Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-92-066-2216: University of Georgia; Institute of Ecology, Athens, Georgia

Details

• Personal Author:
  Kiefer, Max ; Salisbury, Stanley A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from the University of Georgia, an investigation was begun into health complains associated with indoor air quality at the Institute of Ecology (SIC-8221), Athens, Georgia. Episodes of poor indoor air quality were thought to be responsible for adverse health symptoms experienced by some of the occupants of the building. Previous indoor air quality investigations of the building were reviewed, and a site visit was conducted to review the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, and conduct limited environmental monitoring. All the environmental parameters measured fell within the recommended standard limits. A review of the complaint log indicated that of the 98 total complaints, 34 were associated with an odor. Of the 49 questionnaires completed by workers, 36 (73%) indicated they had experienced either a health or a comfort problem associated with indoor air quality. Several potential sources of the problems were identified including an extreme negative pressure situation occurring in the laboratories and the potential for insufficient outside air to be provided to the building. Insulation linings in the HVAC system air handlers downstream from the air filters showed signs of deterioration and mold growth. The authors conclude that the indoor air quality related issues may be multifactorial in nature and may involve entrainment of pollutants from outside sources.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Environmental Health Environmental Monitoring Headache Occupational Health Safety Sulfur Dioxide Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Air-quality-monitoring Air-sampling Bioaerosols Carbon Dioxide Educational Institution Fatigue Hazard-Unconfirmed Headache HETA-92-066-2216 IAQ Indoor-air-pollution Indoor-environmental-quality Indoor Air Quality Irritation NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Office-workers OSHA Region 4 Ozone Relative Humidity Sulfur Dioxide Teaching Temperature Ventilation-systems

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA920662216
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Georgia ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  26 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00218669
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB94-162971
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, Ohio: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 92-066-2216, 1992 Mar ; :1-23
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1992
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8221 - Colleges and universities - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2ae1ddf353fd9d3a7974708a317e3909700f3a4541db78232307a2945be942ae0fcc608f790f87a652c57f733ba10d787e83d84f68e4f63343f4373ff304b05a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171426/cdc_171426_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.51 MB ]