09/12/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 09/12/2024 08:27
The health and performance of students and staff can be affected by a myriad of factors found in school built environments. As school districts across the U.S. are increasingly challenged by climate disasters, implementing strategies to maintain safe and healthy learning spaces is critical for continued operations. This overview highlights some of the key environmental factors to prepare schools for climate resilience and outlines science-informed strategies for protecting student and staff health.
As wildfires become increasingly severe and prevalent, it is crucial to defend against their impact on indoor air quality (IAQ) to keep schools operating safely during smoke events. Additionally, rising temperatures have been associated with increased pollen concentration, and more frequent storm events can increase risk for mold growth. Infiltration of outdoor air pollution, such as particulate matter from wildfire smoke, allergens and mold, as well as indoor-generated pollutants such as carbon dioxide (CO2), all pose health risks that require prevention or mitigation.
When carbon dioxide levels exceed the recommended maximum in classrooms, they can cause attention issues in students.
To mitigate these risks, schools can take the following steps.
IAQ monitors were installed in Kansas schools as part of the Delos-Kansas Department of Public Health air-quality-monitoring program. Photo courtesy of Delos Living.
In the event of a natural disaster or power outage, ensuring access to safe drinking water is critical for immediately responding to emergencies, maintaining operations and supporting school communities. Promoting students' overall water consumption may also improve learning outcomes, as even mild to moderate dehydration can lead to impaired performance in tasks that require attention and psychomotor and memory skills. Additionally, ensuring that drinking water is free of harmful pollutants such as lead is critical, as such pollutants have been linked to behavior and learning problems, lower IQ, hyperactivity, slowed growth and anemia in children.
Schools can take the following steps to ensure safe drinking water.
Children are more vulnerable to the effects of extreme temperatures and ambient humidity levels. Both temperature and humidity greatly influence our thermal comfort, and studies have consistently shown that children perform better in cooler environments. In fact, a study of 75,000 high school students in New York City, New York, found that students were more likely to fail an exam on a 90-degree day than a 75-degree day.
To improve the thermal environment for students and staff, schools can take the following steps.
As our climate changes and extreme weather events become more frequent, it's crucial to choose building materials that are resilient to heat, safeguarding the building envelope against excessive heat gain and preventing the infiltration of polluted air and water. Studies have shown that elevated indoor temperatures resulting from extreme heat events can be associated with increased chemical emissions rates from building materials. Hazardous materials such as lead, asbestos and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can be found in building materials, furniture and even cleaning supplies. These toxins and chemicals may have detrimental effects on health, ranging from skin irritation to neurological issues, learning disabilities, endocrine disruption and, in extreme cases, cancer.
Schools can take the steps that follow to ensure that safe materials are used within school environments.