Air quality, dust, noise, light, electromagnetic fields... ANSES and CSTB launch the Indoor Environment Quality Observatory (OQEI), a new scientific resource centre unique in Europe

Initiated under the terms of an agreement co-signed by ANSES and the CSTB, with the ministries in charge of ecology, health and labour, as well as ADEME, the OQEI's objective is to assess and monitor the quality of air and indoor spaces — whether public or private — in order to identify health risks and propose effective solutions to mitigate them.

“Whether at home, in the office or at school..., individuals spend on average 85% of their time in enclosed environments impacted by many biological, physical and chemical factors. It is essential to assess all these parameters in order to control any pollution that may be harmful to health or a source of discomfort. Against a backdrop of climate change, energy efficiency and changes in society, the OQEI aims to play a leading role as a decision-making aid and support tool for public policies” declares CSTB CEO Etienne Crépon.

Successor to the Indoor Air Quality Observatory (OQAI), the scope of the OQEI has been extended to cover all issues affecting the comfort and health of occupants in enclosed environments: air quality, dust, noise, natural and artificial light, electromagnetic fields, thermal comfort, etc.

“Previously, the Observatory’s scope was limited to air quality; by extending it to include other essential health risk factors, we are giving ourselves the means to better understand their real overall impact on health, and to expand our knowledge of the exposome, i.e. the combination of all an individual's exposures throughout his or her life, in order to better protect the health of our fellow citizens”, adds ANSES Director General Benoît Vallet.

The OQEI's scope, missions and cross-disciplinary approach, as well as its commitment to making the results of its work fully available, make it a scientific resource centre that is a unique benchmark in Europe.

Its work will be made available to the scientific community, public and local authorities, professionals and the general public via a website, public digital platforms and thematic newsletters.

The OQEI's initial structural projects will focus on:

• setting up a scientific resource centre to make available the data and lessons learned from national housing campaigns;
• identifying priority campaigns on the quality of indoor environments and, more specifically, their annual roll-out;
• using data from previous campaigns, such as the second national “Housing” campaign;
• carrying out an indoor air quality measurement campaign dedicated to a specific theme.

By documenting people's exposure to risk factors in conjunction with health risk assessments, the OQEI will be able to highlight new issues and therefore anticipate the resulting health risks.