Indoor Air Quality Fact Sheet Series

The Center for Green Schools at U.S. Green Building Council has released a unique series of fact sheets about indoor air quality (IAQ), designed to help people without a technical background understand some of the more complicated details.

“To protect against COVID-19, schools have implemented many measures recommended by public health professionals: distancing, cohorts, masking, hand-washing, and vaccination. These are effective actions to reduce the spread of the virus, but they rely on human behavior and choice.
After studying viral transmission pathways, scientists are confident that people are less likely to get sick from COVID-19 and other respiratory pathogens when the air around them is refreshed continuously with clean air that is free from the virus. Investing in indoor air quality (IAQ) is a straightforward and non-controversial way to stop the spread of COVID-19.”
Indoor Air Quality Fact Sheets: Series Overview

The IAQ Fact Sheet Series was authored in collaboration with Marwa Zaatari, with technical assistance from Sarah Gudeman, and reviewed by Bill Bahnfleth, Mark Davidson, Erika Eitland, Corey Metzger, Kathleen Owen, Kim Shinn, Jeffrey Siegel, and Brent Stephens.

Download Indoor Air Quality Fact Sheet – Entire Series – 10 pages

The document for download above is the compiled document of all fact sheets. To download each fact sheet separately, follow the links below.

Overview: Build a foundation by understanding your HVAC system, if you have one, and which IAQ strategies might work for your classrooms.
Ventilation: Get a better understanding of the interaction between ventilation and other strategies and how to use what you have to get healthier classrooms.
HVAC filtration : Get the facts about how filters work and their actual effectiveness in preventing the spread of COVID.
In-room air cleaners: Sort out the noise about when to use an in-room air cleaner and how to choose one that works for your classrooms.
Germicidal UV (GUV, or UVGI): Understand the three most common types of UVGI systems and what to know about using them in schools.