Evaluation of indoor environmental quality in Sagkeeng Junior School

• Main Author: Narubayeva, Saule
• Other Authors: Kavgic, Miroslava (Civil Engineering) Issa, Mohamed (Civil Engineering), Mehran, Babak (Civil Engineering) Clark, Shawn (Civil Engineering)
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2021
• Subjects: Indoor environmental quality; First Nations
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1993/35403

This research involved investigating the effects of a First Nations school’s indoor environmental quality on health and human performance. This research project was con-ducted in partnership with the Sagkeeng First Nations community in Manitoba. The in-door environment of a school building is a complex system involving many parameters that may have an impact on indoor air quality and thermal comfort. Air quality in schools depends strongly, on one hand, on the interaction between the building and its outdoor environment, and, on the other hand, on the way a building is used, operated, and maintained. School buildings should use a properly designed heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system that maintains an adequate supply of cleaner air and sets up optimal heating. This study provided empirical evidence to the claim that First Nations schools can be exposed to adverse indoor environmental conditions based on the school studied in this research. The evidence was based on objective measurements of indoor environmental quality and a subjective survey conducted among the school’s teachers. In addition, a series of statistical analyses in Statistical Package for Social Science 25 and Excel were performed to examine the associations between building characteristics, indoor environmental parameters, and teacher's health. Finally, thermal imaging was conducted to check the thermal performance of the building envelope. The physical measurement campaign consisted of measuring the indoor environmental parameters: indoor air temperature, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide concentrations in 9 classrooms. Consequently, along with the comprehensive physical measurements, fundamental knowledge, of the building and its systems was also needed to identify principal factors that adversely affect indoor school environments. On-site continuous records of air temperature showed underheating and overheating of the school during the year. Air temperatures as high as 35.1°C (winter season) and as low as 9.6°C (spring season) ...