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Coronavirus: UAE takes steps to improve air quality inside buildings

Dubai - Certifications are now being introduced in the UAE to show that developers are investing in good indoor air quality.

As Covid-19 prompted the world to pay attention to both sanitation and ventilation, the UAE has started setting indoor air quality standards for its towers and skyscrapers, an official has said.
At a webinar hosted by Khaleej Times, Anwaar Al Shimmari, Chief Innovation Officer at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, said: "We are going to set milestones, KPIs and wellness standards for buildings to maintain good air quality. The private sector also needs to consider this for the sake of their staff and tenants' wellbeing."
Certifications are now being introduced in the UAE to show that developers are investing in good indoor air quality.
Global studies about the pandemic have established a link between bad air quality and the spread of Covid-19 in some countries, Al Shimmari said. "Therefore, it's not only important to invest in the building's infrastructure but also in air quality."
With a growing concern about the need for protection from virus-carrying aerosol droplets - in addition to respiratory droplets that are usually transmitted through close contact - panellists at the event agreed that targeted action is the way forward.
"Buildings can be our first line of defence," said Dr Joseph Allen, associate professor at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, US.
Experts underlined that the pandemic has accelerated the need for better indoor air quality, just like how the it fast-tracked digitisation.
Suhas Inamdar, head of planning and technical at Wasl Properties, UAE, said: "Awareness on all fronts is critical. People talk about outdoor pollution. However, very few people know that the indoor pollution is three to five times more than the outdoor pollution. This is the standard. Worse, it can go up to five or 10 times."
The focus, the panellists said, should be on maximising ventilation to reduce and clear out indoor contaminants.
Rajesh Malik, director for product marketing and app engineering at Carrier Middle East, UAE, said: "We spend 90 per cent of our time indoors, but we spend most of our time thinking about outdoor air pollution. The landscape is shifting from conventional buildings to healthy buildings now. So, some of the main items that we need to focus on are ventilation, air quality, thermal health, filtration and moisture."
nandini@khaleejtimes.com