A study from Georgia State University found that retrofitting diesel school buses to reduce emissions improves students’ health and test scores.
The researchers compared school districts that had retrofitted many, some, or none of their diesel buses. They were able to analyze 10 years of data.
They found that students’ scores on standardized tests increased, especially for the English section of the tests.
They also found that students’ performance in fitness tests showed an improvement in respiratory health and aerobic capacity. The improvement in health was found even for students with no preexisting health problems (such as asthma). The researchers did not study school absenteeism, but that would also be expected to improve as students’ health improved.
They estimated that the cost for an average district to retrofit 10% of its fleet would be about $90,000, and it would yield significant benefits for students’ health and ability to learn. In addition, EPA has grants for school districts to clean up their school buses through the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) program.
News article about the study:
https://www.futurity.org/school-buses-pollution-diesel-2216642/
Link to the scientific article:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272775719301530
Note: even retrofitted diesel buses still create some air pollution, though not as much as an older diesel engine. And they generate quite a bit of maintenance costs for the districts (engine, transmissions, etc.). It would be really ideal if school districts would consider electric buses, which have no emissions and very little maintenance costs. Electric buses have a big upfront purchase price, but with so much less maintenance eventually pay for themselves, and they would have even more effect on air pollution, health, and school performance.
Please share this news with your school district board of education!
