Crown Primary Pupils Go Electric As Clean Air Day Drives Into Inverness
School pupils in Inverness were treated to the sight of an electric car being driven into the playground as they took part in an event to mark Clean Air Day.
The youngsters took a break from lessons to gather around the Highland Council Nissan Leaf, driven by the local authority’s Climate Change Co-ordinator Heidi de Haas, which she parked up outside Crown Primary School in Springfield Road on Thursday June 14.
Around 200 pupils, from the primary four to seven age groups, were given a talk about air pollution and active travel at their afternoon assembly in the school hall by John Bynorth, Policy and Communications Officer at CAD’s co-ordinators, Environmental Protection Scotland (EPS).
EPS is co-ordinating the event on behalf of the Scottish Government’s Cleaner Air for Scotland (CAFS) strategy with major events in cities such as Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen, and towns across Scotland on Thursday.
Mr Bynorth told the pupils how young people, due to their small size, are more susceptible to pollutants such as Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) from car exhausts and Particulate Matter (PM’s) which are given off by car brakes.
He talked about how his own two young girls had recently taken part in an experiment to test the impacts of pollution on three separate journeys to their nursery school in a car, bus and as they walked alongside a quiet and a busy road.
He said the research had thrown up how the children were more exposed to pollution than an adult while walking to school next to the busy road. They also suffered pollution sitting in a car in heavy traffic.
Mr Bynorth urged pupils to consider cycling or walking to school to cut down on air pollution and told them of the health benefits.
He also told them about an electric car, driven by the Aberdeen-based adventurer Chris Ramsay, which competed in the 10,000-mile Mongol rally and that diesel and petrol cars would not be on the roads when they were old enough to pass their driving tests. Mr Ramsay is due to visit the Town House on the eve of Clean Air Day this week.
Mr Bynorth said: “I was very impressed by the inquisitive questions and knowledge that many of the pupils showed about electric cars, active travel and what they and their families can do to help cut down on air pollution.
“Their enthusiasm for the subject knows no bounds and that’s a good sign it will continue in the weeks and months ahead – because Clean Air Day can’t just be a one-day event that finishes on Thursday night.
“I’m delighted Crown Primary School and the Carbon Clever team at the Highland Council invited EPS up to the school as it shows how much schools within the local authority are getting behind the need to educate young people about air quality.
“I can’t wait to come back and see how much more the children have learnt about air quality this time next year.”
The event was also attended by councillors Trish Robertson, Vice Chair of the Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee, and Isabelle MacKenzie, who represents the Millburn ward where the 300-pupil school is sited.
Headteacher Miriam MacDonald said she was delighted with how her pupils had engaged in the event and plans to encourage the classes to find out even more about air pollution.
She said: “They are the people who are going to change the world, the citizens of the future, and are already very world aware.
“The habits they form now, such as bringing in packaging free snacks and being aware of the need to cut down on plastic waste – as some of our primary one pupils already do – will be taken into secondary school and, then when they eventually become parents, passed to their own children.
“It’s important for us to be involved in more activities around air quality beyond Clean Air Day and we always aim to encourage more families to take up walking, cycling and other active travel activities.”
Principal Teacher Suzanne Dunbar said: “We are going to promote the walking to school element of Clean Air Day throughout the year.
“Our children can speak very well and at length about air quality, the environment and their right to being able to grow up in a city that doesn’t have (high levels) of air pollution.
“The visit was very helpful because some of the children didn’t realise that electric cars are on the roads already.”
The Highlands have 49 electric charging points with more planned to cope with the expected rise in electric vehicles.
The local authority is also in the early stages of six-month pilot scheme to allow employees access to ultra-low emission vehicles via a car club for business use at their offices, including at the main headquarters in Inverness and other centres in Fort William, Golspie and Dingwall.
Inverness city centre already has its own car club in designated parking bays for members of the public to use.
Cllr Robertson, who represents the Culloden and Ardersier ward, said: “We are doing a lot with active travel, electric vehicles and car clubs. A lot of the councillors, particularly from outside the city, are signing up to use the vehicles.
“We’ve one councillor who drives through from Fort William in an electric vehicle for meetings and he’s been managing fine, even in the bad weather.
“Any events like Clean Air Day which gets children involved in the environment can only be a good thing. We’ve some very innovative schools in the region and good habits last a lifetime. By getting the children involved, they can influence their parents.“Clean Air Day’s a good way of raising awareness about air pollution and its health impacts. We have to take care of our environment.
Cllr MacKenzie, who cycled to the event on her electric bike, was behind a motion passed last month which will see Highland Council adopt single use cups to cut down on plastic waste.
She added: “We need to keep the momentum from Clean Air Day going all year. Events such as this may inspire pupils going up to secondary school to take up a career in environment or science.
"Councils can do their bit through polocoes such as no longer using disposable cups.
“I’m ticking a lot of the boxes. My electric bike can go up to 30 miles and I’ve been using it more as a result!
Cllr Allan Henderson, Chair of Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee said: “The Highland Council is working hard to reduce its emissions and carbon footprint, which has a direct positive impact on clean air in the region. The Council is very supportive the national Clean Air Day campaign, and is raising awareness of this important issue with staff and the wider community.”
He added: “The Council is making a conscious effort to reduce vehicle emissions by increasing the number of electric vehicles in its fleet, and has recently launched ultra-low emission car club vehicles at many of its offices. This scheme will help many staff to move away from using their own cars for Council business, which should further help reduce our overall footprint. In addition, we are encouraging active travel and lift sharing to reduce emissions from commuting journeys and to encourage fewer vehicles to travel to the same locations each day. We will also be raising awareness about the importance of reducing vehicle idling, especially outside schools.“
Meanwhile, NHS Highland has backed Clean Air Day’s efforts to cut air pollution saying it is well recognised that poor air quality can have short and long-term adverse effects on health.
A spokesman said: “Healthcare is a significant contributor to public sector carbon emissions and we are aware we have a responsibility to address this. We have worked closely with partner organisations such as Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the Highland Council and Health Facilities Scotland to finalise and implement our Sustainable Development Plan.
We have a number of active campaigns and strategies to reduce our carbon footprint and encourage active travel among our staff.”
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