BOY WINS WITH ANTI-SMOG MESSAGE.

Byline: Keith Stone Daily News Staff Writer

No one hates smog more than 11-year-old Eric Mason.

``I have a lot of trouble with smog because I have asthma,'' said the fifth-grader at Brainard Avenue Elementary School in Lake View Terrace. ``I start to cough a lot, or I start to sneeze.''

So when Eric's teacher asked for entries in a San Fernando Valleywide search of schools for the best anti-smog public service announcement, he had no trouble coming up with a message:

``I just want to tell them to try to not put out so much smog and to try to car pool so not that much smog comes out from cars,'' he said.

``And stop smoking,'' he continued. ``Or they don't have to stop smoking if they are really addicted and can't get off it - but don't let a lot of smoke go out into the environment.''

Eric's entry won.

``The message that attracted us most was that: Your kids are counting on you. Don't you care enough about your children to do something about pollution?'' said Linda Patterson, spokeswoman for the Bureau of Automotive Repair.

The public service announcement will promote California Smog Check II, signaling the start of stricter emissions control rules for all motorists. The contest was part of a state-sponsored school curriculum, ``Drive Away the Smog.''

After KTLA (Channel 5) produces the public service announcement, it will be aired this summer - with an appearance by Eric.

For his winning effort, Eric's school received a 27-inch television and videocassette recorder, but perhaps more important the little boy came away with new hope for the environment.

``It is everything that surrounds us,'' Eric said. ``If there is no environment, there is no air for us to breathe. That is why I like the environment.''

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Photo

Photo: Eric Mason's public service announcement won the Smo g Check II program contest.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News