Air Quality Newsflash

Hello Everyone!

Just when we think things are starting to settle in and we begin to have some fun in our educational efforts, we realize that the serious situation with fires has affected our day-to-day plans.We are feeling truly fortunate to be here together in a safe building! However, we know that it is important to consider the environmental conditions and make the decisions that will be best for the health of our students and staff in light of the air quality concerns our province is currently facing. For this reason, staff and students remained inside for P.E. classes and lunch time today. Our intention is to monitor the situation every day and proceed with caution.
Here is some helpful information concerning our indoor air quality which is great to know!
Our school systems use DDC (Direct Digital Controls) to maintain an optimal learning environment in our facilities. For the most part the HVAC systems operate only during times when the building is considered occupied, outside those hours the systems only turn on when a building is calling for heat or cooling. This reduces the operating costs significantly over the course of a year and wear and tear on the systems. An HVAC system only heats in some buildings. In others, the HVAC heats and cools. In addition, there is air exchange  so CO2 levels don’t exceed industry standards. So in a nutshell, all school HVAC systems operate during school hours, circulating and filtering air, heating or cooling depending on the time of year. To keep CO2 levels under 800ppm there are dampers that allow in some outside air, exhausting the stale inside air.
A big shout out to our Operations Department for helping us maintain our inside air quality and for providing this information for all!
We hope to see the skies clear and our friends and neighbours in these fire areas safe soon.

Kind regards,

Sydney Griffith