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Should the Minneapolis School Board vote to opt out of the state mandate that students recite the Pledge of Allegiance each week? Yes No Current Results

WASTEFUL SPENDING EXPOSED:  The Office of Student Engagement  School Food Service Propaganda

POLLUTION PATROL -- The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that diesel exhaust contains 40 toxic chemicals and 15 carcinogens, which together increase the risk of asthma, lung and heart disease. Yale University researchers have concluded that people on school buses are exposed to 5-15 times the levels of particulate pollution than at nearby monitoring sites. There is no known safe level of exposure to diesel exhaust for youths, especially those with respiratory illnesses.

In July 2003, a Minnesota law to protect children from diesel exhaust took effect. The law requires schools to reduce unnecessary idling of school buses in front of schools--and relocate bus parking zones away from air intake vents--or relocate air intake vents.

In response to the law, the Minneapolis Public Schools established a policy on bus idling. But the policy appears to only address idling times and instructions for drivers, not the location of bus loading zones.

Idling and back-to-front lineup of buses in loading zones increases particulate pollution inside school buses. The spacing of buses at many Minneapolis schools is very close--and that means students are likely to have to contend with pollution inside buses.

Some citizen groups are taking action and Vinny's Education Coalition encourages you to do so as well.--Tee Doff, Vinny's Graftwatch Volunteer

Helpful Links on Diesel Bus Pollution

• MN Office of Environmental Assistance No Idling Fliers
• Sierra Club No Idling Page
• Longfellow Newspaper that had story on this topic
• Yale University Diesel Exhaust Study

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