Healthy Homes For You Blog

Part 1 - Why is clean indoor air important?
Part 2 - Sources of Indoor Air Pollution
Part 3 - How poor indoor air quality affects your health
Part 4 - Solutions...Creating Healthy Indoor Air inside our homes

Part 1 - Why is clean indoor air important?

Americans spend an average of 90% of our lives indoors according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  This leaves only 10% of our time spent outdoors.

Much is written about outdoor sources of pollution and how human lives can be affected by polluted air, water and soil.  However, given the percentage split above, do you think the indoor environment or the outdoor environment has the greatest potential to affect our health? 

I live in Sacramento, California, and in the summer months, there are frequent notices that warn residences of unhealthy polluted air.  Below is a copy of a common alert that I received in my email many times last summer:

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Now get ready for a shocker...We all should be getting daily warnings about the air pollution levels inside our homes....because the air in our homes can be much worse than outdoor air!

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) says that the air inside our homes can be 2 to 100 times more polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities. "Thus, for many people, the risks to health may be greater due to exposure to air pollution indoors than outdoors".  Why is this?  Where does the pollution come from?

Even the cleanliest of households have pollution sources that can emit harmful levels of irritants, allergens, biological aerosols, and chemical compounds that can affect our health.  Indoor air contains a vast amount of visible and invisible contaminants that are either particulates or they are gases, vapors and odors.  Polltants levels build up and become trapped inside our homes because of three major factors:  1) Homes are built airtight for energy efficiency.  2)  Even the draftiest homes lack adequate ventilation, 3) Home design and occupant lifestyles allow build-up of pollutants.

For more information see USEPA's Website and article "The Inside Story:  A Guide to Indoor Air Quality.

See Part 2 Next - Part 2 - Sources of Indoor Air Pollution. 

Environmentally Yours,

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors
a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

In my last Blog Post I wrote about the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) 2007 update to the the "Toxics Release Inventory"  (TRI). Hazardous materials releases that must be reported to USEPA are listed in the TRI database.

I entered my home zipcode in the TRI datase last week, and discovered that a Georgia-Pacific Chemical facility is located within one miles of my home. 

Where is the Irony you ask??  Today, I read in the Sacramento Bee that the same Georgia-Pacific was fined $2.4 Million for illegally diluting their chemical waste and disposing it into the sewer. They saved $300,000 per year by not hauling their waste to an approved disposal site.

Where is the environmental harm?  Liquids that are disposed in the sewer system travel to sewage treatment plants.  Sewage Treatment Plants rely on a delicate balance of natural bacterial organisms to decompose sewage.  These bacterial balances can be disrupted when unexpected chemicals enter the process.  Not only do chemicals harm Sewage Treatment plants, but the liquids from them are sent directly to our local rivers with out further treatment.

Home buyers should check the TRI database so they can make informed decisions about the are they are thinking of purchaseing a home.  

Environmentally Yours,

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

The United States Environmental Protection agency (USEPA) recently announced their 2007 update of chemical release report information.  Their on-line database is called the "Toxics Release Inventory"  (TRI). The TRI database tracks chemical releases that must be reported by the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act of 1986.

I decided to check out the TRI database, and I entered the zip code for my neighborhood.  As I hit the web link, I had a fleeting thought...  "I'm so fortunate to live far away from companies that use toxic chemicals".  Wow, was I surprised! 

I learned that Georgia-Pacific Chemical has a manufacturing facility about one mile from my home....and yes, they had reported releases.  Nine releases in 2007 to be exact.  The facility is located at the end of a dead end street.  I never knew it was there.  I "Googled" Georgia-Pacific and learned that they manufacture industrial resins.

I am not sure what I will do, if anything, about my new discovery.  Would I have moved into my neighborhood if I knew Georgia Pacific was one mile away?  I am not sure, but I would have liked to make that informed decision when I purchased my home.

I recommend that my fellow real estate colleagues inform their Buyers about the TRI database.  Your clients will be impressed that you are keeping up with the latest environmental news in the neighborhood.

Environmentally Yours,

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

Have you ever discovered household chemicals in a home that you listed or that your Buyer wants to purchase?  Garden pesticides, weed killers, drain cleaners, paint, chlorine bleach, laundry detergents, oven cleaners, solvents, batteries, electronic wastes, and automotive fluid are just some of the common Hazardous Materials used by homeowners.  It is against the law to throw Hazardous Materials in the trash, municipal dump, to pour them down the sewer or storm drain...and no, you cannot dig a big hole and bury them either!

A Hazardous Material becomes a "Hazardous Waste" when there is no further use intended for the material...and there are very strict laws and regulations about handling and disposing of Hazardous Wastes.  Fines up to $25,000 per day, per incident, can be charged to persons and companies that do not follow the Hazardous Wastes laws and regulations in California.

The governmental agency that regulates Hazardous Waste in California, the Department of Toxic Substances (DTSC), recognizes the increased potential for the mishandling of hazardous waste with the large number of abandoned and foreclosed homes.  To help avoid these circumstances, DTSC has issued a Press Release announcing a new Fact Sheet that presents guidelines for the proper handling and disposal of residential Hazardous Waste.

You can see the DTSC's Fact Sheet at http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/ContactDTSC/ManagingHW-ForeclosedProperties.cfm. 

Other news articles of reference are:  http://www.californiachronicle.com/articles/79230  and http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2008/10/27/daily38.html

Keep in mind that the Fact Sheet was written for California laws, and they may be different in another state.  You should check with local and state Environmental Protection or Environmental Health Agencies in your area.

Environmentally Yours, 

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

You are probably familiar with the Eskaton name as the
leading provider of senior housing and social services in Northern California.  I had the pleasure of attending Eskaton's VIP Grand Opening Event last week to show off their new National Demonstration Home. 

Eskaton's National Demonstration home is a first-of-its-kind home that incorporates "Universal Design" principles that make the home friendlier to seniors than traditional home design.  Unique features such as wider hallways, level-flooring transitions, multilevel work surfaces, zero threshold showers, occupancy sensor lighting, accessible cabinetry, security system with visual and audible alerts, remote wellness monitoring and communication and much, much more. 

The Eskaton National Demonstration home, certified by Green Built Homes of America, incorporates green and healthy features.  It uses advanced indoor air quality filtration and ventilation by Allergen Safe Homes, which creates hospital quality airflow in the home.  It has solar power, tank-less water heaters, high efficiency lighting, GreenGuard Certified insulation, and high efficiency heating and air conditioning systems.

Builders and designers can be licensed by the Eskaton-Certified Home^TM Program.  The license gives them a full suite of design specifications and permission to use the nationally recognized Eskaton name in marketing and sales literature.

Eskaton's Demonstation Home is open for tours.  For more information, send an email to demohome@eskaton.org or call 1-888-933-6646.  Visit their website at www.demohome.org for more information.

Environmentally Yours,


Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

There are a few times when it's just not cool to flush the toilet!

Here are the top Seven examples when not to flush the toilet...(the important stuff is at the end!)

7.  When your child is playing in the toilet...

6.   When you wallet falls into the toilet..

5.  When you use your toilet to mail bills..





4.  When you're washing your clothes..




3.  When an elephant is using your toilet..

 
2.  When you live in a toilet house..




#1.    When you're done with your prescription medicines!!

 "Potty Jokes"  aside....it's really bad for the environment when prescription medicines are disposed in the toilet.  Water from our homes travels through the sewer systems to a Water treatment plant.  However, Water Treatment Plants do not remove drugs from waste water.. Therefore, the drug latent water from our homes pollute our rivers and streams.  There are measurable levels of all kinds of prescription drugs in our rivers and streams.

Many local, regional, state and federal agencies have started the "No Drugs Down the Drain campaign in California.  You can find where local events are happening in your community at http://www.nodrugsdownthedrain.org/.  Also, check with your local Environmental Health Offices in your community for more environmentally friendly options.

 Environmentally Yours,

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".

It looks like the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) is really cracking down on failure to notify renters and buyers of possible lead exposure.  The USEPA fined a San Francisco based landloard $25,000 for not providing lead disclosures to tennants who lived in pre-1978 housing units in Sacramento, CA.

It's important that homeowners and renters know that the paint in their home might contain lead.  Lead is particularly harmful to babies and children.  It can permanently damage their gorwing brains an central nervous system.  

Parents could unknownly expose their children to high lead levels.  For example, by sanding painted surfaces, allowing lead dust into the air or to settle of surfaces were small children or toddlers would be exposed.  Paint chips that fall on the floor or outside could also be ingested by smaill children.

See the entire News Release from USEPA at http://www.GoLyonGreen.com/CustomContent.aspx?ID=5597&fp=4083

 Environmentally Yours,

Nancy Lancaster is a Realtor and Ecobroker practicing in the greater Sacramento region for Lyon Real Estate .  Visit Nancy Lancaster website to find homes for sale in Sacramento.  Nancy Lancaster sponsors a unique program called "Healthy Homes For You".