Indoor Air Quality

Transcription

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality &
Radon
JANUARY 14, 2015
IFMA
pinchin.com │1.855.PINCHIN
© PINCHIN LTD
PINCHIN & AFFILIATES
• A leader in engineering,
environmental health & safety
solutions
• Multi-disciplinary approach by
highly qualified, experienced
professionals
• Established in 1981; over 300
employees
• Part of the Pinchin Group of
Companies, a national network
of over 35 offices with over 650
staff
© PINCHIN LTD
SEMINAR OUTLINE
• Defining Indoor Air Quality
• Factors Affecting Indoor Air Quality
• Classes of IAQ Problems
• IAQ Investigations
• What is Radon?
• Radon Mitigation
© PINCHIN LTD
Defining Indoor Air Quality
© PINCHIN LTD
© PINCHIN LTD
IAQ DEFINITION
“The physical, chemical, and
biological characteristics of
indoor air in non-residential
workplaces with no internal
industrial processes or
operations that can affect the
comfort or health of the
occupant.”
From Health Canada – Indoor
Air Quality in Office Buildings: A
Technical Guide, 1995
© PINCHIN LTD
WHAT IS "ACCEPTABLE AIR QUALITY"?
“Air in which there are no known contaminants at harmful
concentrations, as determined by cognizant authorities
and with which a substantial majority (i.e. 80% or more) of
the people exposed do not express dissatisfaction,”
Canadian Standards Association (CSA).
© PINCHIN LTD
WHERE DID THE PROBLEMS COME FROM?
• 1970s energy crisis
• Air tight buildings
• Lower ventilation rates
• Construction materials
• Increase in building occupants and time spent indoors
© PINCHIN LTD
WHY IS IAQ IMPORTANT?
• Estimated that Canadians spend
~90% of their time indoors
• Duty to provide healthy
workplace
• Tenants value IAQ over any
other environmental or
sustainability amenity offered in
the workplace
• Unhappy workers = Loss of
productivity and revenue
• 5-10% improvement in
productivity
© PINCHIN LTD
BETTER IAQ CAN BE PROFITABLE
• The U.S. Department of Energy
• Studies have estimated the potential financial gain
from improved indoor environments at between $30
billion and $150 billion annually, including health-care
costs, sick leave and worker performance
© PINCHIN LTD
Factors Affecting Indoor Air Quality
© PINCHIN LTD
SEVERAL STRESSORS CAN COMBINE TO
INFLUENCE THE PERCEPTION OF IAQ
• Indoor contaminants
• Lighting
• Sensitivity of the occupants
• Changes in work location
and crowding
• Attitudes about the job and
working conditions
• Stress
© PINCHIN LTD
PUBLIC WORKS IAQ SURVEY SUMMARY,
1987 - 1994 BUILDING BY PROBLEM
PARTICLES
MAINTENANCE
AIR
VELOCITY
TEMP
RH
MICROBIOLOGICAL
© PINCHIN LTD
COMMON POLLUTANTS
• Gases
• Radon
• Carbon monoxide
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
• Carbon dioxide
• Particulates
• Second hand smoke
• Asbestos fibers
• Microbial contaminants/bacteria
• Mould
• Legionella
© PINCHIN LTD
COMMON POLLUTANTS
© PINCHIN LTD
CARBON DIOXIDE
• Sources: Building
Occupants
• Recommended Level:
Outdoor levels + 700
ppm
• Assessment:
• Fresh air vs.
occupants
• Used as marker
• Surrogate for indoor
pollutants
© PINCHIN LTD
CARBON MONOXIDE
• Sources: Pollutants
from combustion
appliances - furnaces,
gas water
heaters/boilers, wood
stoves, other
appliances that run on
fuels, exhaust fumes
from vehicles
© PINCHIN LTD
THERMAL COMFORT: TEMPERATURE AND
RELATIVE HUMIDITY
• Temperature ( 22 - 24 ºC)
• Humidity (30 – 60%)
• Air movement
• Aim to satisfy a majority (80%+) of
occupants
© PINCHIN LTD
DUSTS AND FIBRES
• Particle size
• 0.1 – 10 µm find way
into throat and lungs
• Assessment
• Dust in the air intake?
• Air delivery? Return
dampers?
• Dusty filters?
• Dust deposits around
humidifiers?
© PINCHIN LTD
TOTAL VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
(TVOC)
• Volatile - evaporate into the
air at room temperature
• Organic - carbon based
• Sources: Building materials,
indoor furnishings, cleaning
supplies
• Include a variety of
chemicals
• Scents/odours
© PINCHIN LTD
Classes of Indoor Air Quality Problems
© PINCHIN LTD
1. BUILDING RELATED ILLNESS (BRI)
• Diseases that can be clearly related to building
occupancy and a contaminant with similar symptoms:
• Toxic effects: i.e., carbon monoxide, formaldehyde,
Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS)
• Allergic reactions: mould, animal dander, dust, etc.
• Infectious diseases: i.e., Influenza, Histoplasmosis,
Legionnaires’ disease
© PINCHIN LTD
2. SICK BUILDING SYNDROME
• Complex of symptoms that might
include eye, nose and throat
irritation, fatigue, headache, dry
skin, lethargy, nausea
• Symptoms worsen in afternoon
or related to occupancy.
• Often related to inadequate
dilution ventilation, not enough
fresh air per person
• May also indicate excessive
levels of indoor dust (poor
housekeeping)
© PINCHIN LTD
IAQ Investigations
© PINCHIN LTD
INDOOR AIR QUALITY INVESTIGATIONS
EVM-7
• Gather initial information
• Occupant interviews
• Site walkthrough
• Building plan review
• HVAC inspection
• Data logging
© PINCHIN LTD
THRESHOLD LIMIT VALUES
TLVs, set by US expert group,
adopted by provincial health and
safety authorities. Airborne
concentrations of chemical that
represent conditions under which
it is believed that nearly all
workers may be repeatedly
exposed, day after day, over a
working lifetime, without adverse
health effects
© PINCHIN LTD
OCCUPATIONAL VS. IAQ EXPOSURE STANDARDS
Chemical
Concentration, mg/m3
TLV
Home/Office
Formaldehyde
1.5
0.06
Carbon monoxide
40
<6
3 (respirable)
<0.1
Nitrogen dioxide
5.6
<0.12
Toluene
180
<1 as Total Volatile
Organic Compounds
Nuisance dust
VMP Naphtha
(Varsol)
1,350
© PINCHIN LTD
METHODS FOR IMPROVEMENT
• Source control
• Most effective
• Cost-efficient
• Dilution
• Increased
energy costs
© PINCHIN LTD
IAQ MANAGEMENT OPTIONS
Pro-Active
• IAQ management plans
• Builds value of building
• Reduces chances of “sick
building”
• Enhances relationship
between building
management and
employees
• Protects against liability
• Evaluates effectiveness of
3rd party HVAC contractors
Reactive
• Manage building to provide
minimum IAQ to save costs
• Can be very costly to identify
IAQ problems when they arise
• May require extensive
investigations, testing and
remediation to fix problems
© PINCHIN LTD
What is Radon?
© PINCHIN LTD
What is Radon?
• Naturally occurring radioactive
gas
• Breakdown of Uranium in
soils, rocks, groundwater
• Radon and radon decay
products classified as a Group
A Carcinogen in 1988
• 2nd leading cause of lung
cancer behind smoking!
(16% of all lung cancer deaths)
• 3,200 lung cancer deaths are
attributed to radon every year
© PINCHIN LTD
Geologic Radon Potential Map (2011)
© PINCHIN LTD
(2012)
Health Canada Survey
results from testing 14,000
homes across Canada ~
7% of homes have radon
concentrations above the
guideline
© PINCHIN LTD
Health Canada Radon Data
© PINCHIN LTD
Health Region Name
Health Canada
Manitoba Radon
Results by Health
Region
#
%
of
Below
Survey
200
Participants Bq/m3
%
%
%
200 to Above Above
600
600
200
Bq/m3 Bq/m3 Bq/m3
Interlake Regional
Health Authority
Central Regional
Health Authority
Assiniboine Regional
Health Authority
Parkland Regional
Health Authority
Nor-Man Regional
Health Authority
Burntwood/Churchill
121
75.2
24.8
0.0
24.8
108
57.4
35.2
7.4
42.6
110
65.5
32.7
1.8
34.5
122
56.6
31.9
11.5
43.4
212
87.7
11.8
0.5
12.3
152
92.1
7.2
0.7
7.9
Winnipeg Regional
Health Authority
Brandon Regional
Health Authority
North Eastman
Regional Health
Authority
South Eastman
Regional Health
Authority
66
87.9
12.1
0.0
12.1
79
55.7
40.5
3.8
44.3
100
79.0
20.0
1.0
21.0
113
90.3
9.7
0.0
9.7
© PINCHIN LTD
WHERE DOES RADON
ENTER HOMES AND BUILDINGS?
A.
Cracks in concrete slabs.
B.
Spaces behind brick veneer walls that rest
on uncapped hollow-block foundations.
C.
Pores and cracks in concrete blocks.
D.
Floor-wall joints.
E.
Exposed soil, as in a sump or crawl space.
F.
Weeping (drain) tile, if drained to an open
sump.
G.
Mortar joints.
H.
Loose fitting pipe penetrations.
I.
Open tops of block walls.
J.
Building materials, such as brick, concrete,
rock.
K.
Well water (not commonly a major source).
© PINCHIN LTD
FORCES THAT DRIVE RADON INTO A BUILDING
• Buildings can create
vacuums that radon draw in
(convective flow/stack effect).
Most significant contributor
• Natural causes include
thermal stack effect, wind,
rain, frost, diurnal cycles
• Mechanical causes include
exhaust fans, windows,
fireplaces, etc.
• These vacuums may be very
small
© PINCHIN LTD
Radon Guidelines
CANADA
• Health Canada Action Level = 200 Becquerels/m3 (Bq/m3)
(2007)
• Occupational exposure (Management of Naturally Occurring
Radioactive Materials (NORM,)) 2011
UNITED STATES
• EPA Action Level = 4 pCi/L (equal to 148 Bq/m³)
GLOBALLY
• World Health Organization recommends 100 Bq/m3
© PINCHIN LTD
Radon Testing
• How to find out how much radon is in the air?
• THE ONLY WAY TO KNOW IS TO TEST!
2 Types of testing:
• Short term (typically 2 – 7 days)
• Long term (minimum 91 days to 1 year).
© PINCHIN LTD
Radon Mitigation
© PINCHIN LTD
Health Canada
Mitigation Guideline
(2010)
• Covers virtually all
mitigation techniques
© PINCHIN LTD
HEALTH CANADA MITIGATION GUIDELINE
Time Frame to Remediate
Radon Concentration
Recommended
Remedial Action Time
> 600 Bq/m3
In less than 1 year
200 – 600 Bq/m3
In less than 2 years
< 200 Bq/m3
No action required
© PINCHIN LTD
Active Soil Depressurization (ASD) Systems
• ASD systems change pressure differentials between the building and
sub-surface soils and include:
• Sub-slab Depressurization (SSD)
• Drain Tile: Drain Tile Depressurization (DTD)
• Sump: Sump Depressurization (considered under DTD)
• Baseboard Drainage: Baseboard depressurization (rare)
• Concrete Block Walls: Block Wall Depressurization (rare)
• Sub-membrane Depressurization (SMD)
© PINCHIN LTD
SUB-SLAB DEPRESSURIZATION
• Suction created in a pit
under the slab
• Radon collected and
exhausted outdoors
• Most common radon
mitigation technique
performed and very
effective
© PINCHIN LTD
SUB-SLAB DEPRESSURIZATION DESIGN
• Communication test
conducted to determine best
placement of suction point(s)
and what type of fan to use
© PINCHIN LTD
SUB-MEMBRANE DEPRESSURIZATION
Suction created under a membrane placed over exposed soil or rock
© PINCHIN LTD
MODIFICATION OF AIR HANDLING SYSTEMS
• When radon levels are marginally
above the guideline, usage of
Heat Recovery Ventilators (HRVs)
can effectively reduce radon levels
if maintained properly.
• Pressurization of buildings with
HVAC systems (e.g. schools) can
also inhibit radon entry. Must
make sure HVAC systems are
balanced to avoid areas under
negative pressure
© PINCHIN LTD
TESTING AFTER RADON MITIGATION
• Conduct follow-up
sampling to ensure
radon concentration has
decreased
• Retest within 2 years
and every 5 years after
that time or when major
renovation occurs
affecting slab/basement
walls
© PINCHIN LTD
Radon Resistant
Construction Techniques
• Similar to mitigation measures
• Passive systems (vs. active)
• In conjunction with various measures
• e.g. caulking and sealing joints/openings
• Becoming more popular/standard
© PINCHIN LTD
National Building Code & Radon (2010)
• Allows for basic protection of all buildings (residential and nonresidential). Specific provisions to address radon mitigation in
new residential homes and small residential buildings
• Sump pit cover required to be airtight
• Caulking slab perimeter and penetrations
• Granular fill under slab and soil gas membrane between fill
and slab
• Inspections
• Roughed-in piping for SSD systems
• Owner to test following occupancy
© PINCHIN LTD
Moving Forward
• Have your building(s) tested by a
C-NRPP certified measurement
professional
• Test your home too!
• If you have elevated radon
levels, ensure that a C-NRPP
mitigation professional is there to
help you to reduce your risk
© PINCHIN LTD
HOW ARE WE DOING?
Time:
Carbon dioxide:
Carbon monoxide:
Temperature:
Relative humidity:
Particulate:
Time:
Carbon dioxide:
Carbon monoxide:
Temperature:
Relative humidity:
Particulate:
© PINCHIN LTD
QUESTIONS?
Heather Swail, B. Env. St., M.Env.
[email protected]
Pinchin Ltd.
1.855.PINCHIN
www.pinchin.com
© PINCHIN LTD

Indoor Air Quality

Transcription

Similar documents

Phase I Environmental Site Assessment 400 and 444 South Drive

AVS24 2.4 GHZ Wireless Audio/Video Sender

HEMINEVRIN - Alcohol and Alcoholism

No trophy could ever fully express our

Chaise Lounge

Sports Science Summit Sports Science Summit

AUTO-HIT Ltd. Presentation

A golden opportunity to A golden opportunity to

Please click here for project description