Indoor Air Pollution, Our Children, and Their Schools

1
Indoor Air Pollution, Our Children, and Their
Schools

• Rodney S. Jones, Jr., Ph.D(c)
• Environmental Health
• PUBH-8165-1
• Walden University

2
Purpose

• This presentation is intended to educate teachers
  and parents on the dangers and potential adverse
  consequences that poor school Environmental
  Health policies and standards have on our
  childrens health and academic performance,
  especially as it relates to Indoor Air Quality
  (IAQ).

3
Objectives

• Educate parents and teachers on IAQ Issues
• Empower parents and teachers to bring issues to
  the attention of policy makers
• Give teachers simple fixes to improve IAQ in
  their classrooms

4
Audience and Stakeholders

• These groups and individuals have a vested
  interest in identifying and mitigating
  Environmental Health hazards and their effects,
  and also in sustaining policies and standards
  which protect children in schools.
• Target Audience
• Parents and Teachers
• Collateral Stakeholders
• Students
• State Legislatures
• U.S. Department of Education
• Environmental Protection Agency
• National Institute of Health
• State, City, and County School Agencies

5
Types of Contaminants and Pollutants

• Indoor Air Pollutants (IAP)
• Formaldehyde
• Biological Pollutants e.g. dust mites, mold,
  fungus
• Asbestos
• Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS)
• Combust product from heating systems e.g. carbon
  monoxide, nitrogen dioxide
• Cleaning and disinfecting agents

6
IAQ Statistics

• An EPA economic analysis of repairs performed at
  an elementary school showed that if 370 per year
  over 22 years (a total of 8,140) had been spent
  on preventive maintenance, 1.5 million in
  repairs could have been avoided.EPA Indoor
  Environments Division, Indoor Air Quality Tools
  for Schools Actions to Improve IAQ (September
  1999)
• Twenty percent of the U.S. population, nearly 55
  million people, spend their days in elementary
  and secondary schools. EPA Indoor Environments
  Division, Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools
  Actions to Improve IAQ (September 1999)
• One-half of our nations 115,000 schools have
  problems linked to indoor air quality. EPA
  Indoor Environments Division, IAQ Tools for
  Schools Actions to Improve IAQ(September 1999)
• Indoor levels of air pollutants can be 2-5 times
  higher, and occasionally 100 times higher, than
  outdoor levels.EPA Indoor Environments
  Division, Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools
  Actions to Improve IAQ (September 1999)
• Indoor air pollution consistently ranks among the
  top five environmental risks to public
  health.EPA Indoor Environments Division, Indoor
  Air Quality Tools for Schools Actions to Improve
  IAQ (September 1999)

7
IAQ Statistics, cont.

• Poor indoor air quality can cause
  illness-requiring absence from school, and can
  cause acute health symptoms that decrease
  performance while at school. EPA Indoor
  Environments Division, Indoor Air Quality and
  Student Performance (August 2000)
• Indoor air quality can reduce a person's ability
  to perform specific mental tasks requiring
  concentration, calculation, or memory.
• EPA Indoor Environments Division, Indoor Air
  Quality and Student Performance (August 2000)
• More than 10 million days of school missed due to
  allergy and asthma symptoms associated with IAP.
• EPA Indoor Air Quality and School Performance,
  2000

8
IAQ Standards
None
9
Causes and Sources of IAP

• Causes
• Failure to control temperature and humidity in
  classrooms and school facilities
• Failure to properly ventilate classroom areas
• Failure to adequately perform housekeeping and
  building maintenance
• Failure to use alternative to pesticides for pest
  management
• Nearby use of pesticides and chemicals
• Sources
• Pressed Wood Furniture
• Carpet
• Cleaning Supplies
• Art supplies (paints, glues, varnishes)
• Malfunctioning or Old HVAC and furnaces

10
Health Effects of IAP

• Short-term Effects
• Immediate irritation of the eyes, nose, and
  throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue
• Respiratory Infections
• Allergic reactions to Biological Pollutants and
  Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
• Long-term Effects
• Respiratory Disease e.g. asthma
• Heart Disease
• Cancer

11
IAPs Effects on Performance

• Decreased ability to
• concentrate on,
• memorize, and
• process information
• Increased Absenteeism
• Loss of Motivation

12
Benefits of Good IAQ

• Reduced absenteeism
• Improved student and staff concentration
• Improved student productivity and performance
  (i.e. test scores)
• Decreased IAQ-related health risks from exposure
  to indoor pollutants
• Reduced environmental triggers of asthma
• Reduced respiratory illness

13
What Can Parents Do?

• Visit the school and observe the facilities
• Ask for a copy of the schools IAQ Plan
• Ask how the school superintendant rate the school
  IAQ in the annual report
• Join the PTA
• Address the issue with the school board
• Engage teachers and school administrators
• Address the Issue with State and County law
  makers
• Ask yourself these question
• Is your child coughing and sneezing more?
• Is your child experiencing increased allergies
• Does your child feel better during the weekend
• away from school?
• Is your child experiencing increased upper
• respiratory problems?
• Consult your family physician if you suspect Sick
  Building Syndrome

14
What Can Teachers Do?

• Use IAQ teachers tool from the U.S. EPA
• Learn as much as you can about indoor air
  quality.
• Record colleagues' complaints about illnesses
  look for patterns, such as significantly higher
  absenteeism in winter when buildings are closed
  up.
• Be sure classrooms are tested for radon.
• Be sure the school's ventilation filters are
  replaced at least four times each year.
• Ask that the school district warn of possible
  side effects to pesticide and chemical use before
  spraying.
• Be aware that pets in the classroom can trigger
  allergic reactions.
• Be aware that new carpeting and wall fabric can
• contain formaldehyde.

15
Resources

• EPA Teachers Classroom Checklist
• http//www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/pdfs/kit/checklists
  /teacherchklst.pdf
• Parents Advocacy Checklist
• http//www.ctpta.org/legislative/PAChecklist.pdf
• EPA Site for School IAQ
• http//yosemite.epa.gov/ochp/ochpweb.nsf/content/h
  omepage.htm
• USA Today Website on School IAQ
• http//content.usatoday.com/news/nation/environmen
  t/smokestack/index
• EPA IAQ Site for Parents
• http//www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/parents.html
• EPA IAQ Site for Teachers
• http//www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/teachers.html

16
Bibliography

• Shaughnessy, R.J., et al., "A preliminary study
  on the association between ventilation rates in
  classrooms and student performance". Indoor Air,
  2006. 16(5) p. 465-468.
• Federspiel, C.C., et al., "Worker performance and
  ventilation in a call center analyses of work
  performance data for registered nurses". Indoor
  Air, 2004. 14 Suppl 8 p. 41-50.
• Wargocki, P. and D.P. Wyon, "The effects of
  outdoor air supply rate and supply air filter
  condition in classrooms on the performance of
  schoolwork by children". HVACR Research, 2007.
  13(2) p. 165-191.
• Murakami, S., et al. "Study on the productivity
  in the classroom (part 1) field survey of the
  effects of air quality /thermal environment on
  learning performance", in Healthy Buildings 2006.
  2006 Lisbon, Portugal. p. 271-276.
• CTPTA. 2009. Parent Advocacy Checklist.
  http//www.ctpta.org/legislative/PAChecklist.pdf
• Sharon Cromwell. 2006. Fighting for Better Indoor
  Air Quality in Schools. Education World.
  http//www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin0
  69.shtml
• Environmental Protection Agency. 2009. Benefits
  of Good IAQ. IAQ Tools for Schools Program.
  http//www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/benefits.htmlIncre
  ased20Student20Performance