Refer to the Lab 4.1 handout for the data on air pollution caused by motor vehicles. In light of the information provided in the handout, perform the following tasks:
1. Visit the parking lot of a public place, such as your university, a hotel, a shopping mall, your workplace, and your building. At the parking lot, count and record 10 cars and the make, model, and year (for example, Honda Civic, 2008). If you do not know the exact year, make a reasonable guess about the age. This raw data must be submitted with your report. Be sure to record the number for each category if there are multiple cars. You can use the following Parking Lot Tally Sheet as a reference to record the data.
Make Model Year
Honda Civic 2008
VW Golf 1990
Ford Explorer 2004
Source: Wagner, T., & Sanford, R. (2010). Environmental science: Active learning laboratories and applied problem sets (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
2. Go to the US Department of Energy and US Environmental Protection Agency’s Fuel Economy web site at http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Findacar.htm. Input each automobile (assume 15,000/miles per year) and record the combined estimated fuel consumption and annual CO2 emissions.
3. After completing this chart, combine all the data and calculate the parking lot sample mean for fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
4. Using the data obtained in Step 2, use the two means to calculate the total amount per pollutant category and the fuel consumption, contributed by all the registered vehicles in your state.
Note: Remember that you almost never have the exact data you need. You will have to make assumptions and/or extrapolations. Clearly identify what assumptions you made and briefly explain why you chose those assumptions.
5. Use this same data, but for the country. Using the Federal Highway Administration’s web site (http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/quickfinddata/qfvehicles.cfm), find the total number of cars registered in the United States. Using your two means, calculate the national total amount of gasoline consumed and the total amount of CO2 emitted on an annual basis.
Based on the data you gathered, answer the following questions:
1. What is the environmental significance of your findings? Were you surprised by any of the car comparisons in your data?
2. Recommend two new policies to reduce automobile fuel consumption and the resultant air pollution in your area.
Submission Requirements:
Submit your response in a MS Word document of the following specifications:
Font: Arial; Point 12
Spacing: Double
Include an APA title page. Refer to the sample APA title page.
Cite all sources used in APA format, including at least one in-text citation from each source and a Reference page.
Page length: 1–2 pages, excluding the APA title page and Reference page.
Evaluation Criteria:
This assessment will be evaluated using the Lab rubric in addition to the following parameters:
Did you gather the data and perform the data analysis, as per the given requirements?
Did you explain the environmental significance of your findings?
Did you recommend two new policies to reduce automobile fuel consumption and the resultant air pollution in your area?
Attachment:- lab 4.1_handout.pdf