IMPROVING INDOOR AIR QUALITY

In the MSE COS Debate this year, I spoke on the need to ensure good indoor air quality standards in our public and commercial buildings. I suggested ways for MSE to be able to proactively monitor these standards. My cut speech is set out below.

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Post Covid-19, there is a much better awareness on the impact of indoor air quality on the health of occupants in a building.

NEA currently requires building owners to comply with a set of guidelines to ensure a reasonable standard of indoor air quality and improving ventilation.

The question that arises is how will NEA be able to regulate this requirement. We should not wait until the occupants get sick before any investigation is launched on the adequacy of the measures put in place by building owners.

Hence, from a regulatory perspective, how does NEA proactively monitor the owners’ compliance of air quality standards in public and commercial buildings. Would the compulsory installation of monitors such as carbon dioxide monitors in these buildings help in this task?

Finally, what has been NEA’s experience in supervising the Code of Practice for the control of Legionella bacteria in cooling towers of the buildings?