Child health campaigner backs indoor air quality guide

A new ‘Beginners Guide’ to improving Indoor Air Quality’ (IAQ) has gained the support of one of the UK’s most high-profile child health campaigners, Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah.

World Health Organisation (WHO) advocate Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah has backed the Guide, which was created by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) and its affiliate member Mitsubishi Electric. It is also being supported by Global Action Plan, the organisers of National Clean Air Day.

The ‘Beginner’s Guide to Indoor Air Quality’ offers advice and guidance to a broad audience, including school leadership teams, given the importance of good air quality in schools.

This digital publication is designed to give a comprehensive, but non-technical introduction to the subject and can be downloaded for free here.
 
The Beginner’s Guide will also be of interest to engineers and specialist firms involved in designing, commissioning, and maintaining indoor environments because it provides a useful overview of the main topic areas. It would work as a starting point for anyone looking to set up a strategy for tackling the poor IAQ that is having a detrimental impact on thousands of UK buildings and their occupants.

With an introduction from Kissi-Debrah, the Guide, which includes a wealth of information provided by BESA’s Health & Wellbeing in Buildings group, explains how the ventilation and building services industry is able to turn buildings into ‘safe havens’ to protect occupants – particularly children who face the greatest risks – from the worst impacts of contaminated air.

“This guide is an invaluable non-technical introduction to the issue of IAQ and explains how we can make our own indoor environments safer and healthier for us and our children.” said Kissi-Debrah, who is also honorary president of the BESA group.

Compiled, designed, and produced by heating, ventilation, and air conditioning manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric, the Guide provides links to more information and organisations that can offer further advice. It is designed as a jumping off point from which anyone affected by the health and wellbeing implications of poor IAQ can engage with specialists to start addressing their problems.

It explains how good ventilation and air filtration along with accurate measuring and monitoring of particulate matter are the keys to an effective IAQ strategy. It also includes information about the main sources of air pollution and the contaminants that affect indoor spaces and explains why IAQ is often many times more damaging to human health than outdoor pollution.

Download the guide here.