Design Educational Buildings With Enhanced Quality Of Indoor Environment

In LEED for residential buildings knowledge on residential building science will be gained. The class will involve learning about performance testing, visual verification, RESNET standards, ENERGY STAR for new homes, LEED for homes and energy audits of existing buildings. The pre-requisites for this elective are fluid mechanics and heat transfer.

For the past decade, I have taught in one of the smaller classrooms in my school. Nestled into a central hallway, the classroom sees a lot of traffic and is conveniently located near the Special Education office that houses a printer that I can pillage from in a pinch. Being an older classroom with original vents and windows that look directly into windows of another classroom, the room is not without its rustic charms (And by charms, I mean dust. An abounding amount of DUST). Nevertheless, I love this little classroom and the memories that have been created with my students and speechies through the years. This year, my husband also purchased a portable air purifier for, which significantly improved my ability to breathe through allergy season. Why didn't I think of that years ago?

* Fresh air and light: This is very important for children to be healthy. When we take the children outside we are also giving them the opportunity to breathe in fresh oxygenated air which is essential for growing children and also giving them plenty of vitamin D from sunlight. Our class rooms are also very well ventilated and this ensures that the air is always circulating in and out of the class room and they all face an outside area to allow sunlight to enter the class room throughout the day. This is important because young children don’t yet know that they must cover their mouth when they cough to prevent germs from spreading (this is promoted though activities in class and also posters in the corridors). So if the air is well ventilated then germs are being reduced from spreading

When in doubt, contact your local indoor air quality specialist. The CDC website lists contact information by state, and provides links to other valuable resources, including the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA).

For this assessment, the “Home Environmental Health and Safety Tool” by Davis, was utililzed (2007). It is referred to as Appendix A.

We all appreciate having good health. However, in our current society, we have so much air pollution. This affects our health greatly, that why you need good quality indoors air systems. Which will ensure that the quality of the air you take in is of high quality? We offer a range of services that are aimed at ensuring that you and your family get the best quality of air. Our services include:

Ordinarily, buildings are not designed this way. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the average American spends 93% of their life indoors. (Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Epidemiology (2001) Yet the places that we spend the most time in are also some of the worst for our health “concentrations of some pollutants are often 2 to 5 times higher than typical outdoor concentrations.”(Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Epidemiology (2001)

B.I.M stands for Building Information Modeling, intelligent model-based process that provides insight to help you plan, design, construct, and mange buildings and infrastructure. B.I.M changes how buildings, infrastructure, and utilities are planned, designed, built, and managed. Autodesk B.I.M solutions help turn information into insight and deliver business value at every step in the process. B.I.M incorporates major elements of estimating, cost and project management. As a result, the B.I.M computer model is a living representation of the actual structure at any given time. B.I.M is more than drawings- it is a date repository for building design, construction, and maintenance information combined in one convenient model to share. The benefits of B.I.M are that there are reduced changes during construction. Reduced conflicts during construction and improved construction. Improved collective understanding of design intent reduces claims, disputes, and conflicts. B.I.M provides the capability to design efficient “Green Buildings.” The future of B.I.M will only make B.I.M better, the Information of B.I.M will be utilized more, designers, constructors and building owners will leverage the information that is right in from of them to add value to the building they are producing. Room and furniture, fixture, and equipment validation between

Air pollutants have been associated with a wide variety of health impacts in children. “Our estimates confirm that air pollution has a significant effect on infant mortality even at the relatively low levels of pollution experienced in recent years, and suggest that previous studies may have overlooked a potentially important role for CO. In particular, we estimate that the reductions in CO that occurred over the 1990s saved approximately 1000 infant lives in California” (Neidell, 1008). Children that participate in physical activity that are outdoors, when pollution levels are high, will experience higher exposures than adults. In public schools, children go outside frequently. For example, they have recess and have to walk for one building to another, which gives the children exposure to the air pollutants. “Children also spend more time outdoors than adults do, increasing their total exposure” (Currie, 683). Children’s that are exposed to air pollution is a huge concern because their immune system and lungs are not fully developed. Protecting children’s health is essential, especially to a parent. This is why parents keep their children inside, causing them to miss

Air pollution is one the effect of the environment problem that human is faced now a day. An air pollutant is the mixture of solid or fine particle and gases that are suspended in the air usually caused by human activities, and their inhaling is harmful to human body [1]. Recently in December 2015, the air quality in the city of Beijing in China was unhealthy that forced schools to close, outdoor constructions to halt and to reduce car traffics [2]. In New York City is not also immune to this scourge. According to New York Environmental Protection, air pollution in New York City is significantly environmental threat despite many improvements [3]. This research project investigates the indoor air quality at Hostos Community College. The objective

LEED certified homes work by creating a home with less impact on the environment. "Buildings are rated on their ability to maximize the efficiency of their operations while minimizing their impact on the environment." (LEED Certification- What Is It and Why Does It Matter?) There are three levels of efficiency including silver, gold, and platinum. The way to achieve higher levels is to get more LEED points in certain categories such as how much energy the building used in a month. After adding these points together, the architect then checks the charts to see what level the house is in. These levels can be great selling points when selling to a customer that is interested in helping the environment. The higher the LEED level, the more interest that the building can bring in. Also, being LEED certified can be a great advantage when a customer is deciding what architect that they are going to use. A few ways that these buildings can get points are being efficient with energy, water, waste, and the materials used to construct the

Chemical contaminants from outdoor sources: - Outdoor air that enters the building can also be a cause of indoor pollution. Pollutants from motor vehicle exhausts, building exhausts, and plumbing vents can enter the building through poorly located air intake vents windows and other

Indoor air quality (IAQ) refers to the quality of the air inside buildings as represented by concentrations of pollutants and thermal conditions that affect the health, comfort and performance of occupants. Other factors affecting occupants, such as light and noise, are important indoor environmental quality considerations.

According to a report by the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on the Effect of Climate Change on Indoor Air Quality and Public Health, climate-change-induced alterations to the outdoor environment are likely to affect the indoor environment, and as a result, the health of its inhabitants (2011). Climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of heavy rainfall and hurricane events, leading to more breakdown of buildings, leaks and infiltration of water into the indoor environment, and flooding (IOM, 2011). The issue of indoor dampness and flooding lies in the creation of favorable conditions for the growth of mold. Moisture level has been shown to be the primary factor responsible for indoor mold growth (IOM, 2011). Exposure to mold is associated with various respiratory symptoms, such as coughing, wheezing, asthma exacerbation, and shortness of breath in vulnerable individuals (IOM, 2011). This combination of climate change and the subsequent increase in mold growth and exposure raises concerns for health, particularly the health of those with existing

Indoor air pollution and urban air quality are listed as two of the world's worst pollution problems in the 2008 Blacksmith Institute World's Worst Polluted Places report.[1]