Title: IQ and Pollution
Producer: Emily Halevy
Feed: CWKN #382, April 23, 2008
Time: 1:22
SUGGESTED LEAD: EVERY DAY DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR, MILLIONS OF KIDS RIDE A BIG YELLOW BUS TO GET TO SCHOOL.  WITH BOOKS IN HAND, THESE KIDS ARE ON THEIR WAY TO CLASS … BUT THE IRONY IS … THE TRIP MAY BE MAKING THEM DUMBER.  CONNECT WITH KIDS HAS THE STORY.
<<PKG>>

NATS: tail pipe, start engine (:00)

NARR:  IT’S RUSH HOUR … AND ON THE WAY TO AND FROM SCHOOL, MILLIONS OF KIDS ARE BREATHING AN HOUR OR TWO OF DIESEL EXHAUST … (:08)
 
SUPER: Adam Walker, 17 years old (:15)
“It smells like old gas.”

NATS: belch diesel exhaust (:16)

SUPER: Stevie Hall, 17 years old (:17)
“It just smells like old tar.  You know how they make tar on the roadwork, and something like that?  Yeah, it really stinks very bad.”

NARR:  IT DOESN’T JUST SMELL BAD.  

ACCORDING TO A STUDY BY THE HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, HEAVY EXPOSURE TO THE BLACK CARBON IN DIESEL EXHAUST CAN CAUSE A 3 AND A HALF POINT DROP IN I-Q.

EXPERTS SAY SCHOOL BUSES ARE ONE OF THE BIGGEST CULPRITS.

SO WHAT SHOULD KIDS DO? (:17)

NATS: bus pulling away (:41)

SUPER: Howard Frumkin, M.D., Environmental and Occupational Health (:44)
“Short term, the air in the buses is cleaner when the windows are open.  So parents and school districts and bus drivers ought to know that weather permitting, it’s better to keep the windows open.”

NARR: ALSO, HE SAYS … BUS DRIVERS AND PARENTS SHOULD ENCOURAGE KIDS TO SIT TOWARD THE FRONT … BECAUSE EXHAUST FUMES TEND TO COLLECT IN THE BACK OF THE BUS.

OR FOR SOME KIDS IT MIGHT BE BETTER TO AVOID THE BUS ALTOGETHER … (:12)

SOT: Howard Frumkin, M.D., Environmental and Occupational Health (1:07)
“If a child can walk to school or bike to school rather than ride the bus, that’s terrific for lots of reasons, it’s good exercise for children, and our kids need exercise these days.”

NATS: tail pipe, turns engine off (1:16)

NARR:  I’M COLLIN SIEDOR FOR CONNECT WITH KIDS. (:03)

SUGGESTED TAG:   CHILDREN ARE MORE AT RISK FROM THE DANGERS OF DIESEL EXHAUST THAN ARE ADULTS.  TO LEARN WHY, AND WHAT ELSE CAN BE DONE TO PREVENT ILLNESS … LOGON TO <LOCAL URL> AND CLICK THE CONNECT WITH KIDS ICON.