EUGENE, Ore., July 25, 2011 – The “Idling Gets You Nowhere” campaign—which includes help from Portland State University and the city of Portland—begins Wednesday, July 27.

Many people think Portland and Multnomah County have clean air. But Oregonians are being exposed to large amounts of toxics in the air at potentially harmful levels. Idling vehicles, whether at drive-thrus, schools, or in traffic, release dangerous particulate matter that contribute to increased risks of cancer, upper respiratory illnesses and asthma. In addition, idling causes engine damage and wastes fuel. To reduce engine wear and save money, this campaign recommends that car engines be turned off if idling more than 10 seconds and commercial vehicles turned off if idling more than 20 seconds.
The campaign kick-off starts with activities during Hawthorne Bridge lifts to educate drivers about the benefits of no idling. For more information about the campaign, go to the county’s website, or check out the Facebook page.

“Asthma contributes to school absences in children and air pollution is one of the leading causes of asthma,” said Multnomah County Chair Jeff Cogen. “We need to encourage our friends, families and colleagues to do their part to reduce vehicle idling to protect the health of our community.”

Multnomah County is committed to doing its part in reducing the health impacts from unnecessary idling and has strengthened its internal anti-idling policy as part of the campaign. The policy mandates that county fleet vehicles and commercial vehicles on county property reduce idling, and encourages vendors doing business with the county to adopt their own internal anti-idling policies.