Charity raising cash for air purifiers in classrooms
Charity seeking donations from public to purchase units for Quebec schools
A charity is raising money to purchase air purifiers for Quebec's classrooms, citing concern that poor ventilation could increase the spread of the coronavirus.
The Jasmin Roy Sophie Desmarais Foundation has asked for donations from the public to purchase the units, two of which placed inside a classroom, the charity says, would improve air quality and circulation.
“Faced with the obsolete ventilation systems in a large number of schools in Quebec, there is an urgent need for action,” Jasmin Roy, the founder and president of the charity, said Monday in a statement. “Winter is already knocking on our doors and soon the cold will prevent the opening of windows, which will increase the risk of spreading COVID-19.”
Quebec Education Minister Jean-françois Roberge insisted on Friday that the air quality in Quebec's schools is adequate. A 22page report released by the ministry the same day revealed that of 3,227 schools, 1,357 have mechanical ventilation systems that are regularly maintained, but another 1,870 have no such systems and are “ventilated naturally by the opening of windows or other systems favouring the circulation of fresh air.”
Critics disparaged the report because it contained no data on air quality in classrooms. By contrast, an unofficial study conducted recently by a group called COVIDSTOP found that, of 25 classrooms tested with a carbon dioxide meter, 75 per cent exceeded the acceptable level of 700 to 800 parts per million, indicating poor airflow.
Roy's foundation works to provide safe environments for children in schools, normally focusing on issues like bullying, but when he saw the COVID- STOP study, he decided to act.
Poor ventilation could increase the spread of SARS-COV-2 particles, which cause COVID-19. Live particles of the virus have been found to linger in the air in areas where there is little airflow.
Air purifiers, however, have been touted by some researchers as a potential way to mitigate the spread of the virus indoors.
“It is reasonable to think that in rooms equipped with an air purifier, or well-ventilated, and equipped with UV, the internal infection rate is significantly lower than that found in rooms that do not have it,” a group of researchers wrote in a study published in the early days of the pandemic in the Journal of Biological Regulators and Homeostatic Agents.
The Biopür purifiers, which will be purchased by the Jasmin Roy Sophie Desmarais Foundation, are assembled in Quebec by Sanuvox Technologies Inc., a Montreal company. They use a combination of high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration and ultraviolet light to trap and destroy viruses and other airborne pathogens.
Jocelyn Dame, the president of Sanuvox, said the global demand for his company's products has increased sixfold since the start of the pandemic.
Dame attended a school in Verdun, which was built without a mechanical airflow system. At the time, it was normal.
“But today, you need ventilation,” he said. “It's like cars. At the time, it was OK to have no seatbelts, but now it's mandatory.”
Portable units provide a good alternative for classrooms without ventilation systems, Dame said. He added he resents that the government is dragging its feet with regard to ventilation in school and downplaying the aerosolized spread of the virus.
Roy said he holds no ill will toward the decision-makers in Quebec City.
“The government can't do everything,” he said in an interview. “We're doing our part. They're doing theirs. We're there to give support during the pandemic. ... If people can mobilize like this, I don't see a problem. I think the government should applaud this.”
The foundation wants to equip classrooms with two of the Biopür units in a bid to improve airflow. Thousands of dollars have already been raised, Dame said, and machines will find their way into classrooms soon.
They cost $495 each, and for every 10 bought by the Jasmin Roy Sophie Desmarais Foundation, Dame will donate one to a classroom.
Donations can be made through the foundation's website at fondationjasminroy.com.
More than 1,000 classes are studying remotely because of exposure to the coronavirus in Quebec and more than 3,000 cases of COVID-19 were recently found in the school system and are considered active cases, according to the latest government figures.
Since the start of the pandemic, more than 1,500 schools have reported a case of COVID-19 in their establishment, according to COVID Écoles Québec.