Carbon dioxide guidelines for indoor air quality: a review.

BACKGROUND: The importance of building ventilation to protect health has been more widely recognized since the COVID-19 pandemic. Outdoor air ventilation in buildings dilutes indoor-generated air pollutants (including bioaerosols) and reduces resulting occupant exposures. Many countries and organizations have advisory guidelines or mandatory standards for minimum ventilation rates (VRs) to maintain indoor air quality (IAQ). Because directly measuring VRs is often difficult, many IAQ guidelines instead specify indoor concentration limits for carbon dioxide (CO2), using CO2 exhaled by building occupants as an indicator of VR. Although indoor CO2 guidelines are common, the evidence basis for the various CO2 limits has not been clear. OBJECTIVE: To review current indoor CO2 guidelines worldwide and the supportive evidence provided. METHODS: We identified worldwide CO2-based guidelines for IAQ or ventilation, along with any supportive evidence provided. We excluded occupational guidelines for CO2 levels ≥5000 ppm. RESULTS: Among 43 guidelines identified, 35 set single CO2 concentration limits and eight set multi-tiered limits; 16 mentioned no specific human effect to be controlled, 19 specified only odor dissatisfaction, five specified non-infectious health effects, and three specified airborne infectious disease transmission. The most common indoor CO2 limit was 1000 ppm. Thirteen guidelines specified maximum CO2 limits as extended time-weighted averages, none with evidence linking averaged limits to occupant effects. Of only 18 guidelines citing evidence to support limits set, we found this evidence persuasive for eight. Among these eight guidelines, seven set limits to control odor perception. One provided 17 scientifically-based CO2 limits, for specific example space uses and occupancies, to control long-range COVID-19 transmission indoors. IMPACT: Many current indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) guidelines for indoor air quality specified no adverse effects intended for control. Odor dissatisfaction was the effect mentioned most frequently, few mentioned health, and three mentioned control of infectious disease. Only one CO2 guideline was developed from scientific models to control airborne transmission of COVID-19. Most guidelines provided no supportive evidence for specified limits; few provided persuasive evidence. No scientific basis is apparent for setting one CO2 limit for IAQ across all buildings, setting a CO2 limit for IAQ as an extended time-weighted average, or using any arbitrary one-time CO2 measurement to verify a desired VR.

Noise exposure assessment of workers inspecting construction machinery vehicles in the Republic of Korea.

Previous studies have investigated the health hazards caused by exposure to the noise of heavy equipment used at construction sites. Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport operates a registration system for construction machinery, and regular safety inspections are mandatory. Although workers inspecting construction machinery vehicles are exposed to unwanted noise, no noise exposure assessment has been made regarding these workers in Korea. The time-weighted average (TWA) daily average noise exposure level among construction machinery inspectors at 18 inspection centers was 75.3 dB(A). Among the inspection steps, the exhaust gas inspection step was found to exhibit the highest noise exposure level, up to 100 dB(A). In Korea, if the noise level of a workplace exceeds 85 dB(A) as a TWA, workers are required to undergo special medical examinations. This study found that special medical examinations were required for two of the 18 target inspection centers (approximately 115 workers) as the 8-hour TWA noise level exceeded 85 dB(A). Therefore, regular noise exposure assessment and special medical examinations for noise are required to prevent inspectors from developing hearing disorders due to noise exposure.

Innovative analytical methodologies for characterizing chemical exposure with a view to next-generation risk assessment.

The chemical burden on the environment and human population is increasing. Consequently, regulatory risk assessment must keep pace to manage, reduce, and prevent adverse impacts on human and environmental health associated with hazardous chemicals. Surveillance of chemicals of known, emerging, or potential future concern, entering the environment-food-human continuum is needed to document the reality of risks posed by chemicals on ecosystem and human health from a one health perspective, feed into early warning systems and support public policies for exposure mitigation provisions and safe and sustainable by design strategies. The use of less-conventional sampling strategies and integration of full-scan, high-resolution mass spectrometry and effect-directed analysis in environmental and human monitoring programmes have the potential to enhance the screening and identification of a wider range of chemicals of known, emerging or potential future concern. Here, we outline the key needs and recommendations identified within the European Partnership for Assessment of Risks from Chemicals (PARC) project for leveraging these innovative methodologies to support the development of next-generation chemical risk assessment.

The rationale behind updates to ambient ozone guidelines and standards.

Although air quality has gradually improved in recent years, as shown by the decrease in PM2.5 concentration, the problem of rising ambient ozone has become increasingly serious. To reduce hazards to human health and environmental welfare exposure to ozone, scientists and government regulators have developed ozone guidelines and standards. These answer the questions of which levels of exposure are hazardous to human health and the environment, and how can ambient ozone exposure be guaranteed, respectively. So what are the basis for the ozone guidelines and standards? This paper reviews in detail the process of revising ozone guidelines and standards by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The present study attempts to explore and analyze the scientific basis and empirical methods for updating guidelines and standards, in a view to guide the future revision process and provide directions for further scientific research. We found many epidemiological and toxicological studies and exposure-response relationships provided strong support for developing and revising the ozone guidelines. When setting standards, ozone exposure has been effectively considered, and the economic costs, health, and indirect economic benefits of standard compliance were reasonably estimated. Accordingly, epidemiological and toxicological studies and the establishment of exposure-response relationships, as well as exposure and risk assessment and benefit-cost estimates of standards compliance should be strengthened for the further update of guidelines and standards. In addition, with the increasing prominence of combined air pollution led by ozone and PM2.5, more joint exposure scientific research related to ozone guidelines and standards should be undertaken.

Integración de la dimensión ambiental en la formación académica en hospitales del municipio de Holguín / Integration of the Environmental Dimension in Academic Training in Holguín Hospitals

Introducción: Las organizaciones hospitalarias actuales deben trazarse como objetivo estratégico desarrollar un personal de alta competencia comprometido con la protección medioambiental, debido a la vital importancia de esta temática para lograr la supervivencia de la humanidad. Por tal motivo, las instituciones hospitalarias en Cuba, específicamente los hospitales Lucía Íñiguez Landín, Vlaimir Ilich Lenin y Octavio de la Concepción y la Pedraja, en el municipio de Holguín, presentan la necesidad de mejorar su desempeño ambiental a través de la formación de sus trabajadores, por ser factores claves en el logro del éxito organizacional. Objetivo: evaluar la eficacia de la integración de la dimensión ambiental en la formación de los recursos humanos en los hospitales en el municipio de Holguín. Métodos: Se emplearon los métodos teóricos histórico-lógico, analítico-sintético, inductivo-deductivo, sistémico-estructural y métodos estadísticos. Los métodos empíricos fueron encuestas a los trabajadores en los hospitales estudiados, entrevistas a los miembros el departamento de recursos humanos en los hospitales estudiados, observación participante y consulta de documentos para la recopilación de la información. Resultados: Con la aplicación de los métodos señalados en los hospitales Lucía Íñiguez Landín, Vladimir Ilich Lenin y Octavio de la Concepción de la Pedraja del municipio de Holguín, se obtuvo como resultados fundamentales la identificación y evaluación de los riesgos ambientales por puestos de trabajo, las competencias ambientales por cargos asociadas a los componentes, los procedimientos ambientales, la evaluación de la eficacia de la integración según los objetivos de la organización e individuales, así como mejoras en los indicadores de desempeño fundamentales(AU)

Introduction: The current hospital organizations should set a strategic goal to develop a highly competent staff committed to environmental protection, due to the vital importance of this issue to achieve the survival of humanity. Therefore, hospitals in Cuba, specifically Lucía Íñiguez Landín hospital, Vladimir Ilich Lenin hospital and Octavio de la Concepcion y la Pedraja hospital, in Holguin, show the need to improve their environmental performance through training their workers, for being key factors in achieving organizational success. Objective: To assess the efficacy of the integration of the environmental dimension in the training of human resources in these hospitals in the municipality of Holguín. Methods: Theoretical methods were used such as historical-logical, analytical-synthetic, inductive-deductive, systemic-structural and statistical. The empirical methods were surveys of workers in the hospitals studied, interviews with members, the human resources department in the hospitals studied, participant observation and consultation of documents for collecting information. Results: The study resulted in the identification and evaluation of environmental risks by job posts, environmental competencies by charges associated with the components, environmental procedures, and evaluation of the effectiveness of the integration according to the organization and individual objectives, as well as improvements in the fundamental performance indicators in these hospitals in Holguin(AU)

Escherichia coli is not a suitable fecal indicator to assess water fecal contamination by otters / Escherichia coli não é um indicador adequado para avaliar a contaminação fecal da água por lontras

Abstract The detection of pathogenic microorganisms in aquatic environments is extremely relevant in terms of public health. As these laboratorial methodologies are usually difficult, expensive and time-consuming, they are frequently replaced by the assessment of fecal indicator bacteria, such as Escherichia coli. This study aimed to assess the presence of E. coli in fecal samples from Neotropical otters, to evaluate its potential as fecal indicator to be applied to the determination of water microbiological quality in areas where otters' populations are high. Twenty-six otter fecal samples, collected in Alto Paranapanema river basin, São Paulo State, Brazil, were analyzed for the presence of E. coli, using conventional bacteriological methods. Only 8 scat samples (30%) were E. coli positive, indicating that this microorganism is not a suitable fecal indicator to assess water fecal contamination by Neotropical otters, and should not be used to infer the presence of otter related pathogens in waters.

Resumo A detecção de microrganismos patogênicos em ambientes aquáticos é extremamente importante em termos de saúde pública. Como estas metodologias laboratoriais são geralmente difíceis de realizar, dispendiosas e demoradas, são frequentemente substituídas pela avaliação de bactérias indicadoras de contaminação fecal, tais como Escherichia coli. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a presença de E. coli em amostras fecais de lontras Neotropicais, para avaliar o seu potencial como indicador fecal e poder ser aplicado para a determinação da qualidade microbiológica da água em áreas onde as populações de lontras são numerosas. Vinte e seis amostras de fezes de lontra, coletadas na bacia do Alto Paranapanema, Estado de São Paulo, Brasil, foram analisadas quanto à presença de E. coli, utilizando métodos bacteriológicos convencionais. Apenas oito amostras de fezes (30%) se revelaram positivas para E. coli, indicando que este microrganismo não é um indicador fecal adequado para avaliar a contaminação fecal da água por lontras Neotropicais, e não deve ser usada para inferir a presença de agentes patogênicos relacionados com lontra em águas.

Updated distribution of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Spain: new findings in the mainland Spanish Levante, 2013

In 2004, Aedes (Stegomyia) albopictus (Skuse, 1894) was observed for the first time in Catalonia, northeastern Spain. A decade later, it has spread throughout the eastern Mediterranean region of the country and the Balearic Islands. Framed within a national surveillance project, we present the results of monitoring in 2013 in the autonomous communities of the mainland Levante. The current study reveals a remarkable increase in the spread of the invasive mosquito in relation to results from 2012; the species was present and well-established in 48 municipalities, most of which were along the Mediterranean coastline from the Valencian Community to the Region of Murcia.

Updating the geographical distribution and frequency of Aedes albopictus in Brazil with remarks regarding its range in the Americas

The geographical distribution of Aedes albopictus in Brazil was updated according to the data recorded across the country over the last eight years. Countrywide house indexes (HI) for Ae. albopictus in urban and suburban areas were described for the first time using a sample of Brazilian municipalities. This mosquito is currently present in at least 59% of the Brazilian municipalities and in 24 of the 27 federal units (i.e., 26 states and the Federal District). In 34 Brazilian municipalities, the HI values for Ae. albopictus were higher than those recorded for Ae. aegypti, reaching figures as high as HI = 7.72 in the Southeast Region. Remarks regarding the current range of this mosquito species in the Americas are also presented. Nineteen American countries are currently infested and few mainland American countries have not confirmed the occurrence of Ae. albopictus. The large distribution and high frequency of Ae. albopictus in the Americas may become a critical factor in the spread of arboviruses like chikungunya in the new world.

Conceitos e derivação de valores de referência para biomonitorização humana de contaminantes ambientais / Concepts and determination of reference values for human biomonitoring of environmental contaminants

Human biomonitoring (HBM) of environmental contaminants plays an important role in estimating exposure and evaluating risk, and thus it has been increasingly applied in the environmental field. The results of HBM must be compared with reference values (RV). The term "reference values" has always been related to the interpretation of clinical laboratory tests. For physicians, RV indicate "normal values" or "limits of normal"; in turn, toxicologists prefer the terms "background values" or "baseline values" to refer to the presence of contaminants in biological fluids. This discrepancy leads to the discussion concerning which should be the population selected to determine RV. Whereas clinical chemistry employs an altered health state as the main exclusion criterion to select a reference population (that is, a "healthy" population would be selected), in environmental toxicology the exclusion criterion is the abnormal exposure to xenobiotics. Therefore, the choice of population to determine RV is based on the very purpose of the RV to be determined. The present paper discusses the concepts and methodology used to determine RV for biomarkers of chemical environmental contaminants.

Determination of the distribution of shallow-water seagrass and drift algae communities with acoustic seafloor discrimination

The spatial distribution of seagrass and algae communities can be difficult to determine in large, shallow lagoon systems where high turbidity prevents the use of optical methods like aerial photography or satellite imagery. Further complications can arise when algae are not permanently attached to the substratum and drift with tides and currents. A study using acoustic seafloor discrimination was conducted in the Indian River Lagoon (Florida, USA) to determine the extent of drift algae and seagrass. Acoustic surveys using the QTC View V system based on 50 and 200 kHz transducers were conducted near Sebastian Inlet. Results indicate that areas of seagrass can be identified, and are mixed with a high abundance of drift algae. Nearest-neighbor extrapolation was used to fill in spaces between survey lines and thus obtain spatially cohesive maps. These maps were then ground-truthed using data from towed video and compared using confusion matrices, The maps showed a high level of agreement (60%) with the actual distribution of algae, however some confusion existed between bare sand and algae as well as seagrass

Assessing the accuracy of acoustic seabed classification for mapping coral reef environments in South Florida (Broward County, USA)

The Atlantic coast of Broward County, Florida (USA) is paralleled by a series of progressively deeper, shore-parallel coral reef communities. Two of these reef systems are drowned early Holocene coral reefs of 5 ky and 7 ky uncorrected radiocarbon age. Despite the case of access to these reefs, and their major contribution to the local economy, accurate benthic habitat maps of the area are not available. Ecological studies have shown that different benthic communities (i.e. communities composed of different biological taxa) exist along several spatial gradients on all reefs. Since these studies are limited by time and spatial extent, acoustic surveys with the QTCView V bottom classification system based on a 50 kHz transducer were used as an alternative method of producing habitat maps. From the acoustic data of a 3.1 km(2) survey area, spatial prediction maps were created for the area. These were compared with habitat maps interpreted from in situ data and Laser Airborne Depth Sounder (LADS) bathymetry, in order to ground-truth the remotely sensed data. An error matrix was used to quantitatively determine the accuracy of the acoustically derived spatial prediction model against the maps derived from the in situ and LADS data sets. Confusion analysis of 100 random points showed that the system was able to distinguish areas of reef from areas of rubble and sand with an overall accuracy of 61%. When asked to detect more subtle spatial differences, for example, those between distinct reef communities, the classification was only about 40% accurate. We discuss to what degree a synthesis of acoustic and in situ techniques can provide accurate habitat maps in coral reef environments, and conclude that acoustic methods were able to reflect the spatial extent and composition of at least three different biological communities.

Levantamento das condiçöes de exposiçäo a agentes químicos - Modali Indústria e Comércio e Decoraçöes Ltda / Survey of exposure conditions to chemical agents - Modali Industria e Comercio de Decoracoes Ltda

Este relatório sintetiza os resultados das avaliaçöes ambientais, as conclusöes sobre as condiçöes de exposiçäo e recomendaçöes necessárias para a melhoria das condiçöes de trabalho, neutralizando ou eliminando os riscos de exposiçäo ocupacional a fumos e poeiras metálicas nos setores de fundiçäo, lixamento/polimento e soldagem. Os dados foram obtidos nos dias 01/10 e 01/12/93, com a empresa operando em condiçöes normais de produçäo

Relatório de vistoria Solvay do Brasil S.A / Survey report Solvay do Brasil S.A

Este relatório aborda a contaminaçäo de trabalhadores por mercúrio metálico no Setor de Unidade Eletrolítica da empresa, que emprega tecnologia de amálgama para a fabricaçäo de cloro e soda em seu complexo industrial

Levantamento da exposiçäo ocupacional ao chumbo: Indústria de Cristais Gianezini Ltda / Survey of occupational exposure to lead: Industria de Cristais Gianezini Ltda

Este laudo foi solicitado pelo Ministério Público de Estado de Santa Catarina. O levantamento foi realizado nas instalaçöes da Indústria de Cristais Gianezini Ltda., de 19 a 21 de outubro de 1993. O relatório apresenta a metodologia adotada para coleta de amostras para determinaçäo da concentraçäo de chumbo no ambiente de trabalho e informaçöes sobre o processo produtivo e atividades desenvolvidas pela empresa

Levantamento da exposiçäo ocupacional ao chumbo: Cristallerie Strauss S.A / Survey of occupational exposure to lead: Cristallerie Strauss S.A

Este laudo foi solicitado pelo Ministério Público do Estado de Santa Catarina. O levantamento, nas instalaçöes da Empresa Cristallerie Strauss S.A., em Blumenau, foi realizado de 04 a 08 de outubro de 1993. O relatório apresenta a metodologia adotada para coleta de amostras para determinaçäo da concentraçäo de chumbo no ambiente de trabalho e informaçöes sobre o processo produtivo e atividades desenvolvidas pela empresa

Fatores que afetam os resultados da monitorizaçäo biológica / Variability factors affecting biological monitoring results

A avaliaçäo das exposiçöes ocupacionais através da biomonitorizaçäo exige o conhecimento de fatores que afetam os resultados laboratoriais. O presente trabalho aborda fatores fisiológicos, patológicos e toxicocinéticos e, entre outros, aqueles associados à coleta, transporte e armazenamento de amostras biológicas