So far, education has emerged as the central issue in this year’s governor’s race, as well it should. No issue will have a greater impact on our future than the quality of our schools.

But environmental issues — especially those affecting North Carolina’s air quality — should run a close second. Yet, while Democrat Mike Easley and Republican Richard Vinroot have discussed air pollution, urban sprawl and hog farms, those matters seem only a secondary blip on the political radar this year. That may be partly the result of weather patterns. Because of a cloudier and somewhat cooler summer, ozone levels remained relatively low, compared to the previous year.

But health experts meeting this week in Asheville have discovered another ominous sign that air quality is a serious problem, with significant health effects. Mountainous western North Carolina has an alarming rate of respiratory illnesses. Chronic lung diseases such as asthma and emphysema account for a higher percentage of deaths there than anywhere else in the state, members of the Senate Select Committee on Mountain Air Quality were told.

An allergist at the meeting also warned the state may be undergoing an “epidemic” of asthma and cited a recent survey showing a 17 percent incidence of asthma among 13- and 14-year-olds statewide.

Researchers are still studying what’s behind the rise in respiratory problems, but they are confident air pollution — from cars, coal-fired power plants and other industrial sources — plays a large role.

That’s reason enough for voters to be concerned about environmental issues, and to be interested in what the candidates have to say about it. For instance, although Vinroot and Easley both advocate a regional approach to air-quality problems, they differ on the role government regulations play. Easley favors beefing up inspection staffs and laws, while Vinroot thinks existing laws aren’t adequately enforced.

You may find merit — and weaknesses — in either of those arguments. For voters, the key point is to educate themselves on the importance of environmental issues — and to let candidates know that those issues need to have a high priority. While children need good schools, we all need clean air and water.

Cheryl Haworth probably doesn’t fit many people’s idealized image of an Olympic athlete, or of a beautiful young woman.

That’s too bad, because the 17-year-old weightlifter from Savannah, Ga., has strengths that go far beyond her ability to lift 300 pounds. That won her a bronze medal at the Sydney games. What should win rousing cheers as well, however, is the remarkable confidence and poise that enables this young lady to be comfortable with her size. At 5-7 and 300 pounds, she has Herculean proportions in a petite world, and she has no problem with that.

“I’m not trying to be small,” she said.“I’m trying to be strong.”

Asked about how it feels to go against cultural messages that make young women obsess on body size and thinness, she said she hopes to “show some people they aren’t finished looking for what makes them happy.”

Chances are, Haworth isn’t finished, either. At 17, she’s 11 years younger than Tara Knott, the American teammate who became the first woman to win an Olympic gold meal for weightlifting.

That gives her many more years to break Olympic records — and help shatter unhealthy stereotypes about beauty.