Welcome to Jekyll and Hyde land. Chattanooga, just over the line from Georgia, has probably been the most rah rah community in the nation for Volkswagen.

The car maker continues to be hammered after outsiders discovered what has become an international scandal over deceptions in vehicle emissions testing. But there's more at stake than the corporate fallout and the concerns of VW owners. One looming question is the health toll from all the extra pollution that VW vehicles put in our air.

“It is just disgusting that Volkswagen completely discounted that,” said Sarah Steffner, a Chattanooga mom whose 10-year-old daughter has asthma. Still, she says she appreciates what VW has done in her community.

Find out more about the controversy and Chattanooga's special connection to VW in the AJC's latest Unofficial Business column on myAJC.com.

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