This project will serve as an example of the principle that global problems have local origins and that careful monitoring and study of the local environment is the first step in being a global thinker. In Project Clean air there are five activities designed to help students learn about the quality of the air near their school or home. Internet tools of the GTP will enable them to share their findings with others, as well as have access to other GTPers' local investigations. In Project Clean Air, students will look at a primary and a secondary pollutant. Primary pollutants enter the atmosphere from identifiable sources, such as pollen from plants, dust from soil, or carbon monoxide from vehicle emissions.
Secondary pollutants form from chemically altered primary pollutants, as in the case of ozone.
There are natural sources of both primary and secondary pollutants. Particulates are solid particles or liquids in the atmosphere. Particulates can settle on surfaces. Particles can provide surfaces on which water condenses. This can increase fog, clouds, and rain depending upon weather conditions.