Is indoor air quality (IAQ) a health and safety concern?
Indoor air quality has become an important occupational health and safety issue. In the past few decades, energy conservation measures have led to airtight building construction that can create problems with IAQ. Frequently the ventilation systems are set to minimize the amount of fresh air entering and circulating within the building. This restriction impacts indoor air by allowing a build-up of air contaminants within the building that are not properly removed. People spend a lot of time indoors — for example, many office workers will spend their entire working day inside buildings. People working indoors often experience symptoms such as headaches, shortness of breath, coughing or nausea just to mention a few. However, it is rarely possible to prove that these symptoms are related to a particular indoor air contaminant. In fact, building occupants are simultaneously exposed to a wide range of indoor air contaminants. People working indoors often experience symptoms such as headache
