Climate Change

Reduce your carbon “paw print” and become a Polar Bear Pal

Turn off your engine while waiting in your car for 30 seconds or more (except in traffic). This is better for your engine and better for the planet!

Here are three things that you can do to idle less the easy way:

• Park your vehicle and go inside rather than waiting in the drive-through line
• Turn off your engine while waiting in loading/pick-up zones
• Download idling facts on the Polar Bear Pal Card and tell your friends!

Why should we stop idling?

Carbon dioxide is emitted by vehicles and other machinery as fuel is burned. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, every gallon of gas you use produces about 19 pounds of carbon dioxide.

When there is too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, it acts like a blanket, trapping the sun’s heat. This extra heat can change a habitat so much that some of the plants and animals that depend on that habitat can no longer survive there.

It’s not just polar bears that are affected by these changes in seasonal temperature. In the Pacific Northwest, salmon, orcas, wolverines, western pond turtles, Oregon silverspot butterflies, Oregon spotted frogs and burrowing owls are also at risk.

What else can we do?

• ride a bike
• turn down your thermostat
• shop local
• use public transit
• tell all your friends and family about what they can do
• Explore more actions at Polar Bears Internationsl

Find out more about climate change from these awesome websites:

Idle Free for Polar Bears – Polar Bears International (PBI) for educators

National Clean Diesel Campaign – Clean School Bus

Airwatch NW: Anti-Idling Program for Schools

Environmental Protection Agency – Comprehensive information on the issues of climate change

National Geographic – Short films on climate change

NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) – Our planet’s vital signs and the latest energy innovations

NPR (National Public Radio) – Robert Krulwich’s five-part cartoon series “Global Warming: It’s All About Carbon.”

NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration) – Arctic Theme Page

Washington State Department of Ecology – Clear and concise explanations of global warming, climate change and the impacts on humans and wildlife

Plant a Tree – or more

As the climate changes, people and animals depend on healthy plants for habitat, food, clean air, carbon absorption, even protection during natural disasters like earthquakes (they mitigate landslides) and tsunamis (they reduce wave force and offer shelter).

Yet plants are also threatened by climate change – they can’t migrate as fast as animals when it’s too hot or dry. We’ve filled our Zoo with a myriad of plants and ecosystems that benefit animals and humans alike. Explore ours – and plant your own to help slow the effects of climate change.