Indoor Air Hygiene Commission

Source: auris / Fotolia.com
The Indoor Air Hygiene Commission (IRK) provides professional counsel to the president of the Federal Environment Agency on all matters of indoor air hygiene.
The Indoor Air Hygiene Commission (IRK) provides professional counsel to the president of the Federal Environment Agency on all matters of indoor air hygiene.
The members of this commission are appointed by the UBA President for a period of three years and come primarily from scientific institutions in Germany and various authorities at the Laender level. Membership in the IRK is honorary. In addition to appointed members, representatives from the Federal Ministry for Environment, the Federal Ministry of Health, Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs, as well as the Federal Environment Agency itself attend its regular meetings. Other expert guests are invited as necessary.
The IRK develops recommendations and opinions on various issues and problems concerning indoor air hygiene. In the past, this has concerned for example tetrachloroethene in dry cleaning shops; household disinfectants; polychlorinated biphenyls; asbestos in storage heaters; asphalt floor panelling; and formaldehyde. Newer areas of focus include the occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) after application of adhesives containing tar when putting down parquet panelling, hygiene problems of air conditioning and ventilation in buildings, microbiological indoor air pollution, and emissions from building products. The IRK has recently published several manuals.
The Commission’s areas of focus in the current session include proper ventilation in schools and particulates in indoor spaces.
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 31 (1988), pp. 99-101
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 31 (1988), p. 366
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 33 (1990), pp. 32-34
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 33 (1990), p. 497-499
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 34 (1991), p. 198
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 34 (1991), p. 391
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 36 (1993), p. 76
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 36 (1993), pp. 117-118
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 36 (1993), p. 392
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 38 (1995), pp. 284-287
Bundesgesundheitsblatt 38 (1995), pp. 288-289
Bundesgesundhbl.-Gesundheitsforsch.-Gesundheitsschutz 42 (1999), p. 88
Federal Environment Agency, June 2000
Federal Environment Agency, December 2002
Federal Environment Agency, September 2005