More than 100 air quality and transportation professionals from across the country use the Exchange to share ideas and information on their public education and outreach activities. The Exchange is a great place to get feedback, find out about new tools, and learn what other communities are doing to address air quality and transportation problems. Initially launched as a tool for partners in the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air program, communications professionals from the public and private sector now use the Exchange to discuss a broad range of air quality and transportation issues. A sampling of topics discussed on the Exchange recently includes:

• Based on EPA's air quality index, a uniform index that provides general information to the public about air quality and associated health effects, some communities have modified the names of their "ozone action day" programs. In response to a query on the Exchange, the City of Dallas (Texas) Air Pollution Control program provided background on their decision to modify the name of their ozone program to mirror terms that local weather reporters use. A group of state, city and EPA representatives met to discuss various options and selected "Air Pollution Watch" for ozone alert days, and "Air Pollution Warning" for days when ozone levels are high. This terminology parallels the "Tornado Watch" and "Tornado Warning" that the public is accustomed to hearing, and has helped raise awareness about air quality conditions in the Dallas area.
  
  
• Last year, to assist drivers with limited strength/flexibility in their hands who have a hard time loosening and tightening their vehicle's gas caps, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WI DNR) initiated a "Gas Cap Wrench" project. Through the project, the WI DNR gives away free, specially designed wrenches that can help ensure gas caps are properly sealed. According to the WI DNR, a loose or missing gas cap can cause up to 30 gallons of gasoline to evaporate from a gas tank in one year. Through the Exchange, the state of Wisconsin provided information on its program and its success - to date the state has given away almost 20,000 wrenches!
  
  
• Some areas have begun forecasting based on EPA's 8-hour ozone standard. On the Exchange, New Jersey's Ozone Action Partnership (NJOAP) responded to a query by Phoenix's Valley Metro to provide its experience with the 8-hour ozone standard. Although initially concerned that the 8-hour ozone standard would cause confusion, the NJOAP reported that it continues to declare "ozone action" days when there is an "unhealthy" forecast, but that it issues an "ozone health watch" on days when the forecast is "unhealthy for sensitive groups." NJOAP notes that this approach has worked well and that virtually all its partners now incorporate ozone action and health watch messages in their public information activities.

More than 50 transportation and air quality professionals from across the country currently participate in the Exchange. By offering this tool, our goal is to provide our It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air partners and others engaged in air quality and transportation issues with a place for sharing their ideas, materials and experiences.

We welcome your participation on the Exchange. Signing up to participate is easy. Simply visit the Exchange sign-up page and complete a "My Interests" form.

Please contact us with any questions about the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air initiative.