Seongbuk-gu, Indoor Air Consulting for Small-Scale Facilities
Published 14 May.2020 14:37(KST)
Indoor Air, Major Factor for Health-Sensitive Groups Including Children and Elderly Frequent Users
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Recently, COVID-19 and fine dust have become very dangerous issues threatening the health of the elderly and vulnerable, drawing nationwide attention to indoor air quality.
Seongbuk-gu (District Mayor Lee Seung-ro) is conducting indoor air management consulting to focus on managing the indoor air quality of small-scale multi-use facilities that fall into a legal blind spot and are not covered by the Indoor Air Quality Control Act.
Under current law, only large-scale multi-use facilities above a certain size are regulated, so elderly users of small-scale multi-use facilities are highly likely to be exposed to polluted indoor air.
Moreover, since there are many small-scale multi-use facilities and they are easily accessible, the number of elderly users is higher, increasing the risk in this legal blind spot.
Accordingly, the district enacted a related ordinance last year and has started full-scale management of indoor air quality in small-scale multi-use facilities from this year.
The target facilities are small-scale multi-use facilities used by the elderly, such as daycare centers and senior citizen centers with a total floor area of less than 430㎡, and services are provided upon application.
The measurement items include six categories: fine dust, ultrafine dust, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and volatile organic compounds. Measurements are taken first, followed by customized consulting based on the results.
In particular, when windows are closed and only air purifiers are relied upon, changes in other pollutant measurement values are visually shown to emphasize the importance of ventilation. It also focuses on raising awareness that ventilation is the most important measure to protect against the COVID-19 virus, encouraging self-practice.
The director of daycare center A, who participated in the consulting, said, “Recently, due to COVID-19 and fine dust, health threats have increased, so we recognized the importance of indoor air and applied for the consulting. I was especially surprised to see the measurement values drop when ventilating, realizing the value of ventilation. Also, it was very helpful to be specifically informed about what to do on days with high fine dust.”
District Mayor Lee Seung-ro stated, “Among the 80 daycare centers and 20 senior citizen centers that participated in the consulting, we will select 10 facilities with excellent indoor air quality and certify them as Indoor Air Excellence Facilities. We will expand this initiative annually to encourage small-scale multi-use facility managers to thoroughly manage indoor air themselves, striving to create spaces where elderly users can stay with peace of mind.”
For inquiries, contact the Environmental Division of Seongbuk-gu Office.
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