Guidance offered for K-12 schools to support students with asthma

The Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has released guidance for K-12 schools on product purchasing to support students with asthma. An estimated six million U.S. students younger than 18 are affected by asthma, the USGBC says.

“Healthy schools are critical to rebuilding our economy, and we need to prioritize decisions that allow students, teachers, janitorial staff and communities at large to feel supported and safe,” said Anisa Heming, director of the Center for Green Schools, in a news release. “Through this new guide, we’re providing actionable guidance that education leaders can put into practice now to protect millions of students.”

The Center identified four primary categories where environmentally healthy purchasing can help reduce irritants and allergens that contribute to asthma. The guidance addresses cleaning products, filters, furniture, rugs, and markers and paints.

A healthy green purchasing policy helps address common asthma triggers, such as exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs), indoor allergens, and poor ventilation. The asthma prevention guidance provides a list of third-party product certifications to consider, best practices for choosing low-VOC materials, and methods for engaging school decision-makers to implement a new purchasing policy.

New York City has two very large buildings dedicated to answering the 911 calls of its five boroughs. With more than 11 million emergency calls annually, it makes perfect sense. The second of these buildings, the Public Safety Answering Center II (PSAC II) is located on a nine-acre parcel of land in the Bronx. It’s an imposing 450,000 square-foot structure—a 240-foot-wide by 240-foot-tall cube. The gleaming aluminum cube risesthe equivalent of 24 stories from behind a grassy berm, projecting the unlikely impression that it might actually be floating. Like most visually striking structures, the building has drawn as much scorn as it has admiration.