Did you ever wonder about who the big polluters are in Ohio? Well, the EPA has provided an easy way to visualize that data in Google Earth. For example, I downloaded the Ohio data for NOx emissions (in tons) and took two images of Ohio, one statewide and another focusing on Franklin County. NOx might not be the most interesting thing to track, but it’ll do for demonstration purposes.
First, statewide:
You’ll note that most of Ohio’s polluters (of NOx, anyway) are power generation plants. The higher the line, the more tons of NOx produced. Next, a close up of Franklin County:
You’ll note there aren’t any major polluters of NOx in the Columbus area, but you can see Lake Erie area polluters in the background.
This is an example of competent government – providing data to citizens in an easy to use and understand format to foster transparency. This is one of the important things our tax money pays for, and the kind of stuff Obama is talking about when he talks about data access for citizens. We want more of this, in all areas, and less of the Bush Administration’s typical secrecy.
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