shauna Hubel Jennifer McCord Rebecca Johnson Elly Jacobson Kelly O’Brien
Carol Van De Weghe Steven Gruenberg Rachel Stebbins Sora Kanngiesser Cindy Klaudt Donna Matolsci Crystal Cummings Verna Penner Nicole Mcgeough Winter Strong Karmen Weiss Shay Tangerman Caitlynn McNutt Brenda Kemp Charlotte Wagner Ashley Larsen-Stewart Shireen Anderson-Kuprowski Doug Wiesner Paige Mitchell Toni Haley Adrienne Young Mark Blatz Vincent Leckie Natalie Day Lazenby Quitcy MacAulay Tracey Gall
Jackie Muddle Harrison Blizzard Tanya Olafson Christine Swift Kaisa Nadeau Cathie McCracken Dean Duniece Leanne LaBrash Cheryl Reynen Tanya Mullakady Doug Spicer Carla Walli Tony Penney Dori Neufeld Kelly Justus Lisa Delver James Better Sara Smillie Scott Simon Daniel Kim Justine Bromley Wendy Naherny Annette Beisick Lindsay Ziegler Carla Morin Becky Amthor
Since 2012, nearly 650 Red Deer households started backyard composting. Are you interested in composting? Red Deer residents get discounts on composting tools at Red Deer Peavey Mart. Find out how to get your coupons by visiting www.reddeer.ca/composting.
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Teena Dickerson “Sometimes when you drive into Red Deer from Sylvan Lake now you can see that Red Deer has a layer of yellowish gray smog.” explains Lauren Maris, Environmental Program Specialist for the City of Red Deer. “We have taken our air quality for granted. We are now having problems and we need to take ownership. Its everyone’s responsibility and we need everyone to join in the solution to reducing air pollution in Red Deer and the region.” Air quality in Red Deer is among the worst in Alberta and has recently exceeded the Canada-wide standard for fine particulate matter. The only other area in Alberta with similar levels has been the capital region around Edmonton. Fine particulate matter is material smaller than 2.5 micrometers that is suspended in the atmosphere. These tiny particles are dangerous to both human and plant life. Particulate matter is very easily embedded into lung tissue and studies have linked it to cardiac and respiratory illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis, and various forms of heart diseases. People with chronic lung problems, such as asthma and emphysema, will experience worsening symptoms when breathing air with higher concentrations of fine particulate matter. It can also affect plant health and nutrients in soil and water contributing to soil and water toxicity. Fine particulate matter levels are monitored in two stations, in Red Deer, operated by Parkland Air Management Zone. “This is primarily a winter problem from what we understand from the science so far.” Lauren Maris continues, “We are working on getting some causation but it is complex.” Particulate matter comes from both natural and human sources. It is caused two ways, either, directly, in a primary contribution like wind-blown dust or ash from a forest fire, or indirectly, as a secondary substance created by chemical constituents working in combination with meteorological conditions. A good example of secondary particulate matter is vehicle emissions and stagnant weather. When emissions from vehicles, public or industrial, combine with very cold weather and calm winds, particulate matter is created and becomes trapped and concentrated within the area. Emissions from any combustable source react this way in these weather conditions: wood furnaces, fire places, industrial processes, construction operations, or vegetation burn-
ing (such as land clearing or yard waste). “Because we exceeded the Canada-wide standard, Alberta Environment Sustainable Resource Development is responsible for the development of a management plan.” said Sharina Kennedy of Alberta ESRD. “We have gathered relevant stakeholders, including representatives from municipalities, industry, and the public to provide input on a plan that will get us
Saturday, April 11, 2015 E7