Talking Stick - September/October 2008 - 20

Facilities How’s the Air in There? by Von Stange Facility professionals strive to improve indoor air quality by using green cleaning products. Threats to Indoor Air Quality Many of us have entered a room after it has been cleaned or renovated and have noticed the strong odor of carpet glue, caulk, or cleaning products. These things smell toxic because they are, and more and more campuses are trying to replace harsh chemicals with green products. At Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Michael Head, assistant director for residential facilities, is committed to finding ways to make facility management more environmentally friendly. He estimates that when he arrived on campus, department cleaning practices were only 20 percent green: “I noticed the odors, the toxins, and the damage that harsh chemicals had on countertops, fixtures, carpets, and people.” He worked to rid the custodial and maintenance operations of these chemicals and also to minimize the number of times products were handled from purchase to application (he determined that the product was handled eight times through the process). With the help of Grainger Industrial Supply, a supplier of green cleaning products, they were able to meet their goals in a relatively short time, as Head explains: “A transition that would have taken three years by myself took Grainger only nine months.” The immediate result was a positive change in indoor air quality as perceived by the staff and customers. Head notes that they now use 50 percent green products and intend to use 70 percent by the end of this fiscal year. Think of air pollution, and most people will picture a smog-shrouded urban area, full of obvious sources of pollutants like cars, industrial smokestacks, or incinerated wastes. We don’t usually envision the inside of a building, its air poisoned by chemicals in seemingly benign places: printers, copiers, furnishings, on floors and walls. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that levels of some common organic pollutants can be two to five times higher inside than they are outside regardless of whether residences were built in rural or industrial areas. For this reason, indoor air quality (IAQ) has become an increasingly important topic in the ongoing environmental debate. Banning smoking from offices and other public areas only eliminated one health threat to personnel; they are still faced with contaminants such as mold, dust mites, viruses, cleaning products, and even perfumes. According to the EPA Web site (www.epa.gov/iaq), 20 percent of the American population (almost 55 million people) spend their days in elementary and secondary schools, and more than a quarter of these students and teachers are exposed to the hazards of substandard indoor air quality. Colleges and universities are also part of this problem. Most campus buildings constructed before 1970 lack the kind of sophisticated ventilation systems that can remediate today’s interior pollutant load. Facilities staff have an important role in maintaining and improving indoor air quality – and thus in safeguarding the health and safety of those who occupy their buildings. From the maintenance or repair or replacement of mechanical systems and the use of non-toxic cleaning products to the use of low-VOC (volatile organic compound) floor coverings or adhesives or paints, facilities staff can make a difference in the health of an indoor environment. Collaboration Between Higher Education Institutions and Non-Profits INFORM is a national, non-profit organization that focuses on resolving environmental and healthrelated problems. One of its recent projects is “Cleaning for Health” (www.informinc.org), which identifies toxic chemicals in cleaning solutions and 20 Talking Stick
http://www.epa.gov/iaq http://www.informinc.org
Talking Stick - September/October 2008

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