Green-Healthy Schools by Liora Leah Blog entry

Blog: Mother Earth Heals
by Liora Leah

Green-Healthy Schools

Kids learn better and have fewer sick days when the school buildings they are in are "green", new study says. Can't wait for California to follow New York's lead of using "green" cleaning products in public buildings, including public schools!

Date: 1/12/2006 12:02:36 AM ( 18 y ) ... viewed 1262 times

THE NON-TOXIC TIMES, The Seventh Generation Newsletter
Vol. 7, No. 3 January 2006

Education Elation: Schools Graded “Green” Test Best

It’s an educational axiom that student performance is directly related to a school’s environment. The nicer and safer the surroundings, the greater the student achievement. Taking this idea to heart, more and more schools are extending the concept of “school environment” to, well… the environment. Maybe they’ve seen the new survey that finds green facilities enhance learning. Or perhaps they’re following the lead of New York State, which this fall will mandate the use of green cleaning products in schools.

Today’s class starts with the release of results of a new survey on green building issues conducted by the Turner Construction Company in August of last year. As it has in previous incarnations, the annual survey collected the opinions of building owners, architects, engineers, and others involved in the construction trades. This year, however, the study also cast a spotlight on green educational facilities, including both public K-12 schools and institutions of higher learning.

According to the study’s results, the vast majority of educational professionals believe that green buildings produce significant educational benefits. “Green buildings” were defined as those using design and construction practices that reduce or eliminate negative effects on both the environment and building occupants:

• 74% of those surveyed said that green schools made it easier to attract and retain teachers

• 72% said green buildings reduced student absenteeism

• 71% said they improved student performance.

• Among those respondents who operate K-12 schools, 24% said student performance was “much better” in green schools compared to non-green schools.

When asked what specific green building attribute provided the greatest single benefit to staff and students, 49% of survey respondents pointed to better indoor air quality. Thirty-seven percent cited increased natural lighting.

The study also demonstrated that while school administrators remain concerned about the increased initial costs involved in green construction, more and more are beginning to understand that when these costs are considered over the life of the building and energy and other environmental savings are factored in, such expenses are minimal. Some 50% of K-12 administrators, for example, now weigh these extra construction costs over the lifespan of the building. And 73% of the survey’s respondents said they expect their total green building costs over 20 years to be lower than they would be with conventional buildings.

Green buildings aren’t the only eco-trend moving to the head of the class in the nation’s schools. The methods and materials used to clean those buildings are also changing. This fall, New York State will lead the way with a new law that requires schools to use environmentally safe cleaning products. Coming on the heels of a previous executive order mandating that all state agencies and authorities begin using green cleaners, the new law was signed by Governor George Pataki late last summer.

The New York law acknowledges something we’ve known for a long time: toxic chemicals in traditional cleaning products can have a serious impact on children’s health whether it’s via the residues they leave behind or the chemical fumes and aerosols they add to indoor air. Indeed, according to the EPA, allergic reactions to such indoor air quality problems keep 10,000 children out of schools each day in the United States.

While no one disputes the benefits of the new law, some administrators and others have expressed some concerns. Green cleaners cost slightly more than traditional products and as schools move into this brave new healthy world, administrators and purchasers find themselves unsure which are the best to use for a school’s many purposes or even which products qualify as legitimate “green” alternatives.

To address these concerns, New York’s Office of General Services is working with the Education Department and the Departments of Health, Labor and Environmental Conservation to help school districts around the state. The agency is developing specifications for green products and sample lists of specific products that schools can use to meet the law’s requirements. Tests are underway in some schools to see which work best. And training provided to custodial staffs and others will minimize the amounts of each product needed to get the job done, thereby helping to bring costs in line with traditional products.

For more information about healthy schools visit the Healthy Schools Network at http://www.healthyschools.org/.

http://www.seventhgeneration.com/site/pp.asp?c=coIHKTMHF&b=1331701#2