LEED certification provides assessment of new buildings to help the environment, improve energy efficiency and improve indoor environmental quality, in Virginia, Maryland, DC. The LEED rating system allows building projects to score points for certification across six categories.

One of the major categories is indoor environmental quality, credit 3.2. Buildings impact people’s health in many ways including daily chemical exposures and microbial exposures. The Green Building Council has ways to improve indoor environmental quality including alternative construction methods, innovative building materials and new ways to monitor indoor air quality, in Virginia, Maryland, DC.

AirMD’s testing procedures sample for Formaldehyde, Particulates (PM10), Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC’s), Carbon Monoxide and 4-Phenylcyclohexene (4-PCH). The testing will identify whether the building is compliant with the LEED requirements and if it is confirmed that the building is compliant, credits toward LEED certification are obtained.

AirMD can serve your environmental testing needs including: Mold testing and mold inspection, asbestos, allergy and dust mite testing, bacteria, chemical and VOC testing, lead, heavy metal, formaldehyde, pesticide and water testing, in Virginia, Maryland, DC.

To ask an AirMD scientist a question about this service please Click Here or to schedule an appointment call 1-888-GO-AIRMD

LEED IAQ 3.2 Compliance Module

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “breathing clean air is a right, not a privilege”. Building occupants and tenants are becoming more educated about the relationship between their health and poor IAQ. Both the World Health Organization and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recognize Sick Building Syndrome and Building Related Illness as a public health problem.

(SBS) or “Sick Building Syndrome” as defined by the EPA, is used to describe situations in which building occupants experience acute health effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified. (BRI) or “building related illness” is a term used when symptoms of diagnosable illness are identified and can be attributed directly to airborne building contaminants.

In Virginia, Maryland, DC many building and business owners are moving to green building practices through new construction and renovation. AirMD offers an option for existing building and business owners to comply with these green building standards thereby reducing the likelihood for potential IAQ problems as well as potential lawsuits due to environmental illnesses.

The US Green Building Council (USGBC) created the LEED Green Building rating system for new Construction in 1999 to recognize “green buildings”. This rating system has been helping to improve the quality of buildings and their impact on the environment. According to the USGBC, the intent of the LEED EQ Credit 3.2 Construction IAQ Management Plan is to “reduce indoor air quality problems resulting from the construction and renovation process to help sustain the comfort and well-being of construction workers and building occupants.”

The indoor air testing component of LEED 3.2 calls for a baseline assessment using testing protocols consistent with the U.S. EPA Compendium of Methods for the determination of Air Pollutants in Indoor Air. Additionally, it must be demonstrated that maximum concentrations of specific contaminants are not exceeded.

When coupled with the AirMD Indoor Air Quality Monitoring Plan, the AirMD LEED IAQ 3.2 compliance plan offers, Virginia, Maryland, DC testing protocols necessary to show employees or potential tenants that the building is achieving green building standards for air quality.

In most cases, the LEED IAQ 3.2 Compliance component is a onetime assessment unless new carpeting, furniture or other building materials are introduced into the environment. As with the other AirMD Environmental Management System modules, this plan can be tailored to your specific environmental needs.

To ask an AirMD scientist a question about this service please Click Here or to schedule an appointment call 1-888-GO-AIRMD