Concerned about air quality at home? Halifax libraries now loaning out CO2 monitors

If you've ever wondered about the air quality in your home, and whether it might explain why you feel tired, suffer from headaches, or whether it's putting you at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and other viruses, Halifax Public Libraries can help.

With support from a not-for-profit funding initiative called Community Access to Ventilation Information, the library network is now offering 25 carbon dioxide monitors for interested members of the public to borrow.

"This is one tool that people can take into their own hands to measure the spaces where they live and work," said Dave MacNeil, the manager of collections and access at Halifax Public Libraries. 

CO2 monitors are often used to measure if there is appropriate ventilation in a given space.Health Canada's limit for long-term exposure to CO2 in residential settings is 1,000 parts per million, but it's normal for the levels to fluctuate a bit. Readings will be higher in rooms with more people in them, since we add more CO2 to the air each time we exhale.

Testing CO2 levels at home is one way to discover if you need to improve your ventilation by opening windows when possible, or by adjusting the heating and ventilation system.

But the devices, which have grown in popularity since the onset of the pandemic, often have a street value of around $300, said MacNeil. Allowing library patrons to check them out free of charge, as they would a book, makes the devices accessible to people who might otherwise find them out of reach.

The CO2 monitors are part of the growing Beyond Books section of the library, which also allows patrons to borrow items like musical instruments and light therapy lamps.

Dr. Strang on board with program

One person who applauds the new program is Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health.

He was involved in the library network's previous decision to stock radon detectors to allow patrons to test their living spaces for that chemical, which is known to cause lung cancer.

"I'm very supportive of using libraries as a point of access for these kinds of test kits," he said in an interview with CBC News.

Strang said CO2 monitors can be used as part of a multi-pronged approach to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

"We've learnt the importance of ventilation over the past few years," he said. "Poorly ventilated indoor spaces, depending on the circulation of viruses in communities, may indicate there's a higher risk of exposure to repository viruses like COVID or influenza if there's poor air circulation in indoor spaces."

The library's decision to acquire CO2 monitors comes after multiple patrons reached out to ask if they could carry them. 

Growing 'prominence' of devices

Similar programs have popped up at library branches across the country, including in Toronto, Edmonton, Vancouver, and Ottawa.

The not-for-profit funding the Halifax initiative is led by a team of three advocates who work to provide access to tools and information to improve indoor air quality in light of the airborne transmission of COVID-19.

"It was interesting how many people reached out to us specifically to ask for those," said MacNeil. "The prominence these tools have gained over the pandemic just brought them to the forefront of people's minds."

And while some people may be tempted to bring these monitors into their workplaces or even their children's schools, Dr. Strang is advising against this. He said a range of factors makes it more difficult to assess larger spaces, and that testing in the workplace or at schools should be done by the institutions.

"If people have concerns around those bigger environments, around air quality and ventilation, then they should bring those forward so appropriate testing can be done," he said.

To borrow a CO2 monitor, the library says you can simply place a hold online, by phone, or at your local branch and you will be notified when your device is ready for pickup. You'll then get to keep the monitor for one week.