These are a few of their favorite apps: EPA’s Emerging Leaders Network Discusses Green Apps for the Environment

EPA’s Emerging Leaders Network (ELN) met on February 13, 2013, to brainstorm ideas for how they use environmental apps (green apps). The ELN includes the emerging generation of EPA leadership: people who care about the environment and typically use smart phones. (By the way, thanks for the ELN’s great ideas about green apps in 2011.)

The ELN described the apps they use to protect or understand the environment and why they use them. Some people don’t use smartphones so we heard why they don’t use green apps.

Here are a few of their favorite apps:

• EPA’s How’s My Waterway app helps people find information on the condition of their local waterways using data EPA has collected on healthy and polluted waterways that states and territories re­port under the Clean Water Act. This app lets people learn about their local waters, pollution problems, why they matter, and what’s being done to restore and protect them.
• The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch app helps consumers make choices for healthy oceans. The app provides recommendations for which seafood items are “Best Choices,” “Good Alternatives,” and which ones you should “Avoid.” Scientists research government reports, journal articles and white papers, and contact fishery and fish farm experts. After a thorough review, the Monterey Bay Aquarium applies sustainability criteria to develop an in-depth Seafood Watch Report.
• The Good Guide app makes it fast and easy to find safe, healthy, and green products.  There are over 120,000 food, personal care, and household products, from baby shampoo to bathroom cleaner. A barcode scanner makes it easier than ever to retrieve product ratings and information or browse and look up products with just a few “taps.”
• Waterkeepers’ Swim Guide app gives people original descriptions with photographs of more than 2,200 different beaches across the U.S. and Canada. The app is integrated with Google Maps, which enables people to get walking, transit, or driving directions to a beach. It also lets people report any pollution problems or environmental concerns while at the beach. It covers Alabama, Alberta, British Columbia, California, Charleston SC, Connecticut, Florida, the Great Lakes, Greater Boston MA, Maryland/Chesapeake Bay, New York, the Ottawa River region, parts of Oregon & Washington states, Saskatchewan, and the Shenandoah River Valley.
• EPA’s AIRNow app provides real-time information on air quality information that people can use to protect their health when planning their day. People can get location-specific reports on current air quality and air quality forecasts for both ozone and fine particle pollution (PM2.5). The air quality maps from the AIRNow website provide visual depictions of current and forecast air quality nationwide, and a page on air quality-related health effects explains what actions people can take to protect their health at different AQI levels, such as “code orange.”

These are just some examples of how the ELN uses green apps. Please tell us you use them. Just jot down a few thoughts below.
Remember that you can see 170 green apps on the My Green Apps website. And you can tell us what ideas you want developers to convert into apps.

Editor's Note: The opinions expressed here are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.

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