Report: Toxic Air and American Schools

USA Today’s recently released report, Toxic Air and American Schools, has really hit a nerve with school administrators and parents alike.

It’s understandable; nobody wants to be told that the air quality in the school they are running may be a risk to the health of the kids who are attending. And certainly no parent wants to imagine that their child is breathing carcinogens, while learning.

So many schools are lashing back, claiming that no actual air quality tests were made, that the information in the report was merely based on statistics. Meanwhile, many parents are outraged, demanding action and improved air quality for their children.

The way the USA report works is it ranks each school on a percentile scale comparing it to the other schools in the nation. There are two separate rankings, one for exposure to cancer causing air toxins and one for exposure to non-cancer causing air toxins. USA derived these rankings by using an EPA model to identify the path of pollutants emanating from industrial sources near schools.

The report concludes, “The potential problems that emerged were widespread, insidious, and largely unaddressed.”

Yikes.

We’ve never a published a report like the one released by USA Today, and we don’t necessarily agree with everything that’s in the report, but one thing’s for sure, it’s about time air quality becomes a hot topic.

The mere fact that people are talking about air quality is an important step in the right direction.

If nothing else this report has opened many people’s eyes to the possibility that air quality could be affecting their health—- or the health of their children. There’s lots of information available for those seeking it, and even effective solutions for those that choose them.

For more information on indoor air quality, please visit www.allerair.com, or to speak to an AllerAir IAQ Expert about including air purifiers in your home or local school, call 888.852.8247.