Indoor Air Quality - Green Talk

Children / Schools	Green Certification	Indoor Air Quality
Environment / Conservation / Sustainability	Green Cleaning	LEED

1.	Which HVAC system factors most influence building sustainability?
2.	How much is indoor air quality (IAQ) really affecting us today?
3.	Could you explain the connection between Green cleaning products and improved indoor air quality?

Question#1: Which HVAC system factors most influence building sustainability?

For a building to be truly sustainable, or Green, we must always look at the “big picture,” rather than a single factor or component. For example, high-efficiency HVAC (heating, ventilation, and airconditioning) products by themselves do not necessarily result in a Green system. If the system is not operating properly for optimum efficiency, does not bring in enough fresh outdoor air, or uses an ozone-depleting refrigerant, it can have a detrimental effect on building sustainability and the environment. It may also use more energy to operate and possibly cause “sick building syndrome,” resulting in allergies, asthma attacks, and other illnesses, due to the lack of fresh air.

A Green HVAC system evaluates the requirements of the entire building—starting with the individual spaces such as offices and classrooms, taking into account all other aspects of sustainable design and the demands of the building that affect the HVAC system.

For instance, every aspect of the building (i.e. lighting, building envelope, landscape, number of occupants, age of occupants, type of facility) is interrelated and considered. That is why it is important to view the “big picture” as mentioned earlier when developing a Green HVAC system. An efficient, Green HVAC system has minimal impact on the environment. And with proper building evaluation and design, it can keep the facility comfortable and also be efficient, economical, and sustainable.

Question #2: How much is indoor air quality (IAQ) really affecting us today?

IAQ problems evolved out of the 1970s. At that time, because of the 1972 oil embargo, new buildings were made airtight, and the amount of fresh air entering facilities was reduced. Although this may have reduced energy consumption, it also resulted in allergic reactions and respiratory problems because of the products, materials, and cleaning items used to furnish and maintain facilities.

According to the latest statistics on IAQ, the problems are still widespread and are one reason for the growing interest in Green cleaning. For instance:

Up to 30 percent of all buildings contain indoor air contamination.
Indoor air quality can be from 2 to 100 times worse than outdoor pollution.
Indoor pollution costs more than $50 billion in the United States and Canada in healthcare expenses, absenteeism, lost production, and lost revenue.
In the workplace, allergic reactions to unhealthy IAQ account for more than 10 million workdays missed by employees each year.
In schools and universities throughout the United States and Canada, allergic reactions to harmful contaminants keep as many as 10,000 children out of school each day
According to a University of California study, adverse health effects have been identified in 222 traditional cleaning products.
Nationwide, more than 32 million pounds of household cleaning products are poured down the drain each day.
Many cleaning products used in households and offices contain more than 50 potentially harmful and possibly lethal chemicals.

In addition, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimates:

Poor indoor air quality, also known as sick building syndrome, affects between 30 million and 70 million (…) workers annually.
Approximately 37 percent of the U.S. and Canadian population suffers from chemical sensitivities, skin rashes, or allergies.

For more information regarding Indoor Air Quality, as well as Occupational Health and Safety, visit the Enviro-Solutions Website/Resource Center/Other Helpful Sites.

Question #3: Could you explain the connection between Green cleaning products and improved indoor air quality?

There are many ways Green cleaning products improve indoor air quality (IAQ). In fact, scores of articles have been written discussing how IAQ issues can be and have been corrected once Green cleaning chemicals and products are incorporated into a facility's cleaning program. However, one of the best discussions of the topic just recently occurred.

At the May 2007 Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) symposium in Las Vegas, NV, one of the presenters, Dr. Marilyn Black, founder and CEO of Air Quality Sciences, Inc., Atlanta, GA, and a leading expert on indoor air quality issues, discussed how environmentally preferable cleaning chemicals can make a major contribution to reducing IAQ problems.

According to Black, more than 60 million Americans, approximately 1 in 4, now experience some type of respiratory problem, such as asthma or allergies, on a regular basis as a result of indoor substances. Very often, the triggers for these respiratory problems are conventional cleaning products because of the strong chemicals they contain, such as:

Hydrocarbons, glycols, and glycol ethers that are used as cleaning solvents
Terpenes and other ingredients used as fragrances in some cleaning chemicals
Alcohols commonly found in disinfectants
Chlorinated hydrocarbons found in certain spot cleaners
Gases used as propellants in aerosol cleaning products

Dr. Black suggested that cleaning professionals use small or controlled amounts of these products, if they must be used at all, and to use them only in well-ventilated areas using liberal amounts of water to rinse surfaces after cleaning. She also encouraged the industy to "transfer to more sustainable and less toxic [cleaning chemical] formulations" such as Green cleaning products.

This is because environmentally preferable cleaning products contain few if any of the respiratory triggers mentioned above and also have reduced volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These are compounds released into the air after cleaning, and although they may not be detectable by scent, in large quantities they can contribute to indoor "smog" causing serious health-related problems.

Additionally, Black noted that many cleaning chemicals are petroleum based. These not only can become irritants, causing allergic reactions and other respiratory problems, but also are not sustainable and add considerably to the world's dependency on foreign oil. The best way to select environmentally preferable cleaning products that can help protect IAQ is to pick ones that have been Green- certified. This certification ensures that the products are made of safer ingredients and that they are cost competitive and effective as well.