The goal of this exercise is to help you learn to use graphics persuasively to support an action you advocate.

The Exercise

The local newspaper, the Clark Chronicle, has requested information about Special Saturday recycling for use in an article about local environmental concerns. You, as the administrator of the recycling program for the county, are very interested in increasing participation in the program. Therefore, you want as much information as possible to get to the residents of Clark County who are eligible for the program.

After three "Special Saturdays," one in March, July, and November, you enlisted the help of a local phone survey corporation to survey a random sample of the citizens in the county regarding the recently implemented program. The results are given below, along with other pertinent facts about the special recycling program:

• There are approximately 8,000 Clark County households eligible to participate.
• At the last "Special Saturday", 632 cars pulled in with various materials for the collection, and the final totals for each material were:
  • 230 gallons of used motor oil
  • 10 tons of junk mail
  • 2 tons of magazines
• Your calculated savings in landfill costs were $10 per ton, or $120.
• Labor costs for the day were $120.

Results of the survey:

Your Assignment

Using the data from the survey above, design bar charts, pie charts, or other graphics to illustrate the data. You feel that if you give the newspaper reporter these materials, they have a good chance of appearing in the paper and catching the eye of potential users.

In order to ensure that your materials are published, use (if possible) a computer program to produce clear, professional, well-labeled graphics.