Requirements for the location of outdoor air intakes are specified in a proposed addendum to the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers’ (ASHRAE) Standard 62-1999, “Ventilation For Acceptable Indoor Air Quality.”

Minimum separation distance requirements between common outdoor contaminant sources, such as exhaust vents and loading docks, and outdoor air intakes are specified in addendum aa, according to Andrew Perisly, committee chair. It also sets requirements intended to limit rain intrusion and entrainment and for bird screening.

Another proposed addendum r, addresses outdoor air quality assessment and air cleaning requirements. The addedum requires outdoor air quality assessment and requires particle filtration when the outdoor particle concentration is high. It does not require air cleaning for other gaseous contaminants, Persily said.

Air cleaning requirements for ozone are addressed in proposed addendum z. The current standard recommends outdoor air cleaning for contaminants of concern but does not require cleaning for outdoor contaminants including ozone, according to Persily.

The addenda are scheduled to open for public review on December 1. The review is scheduled to end on January 30, 2001.

In other Standard 62-1999 news, addendum e, which deletes mention of “a moderate amount of smoking” from the standard, has been approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

ASHRAE deleted the reference after a number of prominent health organizations identified environmental tobacco smoke as a significant health risk.

The addendum was previously approved by ANSI but appealed to keep the reference in the standard. ANSI denied the appeal, which means the Institute has determined that the standard has met the consensus guidelines set by the accrediting standards-writing organization. The standard will continue to carry ANSI in its title.

“Approval from ANSI is the highest endorsement that a standard can receive,” said Persily. “We are pleased that Standard 62-1999 has obtained such approval and will continue to move forward with revision of the standard through continuous maintenance.”

The standard was published last year with four new addenda, including addenda e. ANSI had earlier approved the other three addenda which: removed reference to thermal comfort, which is addressed by ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55-1992; reworded the standard’s scope to say compliance with the standard does not necessarily guarantee acceptable indoor air quality; and clarified confusion regarding how carbon dioxide levels related to indoor air quality, specifically the intensity of human bioeffulents.