Reducing indoor air pollution

Synonyms:

Controlling indoor air quality

Context:

No single strategy on indoor air quality has been applied throughout the European region. The involvement of health and environmental authorities is often limited, and most countries do not have specific legislation on indoor air quality. Evidence is accumulating of the severe effect of environmental tobacco smoke on children, a matter of particular concern for indoor air quality.

Indoor air quality affects the entire population, including residents of rural areas. Improving indoor air quality may require countrywide strategies, although the specific features of the urban and rural environments should be considered. The materials selected for building construction and furnishings, as well as the consumer products used indoors, should not adversely affect indoor air quality. Reducing the health risks related to indoor air pollution requires that occupants modify their lifestyles (such as in relation to tobacco smoking).

Implementation:

This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities.

Agenda 21 recommends supporting research and developing programmes for applying prevention and control methods to reducing indoor air pollution, including economic incentives for the installation of appropriate technology.

Broader:

Reducing air pollution
Ensuring a healthy environment

Narrower:

Prohibiting smoking in public places
Controlling moisture problems affecting indoor air quality

Facilitated by:

Ventilating air through buildings
Undertaking research on indoor air pollution

Problems:

Indoor air pollution

Values:

Pollution

References:

Godish, T: Indoor Air Pollution Control
Smith, K R: Biofuels, Air Pollution, and Health: a global review
World Health Organization: Indoor Air Pollution from Biomass Fuel

Subjects:

Amenities → Buildings
Transportation, Telecommunications → Aviation
Societal Problems → Pollution
Research, Standards → Quality unification
Cybernetics → Control

Type Classification:

D: Detailed strategies

Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:

About the Encyclopedia

The Encyclopedia of World Problems and Human Potential is a unique, experimental research work of the Union of International Associations. It is currently published as a searchable online platform with profiles of world problems, action strategies, and human values that are interlinked in novel and innovative ways. These connections are based on a range of relationships such as broader and narrower scope, aggravation, relatedness and more. By concentrating on these links and relationships, the Encyclopedia is uniquely positioned to bring focus to the complex and expansive sphere of global issues and their interconnected nature.

The initial content for the Encyclopedia was seeded from UIA’s Yearbook of International Organizations. UIA’s decades of collected data on the enormous variety of association life provided a broad initial perspective on the myriad problems of humanity. Recognizing that international associations are generally confronting world problems and developing action strategies based on particular values, the initial content was based on the descriptions, aims, titles and profiles of international associations.

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Reducing indoor air pollution

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