ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë

Occupants

ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë's first priority is to protect the health and safety of the people in its building. This means the first question to be asked with regard to an unusual situation is: Is this an emergency? Because building occupants are the people most likely to notice an Indoor Air Quality problem, they must make the first determination as to whether the situation is an emergency situation or not.

Emergencies are indicated by fire, smoke, or unusual health symptoms that affect several people. If an occupant determines an emergency that warrants a building evacuation is underway, they should pull the building fire alarm to alert other occupants and summon the fire department. After leaving the building, they should call 911 to inform ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Police Services why the alarm was pulled and/or meet arriving emergency responders. If the situation appears to be restricted to a specific person or area of a building, that area should be evacuated and 911 called to get assistance.

If the situation is not an emergency, building occupants can call ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Service Operations at 656-2560 and select 1 to get response within one hour. The supervisor of the people noticing the problem should also be notified, so that they are aware that work may be disrupted.

Emergency Responders

Emergency Responders are available to arrive at the scene within 5 minutes of notification and are drawn from three groups:

• ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Police: in these situations, their role is to gather information from outside of the affected area in order to determine if additional resources may be required and to control the scene in order to provide clear access for Burlington Fire Department
• Burlington Fire Department: Once an emergency has been signaled by activation of the building fire alarm, Burlington Fire has legal control of the scene in order to manage fire and hazardous material control measures as well as the immediate safety of the general public/ building occupants
• ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Rescue: Provides Emergency Medical Services on campus

Primary Responders

Primary Responders are available to arrive at the scene within 20 minutes of notification and are drawn from three groups:

• Service technicians from the Physical Plant Department who respond to building service calls
• Environmental Safety staff for health and safety evaluation of IAQ situations and to arrange for clean up of hazardous materials spills

The role of primary responders is to:

• Evaluate whether there is an emergency situation on scene using a four gas meter (instructions for the use of the meter in these situations are available here in a Word file) and their knowledge and awareness of the setting and any symptoms they notice in the setting. An "emergency" is a situation in which there is an imminent threat to human health or property. Such a situation is managed, as described above, by calling for an emergency response.
• If the situation is not an emergency, the responder's role is to determine if any quick fixes are available to resolve the issue. "Quick fixes" are situations in which there is a clear source of an odor which can be quickly resolved. This resolution involves either stopping the process which is creating the odor or contacting the person managing the source of the odor and determine how long the odor is likely to continue.
• In either case, the primary responder's responsibility is to explain what they know of the situation to the occupants so that the occupants can make an informed decision as to whether to continue occupancy, in consultation with their supervisor. If a "quick fix" is not available, and the situation is not an emergency, it will be referred to a secondary responder for follow-up within 48 hours.
• Document the incident for follow-up with IAQ Assessment Form.

Secondary Responders

Secondary Responders provide longer term investigation of IAQ concerns. Secondary responders include:

• Physical Plant staff with building resources and expertise
• Risk Management and Safety staff to manage the investigation

Odors other than visible smoke or a strong or widespread burning odor are to be investigated by the Primary Responder before being considered an emergency. The potential hazards associated with Indoor Air Quality concerns vary significantly:

Many odor situations can be managed (i.e. investigated and resolved) by the Primary Responder. These situations are characterized by easy identification of a source and control of the source either directly or through a request to Service Operations. These are not likely to require the Investigation and Mitigation strategy described in Section 5, but should be documented as described below.

Odor situations which are beyond the scope of the Primary Responder will be referred to the Risk Mgt and Safety staff for further investigation and resolution. RM&S staff will work with Physical Plant and Architectural and Engineering contacts as appropriate to investigate likely source and remediation strategies. In these cases, supervisors of employees in areas affected by the odor should be advised to have affected employees move to a different location until the problem is resolved. An estimate of the time this will take will be provided to the supervisor by the RM&S staff managing the investigation.

Response Considerations

By their nature, fugitive odors are difficult to identify and evaluate. A balance between investigating the problem fully and resolving the problem quickly must be struck. This balance requires a partnership between the building occupants, primary responders, and secondary responders so that the appropriate information is collected to diagnose and resolve the problem as effectively as possible. The resources and time required for resolving odor complaints vary depending on the nature of the odor.  We can make general statements about the resolution process and its limitations by grouping odor complaints into four general categories as in Table 1.

Responding to Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) concerns is another piece of safety. Often we get reports of an unusual odor whose nature may or may not give a clear indication of its source (e.g. diesel exhaust, latex paint, specific laboratory chemicals). Some odors can be tracked back to its source and resolved in a straight forward way.  Others cannot. Resolution of indoor air quality concerns involves either stopping the source of the odor, or, if the source is a necessary part of building operations, determining how long before the odor is likely to dissipate. This information is generally provided to building occupants when there is a construction activity nearby or there is some planned maintenance being performed. 

If you smell an unknown odor and you cannot identify its source, call ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Service Operations at 656-2560, press option 1 to speak to a dispatcher.  SOS will page  Risk Mgt and Safety staff and Physical Plant zone personnel to respond.

Odors whose source and/or nature are less clear, or whose occurrence is irregular in space and/or time can be more difficult to assess and control. In these situations, resolution of the situation may take anywhere from several hours to several months. External resources may be required to resolve this type of odor complaint.

A variety of offices are likely to receive calls about IAQ concerns. These include:

• ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Emergency Response (911)
• Police Services dispatch (656-3473)
• Service Operations (656-2560)
• Risk Management and Safety (665-3242)

Unless there is an indication of an emergency in progress, any of these offices will collect necessary information and dispatch a primary responder to the scene. The primary responder will report the situation and its resolution or need for follow-up to Risk Mgt and Safety staff.

Air Sampling

When the source of the odor is clear, direct reading equipment may be available on campus that can be used to determine the airborne concentrations of certain specific chemicals. Otherwise, air sampling to determine the source of the odor or the concentration of the chemicals involved is limited in usefulness and is likely take a week or more to produce results. On-site review of such situations by a qualified industrial hygienist is necessary to make the most effective use of any sampling done.

Air Quality Standards

In general, ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë is committed to keeping chemical exposures as low as reasonably achievable. Keeping specific exposures within Vermont OSHA Permitted Exposure Limits (PEL) will be considered the minimum requirement for building performance. Supervisors of workers with concerns about exposures below VOSHA PELs will decide how to accommodate these individuals in consultation with Risk Management staff.

Medical Evaluations

Assessing the potential health effects of odors on specific individuals requires medical expertise and must be referred to an occupational physician for evaluation of individual and any circumstances associated with any symptoms or potential health effects that may result from the exposure. All information gathered during the IAQ investigation process will be made available to the individuals and/or their physician as requested.

Complete the Occupant Questionnaire and Journal and email to ohso@uvm.edu with the work order number in the subject line. 

For assistance with non-urgent questions about Indoor Air Quality at ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë, download an .

IAQ Occupant Questionnaire (link here)

IAQ Occupant Journal (link here)

For EHS Staff Only:

IAQ Assessment Checklist (link here)

CO is a colorless, odorless gas produced by the incomplete burning of material containing carbon. Common sources of CO are leaking vented combustion appliances, automobile exhaust, parking garages, etc. When not properly ventilated, emitted CO can build up. Employees exposed to low levels of CO may feel sick with headache and nausea and will feel better when exposed to fresh air outside.

CO Poisoning Symptoms

Poisoning due to low levels of CO can be confused with influenza symptoms, food poisoning, or other illnesses, and can be a long-term health risk if left unattended. Some of the symptoms of low-level CO poisoning are shortness of breath, mild nausea, and mild headaches. Prolonged exposure to high levels of CO can lead to brain damage and even death. Adequate ventilation is an important control measure.

The OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for CO is 50 parts per million (ppm) as an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA); the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has a Recommended Exposure Limit (REL) of 35 ppm as a 10-hour TWA. According to the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH), the threshold limit value for CO is 25 ppm as an 8-hour TWA.

CO2 CO2 is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas. It is a product of completed carbon combustion and the by-product of biological respiration. ASHRAE states that CO2 concentrations in acceptable outdoor air typically range from 300-500 ppm. High CO2 levels may indicate a problem with overcrowding or inadequate outdoor air ventilation rates.

CO2 Poisoning Symptoms 

CO2, a by-product of normal cell function, is removed from the body via the lungs in the exhaled air. Exposure to high levels of CO2 can increase the amount of this gas in the blood, which is referred to as hypercapnia or hypercarbia. As the severity of hypercapnia increases, more symptoms ranging from headache to unconsciousness appear, and it can also lead to death.

Pesticides are any substances or mixture of substances used for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest. These substances include insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, and various other substances used to control pests. Pesticides can cause harm to humans, animals, and the environment because they are designed to kill or otherwise adversely affect living organisms. Pesticides can also kill potential disease-causing organisms.

Pesticide Poisoning Symptoms

Symptoms of pesticide poisoning depend heavily on the pesticide to which the worker was exposed. The most common symptoms include headache, tears in the eyes, vomiting, sweating, and general weakness.

Radon is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless radioactive gas. It comes from the natural decay of uranium and some other radionuclides that are present in soil. Radon gas can accumulate in buildings, such as crawl spaces and basements. 

Dander from animals, pollens from plants, and microbes, may act as allergens when they are inhaled. These biological contaminants are usually attached to dust particles of various sizes. . Drapery, carpet and other places where dust collects, and areas with high humidity can accelerate their growth. The most common sources of biological air contaminants are moisture-laden areas that support the growth of mold and bacteria present in the air. Also, wet surfaces can provide a breeding ground for insects such as dust mites. Please see ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Water Intrusion Response Program for more information.  

Damp indoor environments have been associated with many serious health effects, including asthma, hypersensitivity, and sinusitis. Moisture incursion leading to dampness can result from water leaks
and/or by condensation due to high humidity. Please see ÈÕº«ÎÞÂë Water Intrusion Response Program for more information.

Management of moisture requires proper control of temperatures and ventilation to avoid high humidity, condensation on surfaces, and excess moisture in materials. Ventilation should be distributed effectively in spaces, and stagnant air zones should be avoided. 

VOCs refer to organic chemical compounds that have significant vapor pressures, and that can adversely affect the environment and human health. VOCs are emitted by a wide array of products numbering in the thousands. Examples include paints and lacquers, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, pesticides, building materials and furnishings, office equipment such as copiers and printers, correction fluids and carbonless copy paper, and graphics and craft materials, including glues and adhesives, permanent markers, and photographic solutions. More commonly known VOCs include benzene, formaldehyde, methylene chloride, trichloroethylene, and tetrachloroethylene.

In offices, VOCs result from new furnishings, wall coverings, and office equipment such as photocopy machines, which can off gas VOCs into the air (47, 48). Good ventilation and air-conditioning systems are essential to reduce VOC emissions in the indoor environment.

To reduce exposure, use products according to manufacturer’s directions, make sure that plenty of fresh air is provided when using these products, discard used containers safely, buy quantities that can be used in short periods of time.