Evaluation of Indoor Environmental Quality Concerns in an Elementary School

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burr, Gregory A. ; Gowda, Shilpa ; Zwack, Leonard M.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  The Health Hazard Evaluation Program received an employee request from an elementary school. Employees were concerned about a perceived high incidence of cancers and other medical conditions and a possible association with the school's indoor environmental quality. We looked for moisture, water damage, and mold. We measured carbon dioxide, temperature, and relative humidity and looked at the ventilation systems in the building. We asked 89 employees about their work, medical history, and work-related health concerns. We saw no evidence of a current mold problem in the school, and the ventilation systems and roof were well maintained and in good condition. However, in most of the classrooms we monitored, the unit ventilators did not bring in enough outdoor air during at least part of the school day. This situation occurred after the computer ventilation controls were changed in response to unusually cold weather prior to this evaluation, but were not reset. Many of the symptoms employees reported, such as sinus problems, eye and throat irritation, and headaches, have been associated with dampness or inadequate ventilation but are also common in the general population. We found no evidence that other reported health problems were related to the school environment. We recommended hiring a licensed professional mechanical engineer to assess the ventilation systems. We also recommended the school repair broken or disconnected roof drains, clean debris from the dry well, and discourage the use of air fresheners, scented candles, or potpourri.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Fungi Microbiology Neoplasms Occupational Health Safety Schools Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Cancer Carbon Dioxide Elementary And Secondary Schools IAQ IEQ Indoor Air Pollution Indoor Air Quality Indoor Environmental Quality Indoor Environments Microorganisms Molds OSHA Region 4 Relative Humidity School Temperature Ventilation Systems

  More +
• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 2017-0030-3277, 2017 May ; :1-27
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE201700303277
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• 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:
  34 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Booher, Donald E. ; Chiu, Sophia ; Galloway, Ellen ; Montgomery, Martha ; Moore, Kevin ; Page, Elena ; Watts, Shawna
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049782
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2017-102333
• Citation:
  NIOSH [2017]. Evaluation of indoor environmental quality concerns in an elementary ; school. By Gowda S, Zwack L, Burr GA. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health ; and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for ; Occupational Safety and Health, Health Hazard Evaluation Report 2017-0030-3277,
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  611110 - Elementary and Secondary Schools - (NAICS)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:4f3815adf7ba55e3c798c72381b9de868d86ad5f5456115bc8946a8ea3514e9204239a7b53fcc9f2c2882877f6120d91670564751dd6785d4dfd85e6bbbed037
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172392/cdc_172392_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.23 MB ]