SURVENT

So I caught this headlined article yesterday on CNN and am still scratching my head at this.

Most states aren't doing enough to protect children from the diesel exhaust many of them inhale while riding or waiting for school buses, an environmental advocacy group said in a report Wednesday.

No state received an A grade in the Union of Concerned Scientists' National School Bus Report Card, although it noted that many are working to cut school bus emissions, which can contribute to asthma and other respiratory ailments.

"School buses can be a major source of pollution exposure for children," said Patricia Monahan, an analyst for the group.

Does someone pay Patricia Monahan for her brilliant insite? It's no newsflash that those plumes of black smoke that billow from buses are not good to inhale. It stinks like all get out because it is full of nastiness. I rode on these same buses when I was a child and I turned out OK, I think.

Ninety-five percent of the nation's school buses are diesel-powered, and the group is recommending that they be refitted with fuel oxygenators or other anti-pollution equipment. The group also wants buses over 12 years old to be replaced by newer low-emission models.

"The oldest buses seem to pump out soot every time they climb a hill or accelerate," said Dennis J. McLerran, executive director of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency in Seattle. Those buses produce as much as 20 times the pollution of newer models, McLerran said.

Ok, so here is where I wonder how this group thinks their ideas make fiscal sense. The idea is plaudible and I always support ways to better the lives of children, so long as they are plausible and fiscally achievable. Where in the President's budget are upgrades to school buses for anti-pollution equipment calculated in? Last I heard, any anti-pollution product is expensive. Replace buses over 12 years old?? Magic 8 Ball says: "Not looking so good." Most schools in this country cannot even afford the basics needed to supply our children with a good education. In Michigan alone, many schools have had to temporarily halt bus services as they could not afford to run the buses and pay the drivers. Bus drivers have been outsourced to cut costs, cutting many long -time bus driver's jobs in the process. While it is great to do studies on topics such as this and it is easy to suggest what I consider no-brainer solutions that cost a lot of money, we should be focusing on getting our children educated. They would then be able to bring in higher incomes, leading to more tax money for the cities and states as well as more possible investment in the school systems by alumni. This would then allow them to upgrade buses and focus on issues like this. And with a better education, maybe the children would grow up and be able to suggest better solutions to pollution issues than this one:

"We're recommending you just turn the engines off whenever you can," said Dwight Sinila, transportation director of Michigan's education department.

Brilliant, purely brilliant idea.......