Green Options

Many of us think about green living and reducing our carbon footprints. But do we get enough fresh air into our homes? Energy efficient homes don’t get much ventilation, unless windows are opened regualrly. Airborne contaminants in homes can build up to many times the outdoor concentrations.

I recently had the opportunity to compare a walkable urban city with my own Silicon Valley suburb. I have read about the environmental benefits of the “New Urbanism”. On a recent visit to Washington, D.C., I observed the health benefits of an urban lifestyle. I was surprised that residents of Washington, D.C. appeared more trim and physically fit than my health-conscious California neighbors.

The Wilson family moved into a new home last summer. Within days, they were feeling ill. Their eyes were burning, they had sore throats, and they were chronically tired.

Cleaning products and air fresheners can produce formaldehyde. UC Berkeley researchers found that chemicals in pine oils and citrus oils react with ozone in the air, producing formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a strong eye, nose, throat, and lung irritant. Formaldehyde is also an asthma trigger and a carcinogen, according to the EPA.

Some granite emits enough radon to increase the radon concentration in a kitchen. The radon in Cathy Woods’ kitchen was three times as high as the radon in her bedroom. That lung cancer risk at that level was nearly as high as smoking 10 cigarettes a day.

The Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act of 2009 does not address lung cancer prevention. The bill states that 60% of new lung cancers are in non-smokers, but it makes no mention of radon gas, the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.

Senate bill to reduce lung cancer ignores radon gas. Radon is the #2 cause of lung cancer.

A Silicon Valley real estate agent told her clients, “There is no radon in California. You don’t need to worry about it.” The couple purchased a home in Sunnyvale, CA, which has some of the higher radon levels in Santa Clara County. Another home in Sunnyvale had 29 picoCuries/liter (pCi/L), more than 8 times the EPA action level (4 pCi/L). A home in Los Gatos had 56 pCi/L, which is 14 times the action level.

Erica Marcus declared, “I was basically thrown out of a showroom today for mentioning radiation to the owner”. She says, “This tells a lot about the industry knowing about what they are selling”.

A homeowner near San Francisco received a proposal for $1045 to remove asbestos from his home. The material did not contain detectable asbestos.