Help the planet; stop idling

A few election cycles ago, a talking point of the Republican Party was to "Save the future for our grandchildren." This, of course, applied to the federal deficit. Not a bad slogan, but applied to the wrong cause.

As is shown by Mother Nature herself, raising temperatures, melting glaciers, loss of sea ice and migrating beetles killing trees, global warming is a non-debatable fact.

Having just celebrated another Earth Day, let us apply this slogan to saving the future of our planet so our grandchildren may be able to live and flourish on it. As great a problem as this is, we should not be dismayed and think there is nothing that can be done as individuals.

We have heard all the usual: use CFL, now LED lighting, recycle, use less electricity, reuse grocery bags, etc. Yet, there is one thing that can be done by individuals that has not received much attention: STOP idling your car engine.

A long time ago, frequently stopping and starting an automobile engine was considered harmful to the engine. With new cars, that is no longer the case. In fact, testing has shown that if a car has an engine idling for more than 30 seconds, it is far more efficient to shut off the engine.

Think of all the times you sit in the car with the engine running: at the bank ATM, at fast food drive-ups, waiting for a 100 car train to pass by, waiting to pick up your spouse at the train station, your child at school.

Your car gets 0 miles to the gallon while your engine is idling. Not only do you save gas money, but the lack of carbon dioxide going into the atmosphere is reduced - just what the planet doctor has ordered.

Myrna Frankel

Schaumburg