THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008
Turn Cars Off When Picking Up Children
By DWIGHT ESAU
Journal Reporter
Like much of the rest of the world, the Park Ridge Recreation and Park District is "going green."
"Idle-free zones" are a prime example of the latest way to do this.
The district requires the drivers of all of its vehicles, and encourages others, to turn off their engines when they are idling or waiting to pick someone up and drop them off at South Park, Oakton Ice Arena, the park district maintenance garage at Hinkley Park, and the Community and Senior Center.
The park district recently recommended that Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 adopt a similar approach with drivers who come to schools to pick up or drop off their children.
It was suggested that the idea be piloted at Washington and Lincoln schools, which are located near Centennial Park and the Community Center.
Monday night (Apr. 26), the district board of education liked the idea so much it decided to adopt it at all of its locations, which include eight schools and its administrative offices at 164 S. Prospect.
"Why are we just piloting it, if we like the idea, why not do it everywhere?" was board member Marty Joyce's question.
"This is strictly a voluntary effort, an environmental awareness program that helps make the environment a little cleaner and saves gasoline, and is just the right thing to do," said Superintendent Sally Pryor.
Attending the school board meeting was Dick Barton, newly elected park board president.
"We have had no negative feedback to our effort at four locations for a few months," he said. "We believe that children approaching an idling vehicle are exposed to gasoline fumes, and turning vehicles off will help alleviate that."
School board member Chris Mollett asked if the park district had any data on actual compliance to the idea from the public.
"We believe we are getting it from at least some, but we aren't measuring it," Barton said.
"We could do that in the future."
Signs encouraging drivers to turn off engines will be posted at all district schools as soon as possible, as they have been at the park locations.
In a related environmental matter, District 64 has received high marks from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) for the confirmed lack of dangerous levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in the boiler rooms and related areas of schools.
The agency tested the air at Emerson and Lincoln middle schools and Washington and Carpenter elementary schools for PCB levels.
"There is no health concern for potential exposure to PCBs for students, faculty, or staff at the schools," the agency said.
A low level of the substance was detected in the boiler exhaust cleanout doors at Carpenter, and the district and the agency said they have determined that the very low level of the detection does not pose a health risk at the school.
In addition, the district said it recently cleaned up PCB hazards in the boiler room of the district office at 164 S. Prospect. PCBs were discovered in the paint used in the room during the NICOR/EPA testing in the Park Ridge community last fall.
The cleanup work has been completed and a letter of approval has been received from the EPA, according to Jim Wuerffel, District 64 director of Buildings and Grounds.