Indoor Air Quality

If you want to save energy when you heat your house or office building (and who doesn’t with fuel prices skyrocketing?) you need to plug all the holes. Well, maybe you better not plug *all* the holes. In the 70s, when we were extremely energy-conscious, experts did advocate energy-efficient homes built so tight that you could heat them with a candle. Of course, back then we didn’t realize that burning candles emitted lead fumes from the metal cores of their wicks. Add to that organic fumes from hot computer terminals, formaldehyde in mobile homes, and radon building up in basements, and it doesn’t take long before the air inside is more unhealthy to breathe than the air outside. EPA studies suggest that indoor air pollution may be 2 – 5 times as high as outdoor levels, and in some cases, even 100 times as high. Since so many of us spend the bulk of our time inside, indoor air pollution is of special concern. In fact, the EPA ranks it among the top five environmental risks to which the public is exposed.

What creates air pollution inside your home? Anything that burns, such as oil, gas, coal, wood, and the aforementioned candles. Things made with chemicals, like carpets or cleaning products. Outdoor sources like radon can enter a building and be trapped there. And of course, products like insulation that contain asbestos are still a risk if the materials are disturbed, releasing the fibers into the atmosphere.

Some respiratory risks, such as the risks associated with breathing asbestos fibers, are higher for smokers. In fact, cigarette smoke itself may be the most significant health hazard associated with indoor air quality – cigarette smoke has some 4000 chemicals in it, many of which are known to be hazardous.

It’s not just homes and offices that are of concern, of course. According to a 1995 government report, over 50% of US schools have poor ventilation and significant sources of pollution. That poor quality air is breathed by almost 55 million students, teachers, and staff. According to the same study, nearly 20% of schools has at least one room with radon levels that are higher than the recommended EPA action level of 4 pCi/L (picoCuries p;er liter). In the last 15 years, asthma in children has increased by about 160%, and poor quality air is blamed for at least part of that increase.

Even airliners have come under scrutiny. De-icing fluids, engine fumes and other pollutants mean that frequent flyers may be accumulating more than air miles.

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