Building design and maintenance and indoor air pollution.

This paper examines some designs which lead to indoor air pollution and exhorts mandatory maintenance of all building services which determine the health and safety of the building occupants as anintegral part of our city bylaws. Effect of poor maintenance of some of these systems on the indoor air quality is examined together with the effect of the interruption of the ventilation fans for energy conservation pwrposes, not always done legally. Amng the examples considered are the effect of underground parking and its ventilation system, proximity of the fresh air intakes to exhausts of the building and/or adjacent buildings and the drains of the plumbing system. The author's denied appeals to ASHRAE committies regarding adotion of ASHRAE Standard 62-1981R, done to ensurethat the ventilation fans are not turned off when such buildings are occuppied are discuused together with the City of Westmount'smaintenance bylaw for apartment buildings adopted June 1989 which incorporates such a requirement. Our laws must ensure good air quality in our habitat as an environmental human right with the citizens' right of access to the information necessary to determine thequality of their indoor air environment for their health and safety. Ekamples from present Quibec legislation are presented.