Indoor Air Quality

The United States Environmental Protection Agency estimates the average American is indoors nearly 90 percent of the time. Poor indoor air quality can cause or contribute to the development of chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma or cause acute symptoms like headaches, dry eyes, nasal congestion, nausea and fatigue. While chemical pollutants such as radon gas or formaldehyde are of concern, pollutants of biological origin are the most prevalent in homes. Common pollutants include molds, bacteria, viruses, pollen, dust mites and pets.

The Florida Department of Health in Volusia County assists the public with their indoor environment concerns by offering a variety of services to residents, schools, governmental agencies and public facilities in Volusia and Flagler counties. These services include:

• Advice on the health effects of common indoor air pollutants.
• Consultation services to state and local agencies in the investigation of their indoor environment problems.
• Indoor air quality specialists are available to speak at your next business or civic function. To check availability and schedule a speaker, please call 386-274-0500.
• Investigation of physician-reported illness outbreaks in public buildings.
• Phone consultations regarding indoor environment quality problems.

Our program is consultative and diagnostic in nature and has no regulatory powers. It exists solely to assist the public in solving their indoor environment problems and living a healthier life. We do not provide the following services:

• Declare buildings safe or unsafe.
• Mediate or investigate landlord-tenant, workman’s comp and homeowner/insurance company disputes.
• Mold testing. We only look for environments that create favorable conditions for mold growth. You should contact a private lab for this service.
• We do not test the air to screen for pollutants in a building. We sometimes measure basic parameters (like humidity, CO2, temperature) or suspect chemicals as part of an investigation. A private consultant is recommended for this service if you are interested in finding out what is in your air.