Title: Reading Assignment
Course: WGF 106 DEVELOPMENT > Section: Content

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Sub-Title | The Essentials of IEQ Programming
Content
Many building owners and managers are under increased pressure from many circles to provide good indoor environmental quality (IEQ). There are many opportunities to advance IEQ during the course of energy projects without sacrificing energy efficiency. These opportunities could provide the energy service companies and other energy professionals with the ability to gain a competitive edge as they market their services to a clientele that is becoming increasingly sensitive to indoor environmental quality issues. Many energy professionals believe that IEQ necessarily leads to significant energy penalties and therefore deliberately ignore it in their projects.

Relationship between Energy Efficiency and Indoor Environmental Quality

Many actions taken to improve energy efficiency have a secondary effect on the quality of the indoor environment. This secondary effect may be to improve indoor environmental quality (IEQ), leave IEQ relatively unaffected (provided that certain cautions and adjustments are adhered to), or degrade IEQ, sometimes substantially.

The indoor environmental factors that most influence occupant health and welfare are the thermal conditions, the lighting, and the concentrations of indoor pollutants. Thermal control and lighting are familiar subjects in energy management. Accordingly, energy professionals are in a strong position to affect these two important aspects of the indoor environment. However, energy professionals are often less knowledgeable about the third factor–indoor pollutant concentrations. Although they are often responsible for the design, control, and modification of the ventilation systems, energy professionals are often not fully aware of the resulting effects of these systems on IEQ.
Links/Uploads | Integrating Indoor Environmental Quality with Energy Efficiency http://www.epa.gov/iaq/largebldgs/energy_cost_and_iaq/project_report7.pdf
Attributions | Image and content courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.