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25
CO
2
introduction
WHAT IS
CO
2
?
CO
2
(carbon dioxide) is a naturally occurring, odorless gas that
occurs outdoors in concentrations between 380 (rural) and 500
ppm (urban). Indoors CO
2
levels are often much higher than
outdoors, since humans exhale about 38,000 ppm of CO
2
. While
CO
2
quickly mixes with surrounding air, high indoor CO
2
levels are
best reduced by opening a window and bringing in outdoor air.
SOURCES
HEALTH RISKS
Outdoors: burning fossil fuels, such
as gas and oil - transport, industry,
electricity generation. Indoors: human
respiration, gas or wood burning.
High CO
2
levels rarely cause long term
health effects. In the short
term, however, it is attributed to headaches,
drowsiness, decreased
productivity and difculty concentrating. More importantly, high
CO
2
is an indication of stagnant air which tends to have less
oxygen, and more bacteria, mold and other harmful pollutants,
such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
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