PRO-U5950.01B Indoor Air Quality

University personnel With concerns about Indoor air quality

1. Are encouraged to notify their supervisors.

Students

2. May wish to share concerns with their faculty members or appropriate department offices.

University personnel with continued concerns about indoor air quality

3. Contact the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) office at x3064 or email ehs@wwu.edu.

Personnel in other departments who are likely to receive notification or gain awareness of indoor air quality concerns (such as Human Resources or Facilities Management)

4. Are encouraged to notify EHS.

EHS personnel

5. Respond to the concern.
6. Create an incident/potential hazard report.
7. Investigate issues as a potential hazard.
8. Based on the initial determination take the following or other actions ONLY as appropriate:
   • Recommend enhanced cleaning as resources are available.
   • Provide portable air cleaner(s) as available and appropriate on temporary loan.
   • Schedule a joint inspection with Facilities Management staff.
   • Provide air quality logs and/or survey affected personnel.

NOTE:

Following the initial response, many indoor air quality concerns are managed with facility cleaning or air cleaner placement. Other concerns require work by Facilities Management staff, such as with water leaks. Some concerns require a minor capital or major capital facility renovation project. The timeframe for larger-scale action is months to years.

9. Determines whether an indoor air quality concern has escalated by evaluating whether some of the following occur:
   • The number of people involved increases
   • The duration of the concerns becomes lengthy or initial mitigation efforts are unsuccessful
   • The severity of symptoms becomes increasingly acute
   • Difficulties arise with either source identification or solution identification

Director of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS)

10. When faced with an escalation of concern, assembles an action team to approach institutional issues, including the following members, as appropriate:
    • EHS staff
    • Facilities Management staff
    • Space Administration manager
    • Human Resources staff
    • Risk Manager
    • Department head for affected area
    Optional participation may include:
    • Representative from the University division with personnel affected by the air quality concern
    • Student Health Center Medical Director
    • Assistant Attorney General
    • University Communications staff
    • Operating Budget staff
    • Capital Budget staff
11. May notify the Vice President for Business and Financial Affairs and the Vice President of the affected employees prior to the first meeting of the action team.

Environmental Health and Safety office

12. Provides information on indoor air quality contaminant identification and control as appropriate.

Facilities Management department

13. Provides information on facility alterations as appropriate.

    NOTE:

    Information is presented jointly whenever possible.

Environmental Health and Safety office

14. Schedules meetings as appropriate to present information to affected individuals through a department’s supervisory personnel.
15. Shares information as appropriate either electronically or in written form

    NOTE:

    Meetings are scheduled at points in the response process when information becomes available or action is planned.

Affected Employees

16. May provide information about related symptoms to the Environmental Health and Safety office, and to selected consultants, if used, via two forms completed by affected occupants: indoor air quality log and indoor air quality occupant interview.

NOTE:

Information provided is maintained as confidentially as feasible.

University Communications staff

17. Becomes involved if the need arises to provide public information about an escalated indoor air quality situation, for example, prior to a departmental move to other facilities or investigation by a news media organization.

The action team or individual team members

18. Make recommendations about funding issues to the University Administration as appropriate based on available resources and the urgency of financial requirements.

Director of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS)

19. Provides employees impacted by an escalated indoor air quality issue with notes from action team meetings, as feasible.

NOTE:

Documentation regarding an escalated event is maintained in the EHS incident/potential hazard report materials.

Employees including student workers who have symptoms that they believe are caused by indoor air quality problems

20. May choose to pursue workers’ compensation benefits.

NOTE:

A workers’ compensation claim must be filed by a physician to the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (state fund) on behalf of an employee. An employee may select an occupational medicine specialist for such medical consultation. Occupational physicians’ expertise rests with medical treatment for conditions and symptoms.

Director of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS)

21. May have an occupational medicine specialist speak with groups of employees to present health-related information.