Fall 2008
7L
The Magic School Bus Gets Cleaned Up!
EPA’s Clean School Bus USA pro-
gram and Scholastic came together
to produce a new book in the Magic
School Bus series entitled: “The
Magic School Bus Gets Cleaned
Up!” It was released on October 18,
2007 as a special edition that educates
children (and adults!) on idle reduc-
tion and ways in which communities
can help reduce the health risks from
diesel exhaust. In this acclaimed edu-
cational series of books and videos for
children in K-fourth grade, a teacher
named Ms. Fizzle takes her class on
science-oriented field trips riding in
their magical school bus.
In “The Magic School Bus Gets
Cleaned Up,” the children and Ms.
Frizzle explore the pollution emitted
from their own diesel school bus and
learn about how to reduce the emis-
sions as they find themselves traveling
through a diesel engine. At the end
of the book, the “Magic School Bus”
gets its own pollution control device,
a diesel particulate-matter filter.
Fish Kids!
To promote learning about safe fish
consumption, EPA has developed
the “Fish Kids Web site” to educate
families and especially children
about fish advisories through interac-
tive and kid friendly web activities
such as a memory game, fishing and
camping trips and a section specially
designed for parents and guardians.
With this online tool your commu-
nity’s families can stay informed and
better understand local fish advisories.
While fish is still an important
part of a healthy diet, it is also true
that fish caught in many bodies of
water throughout cont. on page 2
This special-edition book is
intended to be used by libraries,
schools, state and local air programs,
non-profit education and outreach
campaigns to spread awareness about
reducing diesel emissions.
The books are free and can be
ordered from the National Service
Center for Environmental Publica-
tions, EPA’s publication warehouse.
They may not be sold.
For more information and how to
order visit: www.epa.gov/otaq/school-
bus/msb-book.htm (more below)
Magic Bus on Tour
9 chool
sed on the magical yellow
school bus of the children’s series
Scholastic Inc. operates a travel-
ing science laboratory housed in a,
yellow school bus. The bus tours
the United States, offering hands-
on science lessons to children at
schools, fairs, and other commu-
nity events.
Similar to the story in “The
Magic School Bus Gets Cleaned
Up,” this traveling bus was ret- J
rofitted with a diesel particulate
filter. With the filter on the engine
xhaust system, particulate matter
will be reduced by up to 90%.
EPA United States Environmental News in New England for Municipal Leaders
Environmental Protection
Agency New England
INSIDE
• Exterior Lighting Options
• Composting is Easy!
• KnówYour Diesel
• Our Future Generation
• Indoor Air @ Your School
• Climate Change Forum

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Helping Communities Plan for Natural Disaster
The United States across all its
regions faces a variety of Mother
Nature’s challenges and New England
is no exception. Months of debris
management and cleanup in the
aftermath of Hurricane Katrina taught
all levels of government that we can
never be too prepared to deal with the
aftermath from any kind of natural
disaster. Whether it is an ice storm.
tornado, earthquake or flood — the
more severe the event, more debris
will be generated.
The hours in the aftermath and
the efficiency and coordination at
all levels of government during the
response, rescue and cleanup are vital
to ensuring communities can back
on their feet as quickly as possible.
Debris management and removal
has often been the longest and most
expensive element of disaster recov-
ery. Rubble, vegetative debris, wood
waste, newly contaminated soil and
water and personal property among
others —severely hinder the recovery
period in affected areas.
To help communities prepare now
disaster clean ups, EPA has developed
the Planning for Natural Disaster
Each year thousands of oil and chemical
spills are reported. Most of these are
handled by local police, firefighters and
industry first responders. EPA responds
to several hundred large spills a year.
During major disasters, EPA may be
called upon to offer assistance to state
and local governments in response to a
release of hazardous materials from a
major disaster or emergency.
Debris guide. This guide is based on
experiences of communities and states
and provides helpful planning sugges-
tions and steps that local officials can
take now. By developing disaster man-
agement plans ahead of time, cleanup
actions can commence automatically
without wrinkles or confusion.
Helpful references include:
• Management options for vari-
ous debris streams.
• A collection of case studies
highlighting how several com-
munities
prepared for and managed de-
bris generated by recent natural
disasters.
• A list of federal, state and local
resources to consult in planning.
This guide is consistent with informa-
tion provided by the Federal Emer-
gency Management Agency (FEMA)
and individual states and additionally
emphasizes the importance of manag-
ing disaster debris in an environmen-
tally protective manner.
For a copy of the document, please
visit:www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/
debris-new/disaster.htm
(cont.) Fish Kids!
New England are unsafe to consume in
large amounts, if at all. This is mostly
due to mercury hazards, but in some
cases other contaminants pose addi-
tional health risks.
It is one challenge standing before
federal, state and local governments
to ensure that the message gets out to
populations who may be impacted by
mercury or other contamination in fish.
While EPA works with municipali-
ties to keep officials informed of fish
advisories, it is crucial that the mes-
sage reaches families. Both adults and
children need to be aware of advisories
that may exist in their community and
what they mean. This Web site is user
friendly and especially geared for kids.
Children are believe it or not, some-
times more effective than a government
agency in getting adults to exercise cau-
tion when it comes to their health!
Unfortunately all too often these
days, more care must be exercised
before fishing locally to get dinner on
the table. This means more work must
be done at all levels of government to
ensure that heath risks from contami-
nated fish are easily understood across
all ages and languages.
While cleanup efforts are con-
stantly ongoing and more pollution
controls are put in place, contaminants
take time (some a verylong time) to
disappear from our environment and
our bodies if we ingest too much.
Teaching children and adults about
which fish are safe to eat will not only
protect their health — but open the
door to a larger understanding of our
complex natural environment. Chil-
dren who learn about fish advisories
in their community might start to ask,
“Why isn’tthat fish ok to eat ?” Those
tough questions are the first step
towards creating a new generation of
minds who will seek the answers and
hopefully, greater solutions.
www.epa.gov/fishadvisorieslkids/
need to be aware of
advisories that may exist
I
in their community.

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Composting is Easy!
This autumn as new Englanders are
busying tidying up their lawns and
enjoying the colorful outdoors, promote
the idea of composting as a way to deal
with some yard wastes in your commu-
nity. Composting is an easy way to have
great fertilizer or potting soil ready for
spring gardens and it cuts back on the
use of plastic bags and the burden on
municipal waste facilities.
• While many foods can also be corn-
posted it’s important to NOT compost
meats, dairy products, fats, oils or
greases as they may attract neighbors
pets, or less domesticated woodland
creatures.
• DO Compost: Vegetable trimmings.
egg shells, coffee grounds with filters,
tea bags and even leaves, zrass. and
yard clippings, vacuum cleaner lint,
wool and cotton rags. sawdust, shred-
ded newspaper and fireplace ashes all
work great for composting.
A compost pile can be set up in a corner
of the yard with a few supplies.
• Choose a level spot 3- to 5-feet
square near a water source and pref-
erably out of direct sunlight.
• Clear the area of sod and grass. When
building a composting bin with
chicken wire, scrap wood, or cinder
blocks, be sure to leave enough space
pile or if you see worms, as both
are a sign of thriving compost and
part of the natural decomposition
process.
• In most climates, the compost is
done in 3 to 6 months when it be-
comes a dark crumbly material with
uniform texture. Spread it in the
garden, yard beds or under a shrub-
bery come spring and summer - or
use it as potting soil.
• It might go without saying, but try
to keep kids from playing in the
compost!
• Coordinate with your public wroks
department for yard waste and corn-
posting options in your town.
Green Etiquette for Outdoor Lighting
Properly designed and installed exterior lighting can improve nighttime visibility.
safety and security in a community while also minimizing energy use, operat-
ing costs, glare. and light ‘trespass’. Many municipalities now have ordinances
or bylaws that require new or replacement fixtures to have a fully shielded (“full
cut-off’) design.
Under these municipal ordinances, discouraged outdoor lighting tends to be
labeled as ‘unshielded’ and produce unnecessary glare and light trespass.
“Acceptable Lighting” includes fixtures that shield the light source and facili-
tate better vision during the night hours. Some examples include:
• fully shielded fixtures, wall-pack and vaIl mount fixtures, period’ style
fixtures (bulb shielded in opaque top). security lights
• full cut-off fixtures and streetlights
• shielded! properly-aimed PAR floodlights
• flush mounted canopy fixtures
for air to reach the pile. One remov-
able side makes it easier to access.
Start the pile with a 4-inch layer of
leaves, loose soil, or other coarse
yard trimmings. If you are going
to compost food scraps (a slightly
more involved process). you should
mix them with yard trimmings
when adding theni to the pile. Al-
falfa meal or clean cat litter may be
added to the pile to absorb odors.
• In dry weather, sprinkle water on the
pile. but don’t get it too soggy. Turn
the pile every few weeks with a
pitchfork to circulate air and distrib-
ute moisture evenly.
• Dont be surprised by the heat of the
—3-—

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Cleaner Diesel Fuels!
Have you seen the new signs on
diesel fuel dispensers 9 Are diesel
trucks in your community put-
ting out a little less of that tell-
tale black puff of exhaust when
they drive off What you might
not know is that diesel fuel has
recently gotten a lot cleaner
Today’s diesel fuel has less
sulfur in it than ever before The
fuel going into diesel cars and
trucks is 97% cleaner and the
fuel going into non-road engines—
such as construction equipment,
but they are moving in the same
direction By 2012, all non-road,
marine and locomotive engines
will be using ultra-low-sulfur
diesel (ULSD) fuel, with a maxi-
mum of 15 parts per million sulfur
content The amount of sulfur in
highway diesel, or ULSD, is now
lower than that in regular gasoline
Additionally, emissions standards
for new diesel engines have
been lowered New diesel ve-
hicles are coming equipped with
advanced pollution controls—
similar to catalytic converters—
that are significantly reducing
harmful emissions from diesel
exhaust Both with the new
technology and the ULSD fuel,
it is possible to meet EPA’s
emissions standards for new
engines
API Suggested Diesel Pump Labels - Compliant with EPA 40 CFR 80.5 70
Green
Yellow text
Green I
Clean Air Zone—Turn off your engines!
Connecticut, Massachusetts, New
Hampshire and Rhode Island all
have rules which limit the time al-
lowed for various types of vehicles
to idle Excessive idling wastes
fuel, causes engine wear and tear
and contributes to air pollution and
emits unnecessary greenhouse gas-
es into the atmosphere With some
variations and exceptions ranging
from communities, the rules gener-
ally limit idling to 5 minutes
For every extra minute of idling,
a diesel truck emits a third of a
pound of carbon dioxide (C02 ) and
a car emits a sixth of a pound of C02
into the air That’s 2-5 cents of fuel
and unneeded wear and tear on your
vehicle for each and every minute of
idling’ Make sure municipal vehicles
are following these rules and encour-
age this for personal vehicles around
your city or town
Stuck in traffic gridlock 9 ‘Run-
ning’ into the post office or store 9 Or
pulling into a long line of cars wait-
ing at a “drive thru”, do your part
and turn it offt
ULTRA-LOW SULFUR ó
HIGHWAY DIESEL FUEL
( 15 ppm Sulfur MaxI mum )
Required for use in all model year
2007 and later highway diesel
vehicles and engines
Recommended for use in all diesel
vehicles and engines
OW SULFUR
HIGHWAY DIESEL FUEL
( 500 ibm Sulfur MaxImum )
WARNING
Federal law prohibits use in model
year 2007 and later highway
vehicles and engines
Its use may damage these vehicles
and engines
NON-HIGHWAY
DIESEL FUEL
(May Exceed 500 porn Sulfur)
WARNING
Federal law prohibits use in
highway vehicles and engines
Its use may damage these vehicles
and engines
-
Excessive idling wastes
fuel, causes engine
wear and tear and
contributes to air pollution
and emits unnecessary
greenhouse gases
into the atmosphere.
—4—

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Protecting Children’s Environmental
Health in New England
“We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from
our children”
—Native Amencan proverb
At EPA, protecting children, our youngest and most sensitive citizens, from
environmental health risks is fundamental to our vision of making the world a
better place There are currently more than three million children living in the
New England region and the numbers are always increasing Encourage your
community to reference our website and multitude of resources to help protect
children’s health
EPA Hosts 9th Annual Indoor Air Quality Tools for
Schools National Symposium December 4-8, 2008
Washington D.C.
EPA is set to host its annual Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools (IAQ TIES) Na-
tional Symposium in Washington, DC, to bnng together past, present and future
leaders in protecting and improving IAQ in our nation’s schools The IAQ Tools
for Schools Program is a nationwide initiative to help school officials assess,
resolve and prevent IAQ problems and to reduce exposure to asthma triggers in
school facilities While school officials, administrators, facilities and operations
personnel, teachers, parents and students traditionally attend, the Symposium
is open to anyone with an interest in IAQ in schools Registration is now open’
Visit www iaqsymposiurn corn
EPA now has a new suite of “Envisioning Excellence” resources for school
distncts too Envisioning Excellence helps schools take effective action to ad-
vance health, safety and weitness initiatives Envisioning Excellence includes Six
Key Dnvers—organizational and fundamental guidelines that ensure effective
IAQ programs for schools Five profiles in excellence are also showcased to dem-
onstrate how different school distncts applied the framework to create effective
and endunng LAQ programs.www iaqsymposium.comlenvisioningexcel lence.html
Climate Change Forum at TJNH
On June 19 EPA held a conference on
climate change at the University of
New Hampshire in Durham The con-
ference was held in conjunction with
EPA’s Office of Research and Develop-
ment, The Northeast States for Coor-
dinated Air Use Management (NES-
CAUM), The New England Interstate
Water Pollution Control Commission
(NEIWPCC) and Carbon Solutions
New England (UNH)
At the conference 200 scientists!
experts from academia, New Eng-
land’s interstate organizations, federal,
regional, state and municipal gov-
ernment came together to examine
the latest scientific research on the
impacts of climate change and what
can be done to prepare. Speakers gave
presentations on the impact to coastal
areas, health and air quality, water
resources and infrastructure, as well as
the tools and opportunities to prepare
for impacts. In addition, EPA an-
nounced the two New England estuar-
ies (Massachusetts Bays Program and
the New Hampshire Estuanes Project)
that are now part of EPA’s Climate
Ready Estuanes Program.
Find presentations and more on the
Climate Forum www epa.gov/regionl/
cI imatechange
Local Officials
to Advise EPA in
Boston
EPA’s Local Government Ad-
visory Committee (LGAC) will
meet in Boston on November 6-7,
2008 in EPA Region I Boston,
Massachusetts office. The Local
Government Advisory Commit-
tee, chartered in 1993 under the
Federal Advisory Committee
Act, is comprised of elected and
appointed local officials from
across the United States Its
charge is to provide advice and
recommendations that assist EPA
in developing a stronger partner-
ship with local governments to
deliver environmental services
and programs
Local officials are invited to
speak dunng the committee’s
public comment period Interest-
ed individuals should email
Doug Gutro in advance at
gutro.doug epa gov
For more information on EPA’s
LGAC, visit www epa gov/ocir/
scas_Igac/Igac_index htm
The latest scientific research
on the impacts of climate
change was examined
—5—

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Healthy Homes
Most people spend over 900/o of their time indoors. indoor environments,
especially homes are where you and your family may spend much of your
time. EPA has created a brochure offering ways to make homes healthier
places. It includes information on indoor and outdoor air quality, pesti-
cides, toxic household products, mold, tobacco smoke, radon, drinking
water contaminants and making your home “green”. It is available in print
and electronically (in both English and Spanish) and covers lots of different
topics and links to Web sites.
www.epa.gov/region 1/healthyhomes/index.html
0 printed on 100% recycled paper, with a minimum of 50% post-consumer waste, using vegetable based inks
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency New England
1 Congress Street
Suite 1100
Boston, MA 02114
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
An Equal Opportunity Employer
For an A to Z list of activities and kid friendly information for a rainy day this fall check out:
EPA New England Local
Government Office
EPA New England
1 Congress Street
Suite 1100
Boston, MA 02114-2023
phone (617) 918-1021
fax (617) 918-0021
Editor
Jeanethe Falvey
falvey.leanethe@epa.gov
EPA Contributors
Molly Barker, Doug Gutro,
Halida Hatic, Christine Hoyak,
Amy Miller, Kate Renahan,
Alison Simcox, Jeri Weiss &
Paul Wintrob
www.epa.gov/reg ion]
EPA-901 -R-07-006
FaIl 2008
[ www.epa.gov/kids/atozindex.htm
)

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