Cadmus Supports EPA Protocols to Protect Health During Home Upgrades
The home energy industry gained a powerful new tool to safeguard the indoor air quality of residences undergoing energy efficiency upgrades when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released its Healthy Indoor Environment Protocols for Home Energy Upgrades.
The Cadmus Group, Inc., a leading energy, environmental and public health protection consultancy, provided major consulting support to develop this first-of-its-kind guidance, which will help energy retrofit contractors identify, manage, and reduce the health risks that may arise during home energy retrofits, upgrades or remodeling. The protocols were requested by the White House Council on Environmental Quality as part of the White House’s Recovery Through Retrofit initiative. They address more than a dozen high-risk contaminants including carbon monoxide and other combustion appliance emissions, mold and moisture, pests, radon, and PCBs.
“Cadmus is proud of the contributions we made in support of EPA’s preparation of this important document,” said Ian Kline, president and chief executive officer. “This is the sort of cutting edge project at which we excel, applying the latest research and thinking to a complex, fast-moving and vital environmental and public health issue.”
“Energy contractors who make the protocols part of their standard approach to energy retrofits and upgrades will clearly demonstrate their real commitment to protecting the health of homeowners and to promoting healthier home environments through their work,” said Kate Hastings, the Cadmus principal who led the team that supported the protocols’ development.
The protocols describe a step-wise process for evaluating existing and potential indoor air quality and related health risks in a home before work on energy efficiency improvements begins. They also identify minimum practices for responding to those risks so that energy upgrades and retrofits of single-family and multi-family low-rise residences do not degrade indoor air quality and so compromise occupant health.
The EPA protocols complement guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for Home Energy Professionals, which are intended to foster the growth of a skilled workforce, increase homeowner confidence in the retrofit industry and boost demand for home energy retrofits.
More information on the Healthy Indoor Environment Protocols for Home Energy Upgrades and EPA’s partnership with DOE in addressing energy efficiency and indoor air quality is available at http://www.epa.gov/iaq/homes/retrofits.html.
About The Cadmus Group, Inc.
Cadmus (https://cadmusgroup.com) helps government, non-profit, and corporate clients address critical challenges in the environmental, energy and public health protection sectors. We provide an array of research and analytical services in the United States and abroad, specializing in solving complex problems that demand innovative, multidisciplinary thinking. Our major service areas are water, energy services, social marketing and market transformation, health policy and communications, green building, international development, and strategic environmental consulting.
Our staff includes scientists; engineers; statisticians; economists; MBAs; marketing, public relations, and communications professionals; attorneys; information technology specialists; and public policy analysts. Many of our senior consultants are nationally recognized experts in their fields, and several serve on high-level U.S. government science advisory boards.