Polluted air in classrooms: the EU sounds the alarm. Sabiana puts forth a solution
SINPHONIE (Schools Indoor Pollution and Health: Observatory Network in Europe ) is a research project funded by the EU, concerning health, environment, transport and climate change whose final objective is to improve air quality in primary and nursery schools.
Sinphonie took a snapshot of air quality in 114 schools attended by 5,175 children (264 nursery schools) and 1,223 teachers in 54 cities of 23 European countries.
In Italy, the study involved six schools: two in Sicily (Palermo), two in Tuscany (Pisa) and two in Lombardy (Milan).
The study found that 85% of European schoolchildren are exposed to micro fine dust at concentrations above 10 micrograms per cubic metre, average annual guidance value recommended by the WHO; half are exposed to excessive amounts of radon and a quarter to too much benzene; over 60% of children are exposed to high levels of formaldehyde and a significant presence of carbon dioxide.
Breathing too many pollutants means a greater risk of suffering from respiratory conditions and certainly does not help if one already has a problem: 8% of schoolchildren suffer from asthma, 9% from nasal allergies and 17% from eczema. Children spend most of the day inside school buildings. Healthy school premises may therefore directly improve children’s health and promote learning, contributing to their development into healthy and capable adults.
Installing a good air filtering system is an important step towards breathing clean air in all indoor premises where people spend a long time. Crystall is the top of the range electronic filter, able to assure good IAQ through virtually total elimination of all liquid and solid particles that pollute indoor air.
Sinphonie - Final Report
SINPHONIE (Schools Indoor
Pollution and Health: Observatory Network in Europe ) is a research project
funded by the EU, concerning health, environment, transport and climate change
whose final objective is to improve air quality in primary and nursery schools.
Sinphonie took a snapshot of air quality in 114 schools attended by 5,175
children (264 nursery schools) and 1,223 teachers in 54 cities of 23 European
countries.
In Italy, the study involved six schools: two in Sicily (Palermo), two in
Tuscany (Pisa) and two in Lombardy (Milan).
The study found that 85% of European schoolchildren are exposed to micro fine
dust at concentrations above 10 micrograms per cubic metre, average annual
guidance value recommended by the WHO; half are exposed to excessive amounts of
radon and a quarter to too much benzene; over 60% of children are exposed to
high levels of formaldehyde and a significant presence of carbon dioxide.
Breathing too many pollutants means a greater risk of suffering from
respiratory conditions and certainly does not help if one already has a
problem: 8% of schoolchildren suffer from asthma, 9% from nasal allergies and
17% from eczema. Children spend most of the day inside school buildings.
Healthy school premises may therefore directly improve children’s health and
promote learning, contributing to their development into healthy and capable
adults.
Installing a good air filtering system is an important step towards breathing
clean air in all indoor premises where people spend a long time. Crystall is
the top of the range electronic filter, able to assure good IAQ through
virtually total elimination of all liquid and solid particles that pollute
indoor air.
Sinphonie - Final Report
Newsletter
The Unlock Italy Decree amends the Consolidated Construction Law.
The Unlock Italy Decree (LD 133/2014 converted into Law 164/2014) has introduced significant amendments to the Consolidated Construction Law. Below are the main changes in constructions:
Combination and splitting
The operating range of maintenance and small transformation has widened, as they may be implemented with a mere “notice of work started” (Cil) sworn by a designer. Therefore splitting up or combining property units and all extraordinary maintenance even involving changes to volumes and surfaces of the individual units are “free”. This simplification might potentially involve all the approximately 26 million Italian homeowners. Before the Unlock Italy Decree all construction projects on existing properties that modified the surface or volume were subject to planning permission, with the subsequent procedure for issuing the municipal decision within 90 days and payment of the contribution of the construction cost. Now, however, it will be possible to carry out these works – provided the total volume of the building is not altered –with the simple help of a qualified engineer, who sends the project and the certification of building-planning compliance to the Municipality; after that work can start immediately.
Building permit
Reduced deadline for the examination (from 120 to 60 days) for municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants; possibility of requesting extension of the permit’s validity beyond three years from the start of the works, due to technical difficulties or events occurred (in fact a very large number of cases); finally, you can easily apply for some non-essential variants to the project with a simple SCIA (certified start-up notification) without having to apply for a new permit. Three amendments that simplify citizens’ life to a certain extent also for more complex works (building renovations that entail changing volume or facade, extensions, new constructions).
Urban upgrade
Municipalities and Regions may reduce primary and secondary urbanisation, construction costs and the construction contribution, to incentivise building renovation works as opposed to new constructions, with a view to limiting soil consumption.
Single construction regulation
Awaited by professionals and firms to do away with the over 8,000 municipal regulations in force today. It will be ready within November 2015 and implemented by Government, Regions and local autonomous authorities.
20% IRPEF deduction
Up to 300 thousand Euro, of expenses incurred between 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2017, to purchase new homes in energy class A or B, or renovate existing homes, and let them at regulated rent for at least 8 years.
Rent to buy
The "rent to buy" regulations are rearranged, governing the contract for use tied to the subsequent sale of real estate.
Updated Consolidated Construction Law
The Unlock Italy Decree (LD
133/2014 converted into Law 164/2014) has introduced significant amendments to
the Consolidated Construction Law. Below are the main changes in
constructions:
Combination and splitting
The operating range of maintenance and small transformation has widened, as
they may be implemented with a mere “notice of work started” (Cil) sworn by a
designer. Therefore splitting up or combining property units and all
extraordinary maintenance even involving changes to volumes and surfaces of the
individual units are “free”. This simplification might potentially involve all
the approximately 26 million Italian homeowners. Before the Unlock Italy Decree
all construction projects on existing properties that modified the surface or
volume were subject to planning permission, with the subsequent procedure for
issuing the municipal decision within 90 days and payment of the contribution
of the construction cost. Now, however, it will be possible to carry out these
works – provided the total volume of the building is not altered –with the
simple help of a qualified engineer, who sends the project and the
certification of building-planning compliance to the Municipality; after that
work can start immediately.
Building permit
Reduced deadline for the examination (from 120 to 60 days) for municipalities
with more than 100,000 inhabitants; possibility of requesting extension of the
permit’s validity beyond three years from the start of the works, due to
technical difficulties or events occurred (in fact a very large number of
cases); finally, you can easily apply for some non-essential variants to the
project with a simple SCIA (certified start-up notification) without having to
apply for a new permit. Three amendments that simplify citizens’ life to a certain
extent also for more complex works (building renovations that entail changing
volume or facade, extensions, new constructions).
Urban upgrade
Municipalities and Regions may reduce primary and secondary urbanisation,
construction costs and the construction contribution, to incentivise building
renovation works as opposed to new constructions, with a view to limiting soil
consumption.
Single construction regulation
Awaited by professionals and firms to do away with the over 8,000 municipal
regulations in force today. It will be ready within November 2015 and
implemented by Government, Regions and local autonomous authorities.
20% IRPEF deduction
Up to 300 thousand Euro, of expenses incurred between 1 January 2014 to 31
December 2017, to purchase new homes in energy class A or B, or renovate
existing homes, and let them at regulated rent for at least 8 years.
Rent to buy
The "rent to buy" regulations are rearranged, governing the contract
for use tied to the subsequent sale of real estate.
Updated Consolidated Construction Law
Newsletter
Milan’s Vertical Forest is awarded the prize for the most beautiful skyscraper worldwide. Air conditioning is signed by Sabiana.
The award, which was established in 2003 thanks to the joint effort of Frankfurt’s Architecture Museum (DAM), the city of Frankfurt and DekaBank, looks at all buildings that are at least 100 metres high. The parameters for the award include sustainability, design, quality of spaces and integration within the urban setting. The award is given every two years, and for this year’s editions, over 800 skyscrapers were examined on all continents.
The international and multidisciplinary jury defined the Vertical Forest as an “expression of man’s need for contact with nature; a radical and courageous idea for tomorrow's cities and certainly provides a model for the development of high population density areas in other European countries.”
With construction completed in June 2013, the Vertical Forest, designed by Italy’s Stefano Boeri and built by Hines Italia at Porta Nuova in Milan, is a complex consisting of two residential towers, 80 and 112 metres high, with 113 flats in a variety of shapes and sizes, each having access to its own balcony or terrace, able to hold 800 trees between 3 and 9 metres high, 11,000 perennials and creepers, 5,000 bushes: equal to 20,000 m2 of forest and undergrowth.
As this project is cutting-edge and features strong criteria of sustainability and environmental impact, as well as design and quality, the designers opted for the air conditioning systems of the entire complex to be supplied by Sabiana, with about a thousand fan coils and flues.
Italy’s crowning glories choose Sabiana.
The award, which was
established in 2003 thanks to the joint effort of Frankfurt’s Architecture
Museum (DAM), the city of Frankfurt and DekaBank, looks at all buildings that
are at least 100 metres high. The parameters for the award include
sustainability, design, quality of spaces and integration within the urban
setting. The award is given every two years, and for this year’s editions, over
800 skyscrapers were examined on all continents.
The international and multidisciplinary jury defined the Vertical Forest as an
“expression of man’s need for contact with nature; a radical and courageous
idea for tomorrow's cities and certainly provides a model for the development
of high population density areas in other European countries.”
With construction completed in June 2013, the Vertical Forest, designed by
Italy’s Stefano Boeri and built by Hines Italia at Porta Nuova in Milan, is a
complex consisting of two residential towers, 80 and 112 metres high, with 113
flats in a variety of shapes and sizes, each having access to its own balcony
or terrace, able to hold 800 trees between 3 and 9 metres high, 11,000
perennials and creepers, 5,000 bushes: equal to 20,000 m2 of forest
and undergrowth.
As this project is cutting-edge and
features strong criteria of sustainability and environmental impact, as well as
design and quality, the designers opted for the air conditioning systems of the
entire complex to be supplied by Sabiana, with about a thousand fan coils and
flues.
Italy’s crowning glories choose Sabiana.
Newsletter
Sabiana still the talk of the media
Reliability, technology and design are the requirements that led Sabiana to developing the climate lungs of the Biodiversity Garden, which since its inauguration has aroused great interest in the media, ans continues being covered.
See the press review for the latest articles.
Reliability, technology and
design are the requirements that led Sabiana to developing the climate lungs of
the Biodiversity Garden, which since its inauguration has aroused great
interest in the media, ans continues being covered.
See the press review for
the latest articles.