Georgia has just about all the amenities an outdoor enthusiast could want. Rivers and creeks to navigate by kayak. Hiking trails and varied terrain to negotiate on foot. For the adventurous, hang gliding near Lookout Mountain. But when it comes to commuting, there's one mode of travel that has effectively merged our appreciation for being outdoors with our need to get to work: riding a bicycle.

Bicycling is no longer just for weekend warriors. In fact, more than 80,000 commute trips were logged in 2008 by bicycle commuters participating in The Clean Air Campaign's incentive programs. Looking back over a three-year period in Georgia, that number has doubled, which tells us there's a sizable group of bicycle commuters with a passion for pedaling their way to their jobs. In fact, The Clean Air Campaign's executive director has been known to bike to the office every now and then. What he and others have figured out is that they can trade a little sweat equity for the freedom of being able to ride unabated through gridlock and not have to scavenge for parking. Everyone benefits from having one less car on the road, which means less air pollution. And if it wasn't fun, commuters wouldn't do it.

Other groups are starting to take note of the rising bicycle commuter trend:

• More office buildings are weighing options for bike racks and shower facilities.

• The federal government, through 2009 stimulus legislation, is even offering a $20 per month tax credit for bicycle commuters (though it is still unclear at this early stage how the commuter or the employer can file this deduction).

• RideSmart launched a program in 2008 called Bike Buddy to help pair together groups of bicycle commuters who ride similar routes for safety.

Coming up in mid-May, the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition is teaming up with several area partners, including local Transportation Management Associations (TMAs) and The Clean Air Campaign, to promote a week's worth of events leading up to Bike to Work Day on Thursday, May 14. Bicycle commuters will be able to refuel with refreshments in areas throughout town, get information on bike routes and confident city cycling classes at a tabling event set to take place in Woodruff Park and celebrate all things bicycle with a party at a yet-to-be-determined location. Keep an eye out for more information on this fun series of events.

It's incredible to think that in other countries like Denmark, more than one-third of commuters get to school or work via bicycle. And they look good doing it. This photo appears on an intriguing blog devoted to the high style of well-dressed gentlemen traveling by bicycle.

If you had favorable weather conditions, good equipment and a commute of less than 10 miles, would you try it?

As the trees and day lilies start blooming, it's clear Mother Nature has begun to cast her spell over the region. And with the arrival of springtime, our attention turns to the long list of tasks that make up "spring cleaning." Of course, everyone's list is different ... but how "green" is each of us committed to making our spring cleaning activities?

Here are a few common spring cleaning tasks to consider "greening" as you write up your to-do list:

1. Tune up your lawnmower and lawn equipment
Before you wheel that mower out of the shed and crank it up, remember that the engine probably has not been turned over in months. When you consider that the US Environmental Protection Agency has found a typical gas-powered mower gives off as much pollution per hour as 11 cars, it's worth getting the mower tuned up before yard season begins. New filter, oil and spark plug, plus some fuel stabilizer, and you're ready to roll. If you're in the market for a new machine, why not check out an electric mower?

2. Do a quick check around the outside of your house
Inspect your air conditioner for any obstructions around it and make sure it's in good working condition. After dark, turn on the lights inside, walk around your house and look for any gaps around windows and doors where light comes through -- a sure sign more sealant is needed. Get lots of other ideas here.

3. Put your old PC equipment into the hands of someone who could really use it
Technology moves by in dog years, especially when it comes to personal computers. If you're getting a new CPU or monitor and planning to scrap your old equipment, don't send it to the landfill. Give your Pentium or faster computers and parallel equipment (monitors, mice, speakers, printers, modems, etc) away to ReBoot Georgia, a non-profit that refits old computers for use by persons with disabilities. Contributions to ReBoot are tax-deductible.

Oh, yeah ... one other line that should be on your to-do list: if you've changed your e-mail address in the past 6 months, make sure The Clean Air Campaign has your correct e-mail address to send out Smog Alerts so you'll know when the next day's air quality is forecasted to be unhealthy. That way, you can plan ahead for any activities you might consider doing outdoors. Simply register here.

What other "green" tips or suggestions do you have that might help other "weekend warriors" who are ready to roll up their sleeves and begin spring cleaning?

Whether expressed in terms of billions of dollars in financial bailout money or tons of pollution created by commuter traffic, our nation’s young people stand out as the group whose future is most affected by our actions today. The faltering economy and the growing consensus toward environmental sustainability present an incredible opportunity: each of us is empowered not only to learn from the past, but also to teach future generations about what we can improve on … and how.

The opportunity to teach youths about protecting the air we breathe is taking shape each day across Georgia in more than 80 elementary, middle and high schools that participate in the Clean Air Schools program. Through this expanded program that launched at the start of the 2008-2009 school year, The Clean Air Campaign has equipped more than 200,000 students, parents, teachers, staff, bus drivers and administrators with the tools they need to:

• reduce unnecessary engine idling in the carpool and bus lane
• teach air quality lessons with plans approved by the Georgia Department of Education
• promote school bus ridership
• encourage students who live within a mile of their school to try walking

The exciting part about these programs is that they are so easy to put into practice and get young people thinking differently about their role in protecting the environment. That’s why Earth Day Network, in partnership with The Clean Air Campaign and The UPS Foundation, this week helped make the Clean Air Schools No-Idling program and lesson plans available to schools across the nation.

Teaching young people about the impact an idling engine can have on fuel savings, vehicle emissions and air quality expands their thinking to sustainability, conservation and thrift. It’s a certainty that with each new generation, these issues will take on increasing importance.

How do you introduce topics like these to your children/students? What are some of the ways you’re leading by example in your household/classroom? Post a response and let others read about your great ideas.

We’re still a few months away from the start of Smog Season in Georgia, the period from May through September when ground-level ozone is most likely to form. But there’s another lingering air pollution issue that affects our health year-round. Concentrations of fine particulate matter, known more broadly as “particle pollution,” are present in the air we breathe.

If you’ve ever been within sight of a smokestack or a tailpipe, you’ve no doubt seen that black plume of smoke spring forth and then dissipate. The process of combustion (burning something, whether it be gasoline, wood, coal, etc) produces small airborne fragments of dust, soot and chemicals – so small that they are invisible to the naked eye. Particle pollution can also occur in nature: think pollen in the springtime.

Fine particulate matter is so miniscule, it’s a mere fraction of the diameter of a human hair. At 2.5 micrometers in diameter, this visual (courtesy of the US Environmental Protection Agency) puts into perspective just how small particle pollution can be:

When these pollutants are present in high concentrations, what can they do to your health? For one, particle pollution can penetrate deep into your lungs, slipping past the body’s defenses and making it hard to breathe. This can trigger asthma attacks or even create situations where emergency medical attention is needed. Particle pollution can also irritate the eyes, nose and throat.

There are ways to curb particle pollution emissions. Coal-fired power plants are adding “scrubbers” at facilities to act as giant pipe cleaners that can reduce overall particle pollution output. Certain counties enact open burning bans that prohibit citizens from burning yard waste. Catalytic converters on buses, trucks, cars and vans help reduce output. And of course driving less helps, too.

But the big-picture challenge is to reduce energy consumption in a state that is among the nation’s fastest growing. How do we motivate people to change their habits when we’re talking about a problem that is invisible to the naked eye?

We all have our workday morning rituals: rise and shine, get cleaned up and dressed, fire up the coffee maker, etc. But there’s a habit many of us get into in the colder months that is completely unnecessary. Idling your vehicle’s engine to “warm it up” for several minutes before you drive can actually diminish the engine’s performance, release pollution into the air and waste fuel.

Most of us grew up believing that idling a vehicle in cold conditions is good for the engine, but the truth is that it can wear down engine components, which are built to work more efficiently and produce fewer emissions in today’s cars than in the cars manufactured decades ago. The best way to warm up an engine today is to put it in drive and go.

Unnecessarily engine idling hurts air quality. The US Environmental Protection Agency advises that each minute of unnecessary vehicle engine idling can emit Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) and other pollutants into the air, to the tune of nearly 10 grams a minute in typical personal vehicles during cold weather.

In various consumer publications, the EPA has also advised that you’ll save fuel by turning the engine off and restarting it again if you expect to idle for more than 30 seconds. Something to think about next time you’re sitting at a red light or waiting in line at the drive-thru.

The Clean Air Campaign is enjoying success in getting carpool parents to shut off their engines while waiting for children at a Clean Air School. In almost every case, the decision to not idle becomes a reflex reaction when drivers learn that exhaust emissions can harm children (who breathe, on average, 50 percent more air per pound of body weight than adults).

Even employers with diesel engine fleet vehicles are getting in on the act, encouraging drivers to shut off their engines while waiting at the loading dock. For businesses, it’s the transportation equivalent of turning off the lights when the building is empty.

Reducing unnecessary vehicle engine idling can truly be no-brainer … when commuters have the presence of mind to remember to do it.

This is an ideal time to reflect on the past year and look ahead with anticipation to the future. We know what stories made headlines in 2008 as they relate to The Clean Air Campaign's mission. Here are a few themes that defined 2008 as they relate to you:

Personal Finance
$4 a gallon gas stormed onto the scene and made it financially painful to drive. None of us knew if the price would ever come back down, so many of us started to use alternatives like carpooling, riding transit, teleworking, vanpooling, even bicycling to work. The Clean Air Campaign had a breakthrough year as a result, with enrollment in our incentive programs up three times over the levels achieved in 2007.

This unprecedented demand for access to our financial incentives is a reflection of the economic challenges more commuters and employers are facing as we all come to grips with the recession. It's also the reason The Clean Air Campaign and its partner organizations have made a business decision to change the maximum payout of our $3 a day incentive that rewards solo drivers who make the switch to an alternative commute. Effective January 1, 2009 the cap for this incentive will change from $180 to $100 so that more commuters can take advantage of this popular program, which is now entering its eighth year.

Public Health
Despite tougher air quality standards, metro Atlanta experienced fewer smog days than in 2007. In all, there were 29 days when conditions either reached unhealthy levels for sensitive groups (Code Orange, 25 days)) or unhealthy levels for all (Code Red, 4 days). But if the region were still under the old standard for measurement -- as we were in 2007 -- it is likely that we would have only observed 15 smog days.

Are the actions of Georgia commuters moving the needle on air quality? Too early to tell. Although the region has been coping with a prolonged drought, the late summer brought unusually cooler temperatures and conditions that were less conducive to allow ground-level ozone to form. But the impact of gas prices meant fewer cars on the road -- and fewer tailpipes contributing to poor air quality.

Quality of Life
A study of traffic in major metro areas ranked Atlanta's as the second most painful commute, behind only Los Angeles. Not a designation to boast about, but it's easy to see why traffic is such a grind here: the average roundtrip daily commute in metro Atlanta takes 72 minutes to complete. We're giving up meaningful time we could be spending with loved ones, pursuing hobbies, advancing our interests.
One finding from this study reveals 40% of Atlanta respondents indicated they had intentionally skipped a car trip because of expected traffic. Does that sound like you?

"Father Time" is performing a somewhat symbolic gesture this New Year's Eve before the clock ticks down on 2008. One second will be added to 2008 in order to rebalance a small discrepancy with the atomic clock kept by the scientific community. We get one extra second to enjoy life. How will you spend it? Here's hoping you don't have to spend it behind the wheel stuck in traffic.

In a banner year that brought high gas prices, traffic angst and environmental sustainability to the forefront, an unprecedented number of commuters, employers and schools chose to become part of the solution.

The past 10 months seem to have gone by in dog years. Somewhere in the maelstrom of activity, more Georgians found relief from the high cost of commuting and from poor air quality. For The Clean Air Campaign and its partners, 2008 has been a year of noteworthy accomplishments. Here is our top 5 list of landmark success stories so far this year:

1. With a 3X increase over 2007, the regional incentive program that pays commuters $3 a day to use alternatives provided relief from soaring prices at the pump.
2. Twice as many employers joined The Clean Air Campaign this year compared to the same period in 2007. Today, some 1,500 employers are Partners of either The Clean Air Campaign or one of Atlanta’s nine transportation management associations.
3. In 2008, awareness of The Clean Air Campaign’s efforts expanded beyond metro Atlanta’s borders, positioning Georgia as a national leader in commute options programs. These success stories were touted nationally by the likes of NBC, CBS, CNN, Forbes and USA Today.
4. Nearly 60 schools in metro Atlanta signed on to be Clean Air Schools, representing more than 40,000 students.
5. In March, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency strengthened air quality standards to better protect public health. Metro Atlanta braced for more bad air days. But during the 2008 smog season, metro Atlanta experienced 29 violations for ozone, fewer than last year despite the more stringent standards.

So what does all this mean for the region? Each day, with support from the area's nine transportation management associations, The Clean Air Campaign's programs eliminate at least 1.2 million vehicle miles of travel and keep 600 tons of pollution out of the air. But we know there's so much more we can do. It starts by creating more conversations with more commuters, employers and schools.

So, what do you think the region needs to do in order to double these results? Weigh in and let us know.

After having been spellbound during China's blockbuster Olympic presentation in August, most of us have moved on. However, I can't help but notice the unmistakable similarity between Atlanta and Beijing in each host city's post-Olympic experience.

In 1996 (The Clean Air Campaign's first year in existence) as in 2008, both cities wrestled with air quality and traffic challenges. Measures implemented to reduce traffic congestion and alleviate air pollution reached employers, commuters and industry. And guess what? They worked.

When the Olympics were in town, Atlanta roads were surprisingly navigable. Many employers allowed members of their workforces to telecommute – it sounded so futuristic then – in order to ease anticipated gridlock. The number of ozone days dipped dramatically in what is considered the peak of smog season. One study even found the number of asthma-related ER visits declined. These findings were a glimpse into what was possible as The Clean Air Campaign began its mission to improve quality of life in the region.

A similar phenomenon is taking root half a world away. With the conclusion of the Paralympic Games in Beijing this week, residents are actually clamoring for a continuation of the stringent policies that city enacted. The measure that got the most attention was a mandate banning cars from driving on odd- or even-numbered days based on license plate numbers.

What would that be like if we chose to do that here?

One recent news story quotes a 48-year-old Beijing resident who declares, "The air hasn't been this clean since I was a child. The government needs to keep it this way."

Great quote. But does the responsibility fall squarely on policymakers to create change like this, or should we all be working toward it? Post a reply and let readers know your stance.

Back to school and back to the carpool line. Every year parents wait anxiously in the car to greet their students after the first day back. It’s very tempting to wait with the air conditioning running, especially since we’ve all heard the myth that idling uses less fuel than restarting your car. Actually, idling for 30 seconds wastes more gas than restarting your engine.

And every minute spent idling releases 6.6 pounds of pollution into the air around your child’s school. Pollution from vehicle emissions is especially harmful to children, who are lower to the ground near vehicle tailpipes and breathe on average 50 percent more per pound of body weight than adults. This means their young lungs could be breathing in twice as much pollution.

Not a healthy thought.

Through the Clean Air Schools program, The Clean Air Campaign offers solutions to unhealthy air on school grounds. No idling campaigns, walking school buses and bus ridership empower students to do their part to make the air cleaner and healthier.

Do the programs really work? During the 2007- 2008 school year, 10 Gwinnett County Public Schools participated in a no-idle pilot program and reduced idling on schools grounds by 69 percent, more than double their goal. And thanks to a grant from The UPS Foundation, The Clean Air Campaign will be able to take no idling campaigns to almost 125 schools this coming school year.

Through our longstanding partnership with Mothers & Others for Clean Air, The Clean Air Campaign is supporting greater awareness among school administrators of the health risks that children face when they participate in outdoor physical activities on Smog Alert days.

Do you know if your school system employs no-idling measures? Are students encouraged to form walking school buses or carpool? Let us know how your school keeps the air healthy or blog about getting involved with Clean Air Schools.

Today we’re exactly halfway through smog season. How are we doing so far? Good question.

As you may know, the EPA tightened ozone standards earlier this year. As a result, the Atlanta region was expected to have more violations.

So far during smog season, metro Atlanta has registered 16 ozone violations (2 code red, unhealthy for everyone; 14 code orange, unhealthy for sensitive groups). Last year during the same period, we logged 12 ozone violations (2 code red; 10 code orange).

If the standard had not changed, eight of this year’s violations would not have been recorded. So while we have more violations than last year, you could say that we’re having a better year. But the bottom line is that standards changed for a very good reason: to better protect human health. From that perspective, even one violation is one too many.

If you are changing your commuting habits to be more “green,” (or even to save money), rest assured that your hard work is making a difference. Each day in metro Atlanta, your relationship with The Clean Air Campaign is helping to eliminate 1.2 million vehicle miles of travel and keep 600 tons of pollution out of the air. But commuters in the region can do more.

Besides ditching your solo driving habits, there are other simple actions you can take to protect your health:

1. Sign up to receive Smog Alerts.
2. Learn how to protect yourself and your family from the negative health effects of bad air.
3. Encourage others to do the same.

The hottest days of summer are still ahead of us, so please share any tips you have for reducing pollution on Smog Alert days.

And so you know we’re not alone in this fight, take a look at the new Olympic stadium in Beijing. The Christian Science Monitor reports that one reading of particle pollution at the stadium was seven times the World Health Organization’s recommended levels. Being part of the solution is more important than ever in our world. But, without question, being part of the solution must start with us taking action here in Georgia.