I was at a conference a few years ago and on route I had to fly west out of Pittsburgh. I was enjoying the few minutes of rest as the plane climbed to altitude (no electronic gadgets). I could see a huge smelter and industrial complex out my window. I could also clearly see a scattering of plumes from industrial sites scattered across the landscape.
I had been thinking that some places (Atlanta, Chicago, etc. ) get huge numbers of flyers whipping through their skies with nothing to do but peek out an airplane window (great teachable moment). Travelers are a great target audience for educating the public about environmental issues.
What if we could shoot the climbs on the way out of major airports, time it with average air speed and offer little brochures for activists to handout in airports?
Take ads in travel mags, etc. folks could also print them out for the next trip. Travel agents could offer them with tickets. I could even see a Peterson's guide to industrial landmarks from the sky.
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Flying west out of Pittsburgh. (turn to page 3)
Section 1 (Flight details)
Flying West out of Pittsburgh you will see nothing until you reach 2 minutes after take off. After a three minutes climb looking to the north the people on the right will see....(Pittsburgh Steel. (page 5), Mountain Top removal (page 4), Sprawl (page 7), Acid Mine Runoff into Main Stem Rivers. (page 9)
Section 2 (Feature Details)
Pittsburgh Steel...Nice glossy photo of Pittsburgh Steel plant (like a bird book) with text underneath talking about the jobs, tax revenue, products and pollution that come from the plant. The text could include map of projected plume (great for local flyers) EPA pollution permits, number of violations on site in the last 10 years, projected asthma deaths and cancers caused by emissions and contact information for local groups. The text could include the positions of the lobbyist that are supported by the company on worker safety laws, environmental regulations and tax breaks given to the company.
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The same thing would also be really cool for popular bus, rail and cruise ship routes. How many folks are on one of those cruise ships? They must see all kinds of sites along the coastline.
