Regulation of indoor air quality: The last frontier of environmental regulation
- Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, Washington, DC (United States)
Indoor air pollution (IAP) is ranked by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) among the top five environmental risks to human health. The World Health Organization estimates that nearly one in every six commercial buildings in the United States suffers from sick-building syndrome and that occupants of another one in twelve suffer from building-related illnesses. Indoor air quality (IAQ) problems cost American business $10 billion per year through lowered productivity, absenteeism, and medical costs. Yet despite the importance and high cost of IAQ problems, indoor air is not yet specifically addressed in any federal regulatory program. The reason probably is because indoor air is a quanitatively different environment in which traditional modes of regulation, based on pollutant-by pollutant risk assessments, are of limited utility. This paper covers the following topics: four factors influencing IAQ regulation; EPA regulation of indoor air; the role of the consumer product safety commission; OSHA and IAQ issues; state regulation and economic concerns; the pressure for legislation.
- OSTI ID:
- 79165
- Journal Information:
- Natural Resources and Environment, Vol. 9, Issue 1; Other Information: PBD: Sum 1994
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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