Indoor air affects everyone, and it
often contains higher concentrations of hazardous pollutants than
outdoor air. However, the good news is that everyone can reduce indoor
air pollution.
How can the air inside our homes be so bad for us? Over the years,
buildings have been made more airtight to conserve energy. A variety of
methods have been employed to keep the hot or cool air from escaping
from our homes: installing storm windows and insulation; applying caulk
and weather stripping to seal cracks and other openings; and heating our
homes with kerosene, wood, coal, and natural gas. Unfortunately, when we
trap in hot or cool air, we also trap in pollutants and sometimes
generate more.
On average, people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors.
Sixty-five percent of that is spent at home. To make matters worse,
those who are most susceptible to indoor air pollution are the ones who
are home the most: children, pregnant women, the elderly, and those with
chronic illnesses. Children breathe in 50 percent more air per pound of
body weight than adults. EPA studies have found that pollutant levels
inside can be two to five times higher than outdoors. After some
activities, indoor air pollution levels can be 100 times higher than
outdoors.
There are many sources of pollutants in the home, including chemicals,
cleaning products, and pesticides. Less obvious pollutants are caused by
simple tasks such as cooking, bathing, or heating the home. Fortunately,
there are easy steps that everyone can take to reduce the potential for
indoor air pollution and to improve the quality of the air they breathe.
How do you know if the air inside your home is dangerous to your health?
Often, it is difficult to determine which pollutant or pollutants are
the sources of a person’s ill health, or even if indoor air pollution is
the problem. Many indoor air pollutants cannot be detected by our senses
(e.g., smell) and the symptoms they produce can be vague and sometimes
similar, making it hard to attribute them to a specific cause. Some
symptoms may not show up until years later, making it even harder to
discover the cause. Common symptoms of exposure to indoor air pollutants
include: headaches, tiredness, dizziness, nausea, itchy nose, and
scratchy throat. More serious effects are asthma and other breathing
disorders and cancer.
HOME- BUYING CONSIDERATIONS
For the majority of Americans, the purchase of a home is the single
greatest investment of a lifetime. Will the presence of an undetected
environmental hazard have a long- term negative impact on that
investment? Does the presence of a hazard have the potential to affect
the health of the occupants? If hazards can be safely removed or
mitigated, will the process alter the homeowner's lifestyle? These
questions- - and others like them- - are, and should be, part of the
home buyer's thought process today.
As our knowledge of the natural environment evolves, the body of law
governing potentially harmful environmental hazards and their effect on
real estate transactions also is evolving. The rights and
responsibilities of buyers and sellers are determined by state and local
laws or terms negotiated into the sales contract between the buyer and
seller.
|
