Indoor air quality guidelines: Comparative analysis of approaches in France and Japan

Indoor air quality guidelines: Comparative analysis of approaches in France and Japan Collection of data on air pollution in indoor environments (homes, schools, offices, etc.) has increased considerably over the last few years, but only the development of guideline values makes it possible to assess the possible health effects associated with measured levels of pollutants in these environments. Indoor air quality guidelines define safe levels of indoor pollutant concentrations below which adverse health effects are not expected to occur in the general population. Many countries have adopted such guidelines, Japan among the earliest, for it has always considered indoor air quality to be a major public health issue. A working group, coordinated by the French agency for occupational and environmental health safety (Afsset), was set up in 2005 to develop guideline values in France. This article provides a comparative analysis of the approaches followed in France and in Japan to establish these values. This analysis shows that both countries used relatively similar processes to establish the values, despite slight differences in their methods. In contrast, the substances regulated by these indoor air quality guidelines differ completely, except for formaldehyde, which is common to both countries. Japan's longer experience shows the diversity of management tools and regulations that can be based on these values.