B²
Breathe Better Air
An anti-idling/clean air campaign

What is B²?

The B² (Breathe Better) program is an anti-idling/clean air campaign. The goal of B² is to help protect the health and safety of children by reducing harmful vehicle emissions around school campuses. Solutions involve the efforts of students, faculty, administration, staff, local government and community partners working together.

Why is vehicle idling a problem?

Mobile sources such as personal vehicles, school buses and delivery trucks are major contributors to air pollution in South Carolina. "Idling" means that a vehicle's engine is turned on but the vehicle is not in motion.

Idling wastes about 1/2 mile worth of fuel every minute and releases many harmful pollutants.

Idling = 0 miles per gallon

Why focus on school campuses?

Large numbers of vehicles idle on school campuses every day, during morning arrival and especially during afternoon dismissal. Students, parents, teachers, and bus drivers may all be exposed to higher levels of vehicle exhaust at these times. Additionally, exhaust can be drawn into the school's intake vents and accumulate inside the building.

Children are more sensitive to air pollution than adults because they breathe twice as much, and their lungs are still developing. Pollutants from vehicle exhaust have been linked to asthma, heart disease, certain cancers, and other respiratory diseases. Asthma is the most common chronic illness in children and a major cause of school absences.

What are schools doing about it?

Schools around the state are taking action by joining the anti-idling campaign. Their actions include: enacting school anti-idling policies for school buses, parent drivers, and delivery trucks; posting  "no idling" signs around the school campus; raising the awareness of the entire school community; and pursuing other school projects aimed at improving air quality.

Because of the health benefits of improved air quality, the B2 program received a Children's Environmental Health Recognition Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2006.

Partners and Related Programs 

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