FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, October 22, 2024

SEN. KUSHNER AND REP. LEEPER – CO-CHAIRS OF SCHOOL INDOOR AIR QUALITY WORKING GROUP – WELCOME $11.5 MILLION IN STATE BONDING FOR CLEAN AIR FILTERS IN SCHOOLS

HARTFORD – The two Democratic co-chairs of Connecticut’s School Indoor Air Quality Working Group today welcomed an $11.5 million state investment to build classroom air

purifiers – part of their ongoing efforts to improve air quality in Connecticut’s school classrooms to benefit students, teachers, administrators, and visitors.

The State Bond Commission today approved an $11.5 million grant to purchase equipment and materials for the construction and installation of individual classroom air purifiers by the University of Connecticut as part of the Supplemental Air Filtration for Education program under the Clean Air Equity Response Program. The air purifiers are to be built along the lines of so-called do-it-yourself “Corsi-Rosenthal” boxes, which are typically made of a box fan, four common furnace filters, duct tape, and cardboard.

Connecticut’s School Indoor Air Quality Working Group was founded in 2022, and state Senator Julie Kushner (D-Danbury) and state Representative Jennifer Leeper (D-Fairfield) were appointed co-chairs. The group is charged with developing requirements to inspect and evaluate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in Connecticut’s public schools.

“After a lot of hard work and advocacy, Connecticut is on track to improve the air quality in our public schools with these low-cost but highly effective classroom air purifiers,” Sen. Kushner said. “When you combine this low-tech approach with the millions of dollars we are investing in wholesale HVAC change-outs at schools – like in Ridgefield – we are making giant strides in improving the learning environment for our students and teachers.

“I’m thrilled to see the Bond Commission approve funds for University of Connecticut’s Indoor Air Quality Initiative to receive these funds to rapidly get their more affordable Corsi-Rosenthal  air filters directly into classrooms and enhance air quality for students and staff,” Rep. Leeper said. “These filters are safer and more efficient, providing a win-win for the students, staff, and faculty of UConn. Serving as co-chair of the Indoor Air Quality Working Group has shown me the importance of providing the highest level of air quality to all schools, and Senator Kushner and I are committed to providing a safe and healthy learning environment for every student across the state. Thank you to Governor Lamont and the State Bond Commission for your support of our mission, and to Senator Kushner for being such an effective partner.”

Far from some kitschy kitchen-table invention, these boxes – named after engineers Richard Corsi and Jim Rosenthal who invented it during the COVID-19 pandemic – have been tested by the U.S, Environmental Protection Agency and shown to remove 97% of infectious aerosols in just 30 minutes, and 99.4% within 60 minutes – including the virus that causes COVID-19. A recent study in published in Environmental Science & Technology showed the boxes also significantly decrease the concentrations of several PFAS and phthalates in a room. PFAS, a type of synthetic chemical found in a range of products including cleaners, textiles and wire insulation, decreased by 40% to 60%; phthalates, commonly found in building materials and personal care products, were reduced by 30% to 60%.

Today’s state bonding for these classroom air purifiers comes just five months after Sen. Kushner announced a major state investment in clean air for Ridgefield’s classrooms. In May, Sen. Kushner announced that the state Department of Administrative Services had unveiled its 2024 list of Indoor Air Quality grants for public schools in Connecticut, and that eight Ridgefield schools were receiving a total of $191,454 to help pay for a variety of projects, including the installation of ventilators, mini-split air conditioners, roof exhaust fans, upgraded heating and cooling, air exchange and heat recovery, heat pumps, and other air quality-related work.