How much time do you spend indoors? Do you close your windows tight at home to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer? Have you ever had a headache, or felt not so good in school or at work only to have the symptoms go away after you get outside? This is not an 'alergy to school or work', it is actually something known as Sick Building Syndrome. 

 

Since the 1970's indoor air quality has been declining. Buildings are built with increased energy efficiency therefore our homes and offices become a trap for conditions that are harmful to us. In the way we conduct our everyday lives we are spending less time outside and therefore less time with nature. Nature is something we have run away from. Plants and the soils they grow in keep our planet clean by using everything in the air, including pollution, to create energy. Knowing that outdoor plants clean pollution, how do you think we could reduce/remove indoor air pollution? How can we bring the outdoor environment indoors? Are there any benefits to having plants in our homes  and/or workplaces?

 

 

There are many factors that affect the quality of the air inside:

• noise

• lighting

• temperature

• air circulation

• airborne chemicals​

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Your task will be to investigate, using the available references, what has been done to 'clean' indoor air. Also you will examine how plants can be used to improve the quality of air in homes and offices. The focus of you task will be on the airborne chemicals. Please continue to your task and see what new and interesting information awaits.