Indoor Air Health Risk Perceptions in Australia

Abstract

A survey of 1,462 people was carried out in Perth, Western Australia to develop an understanding of the public perception and attitude towards the risk posed by indoor air pollutants. It was found that the public had a limited awareness of the issues involving the health risk posed by indoor air pollutants. The risk was perceived to be low, and a high proportion of the population (90.5%) indicated that they found the risk to be worse but acceptable. The sample population indicated that they were not prepared to reduce the risk they perceived by spending money. Whilst the population perceived the health risk of indoor air pollutants to be low, they exhibited a high level of concern over the health risks of three specific indoor air pollutants, i.e. asbestos, pesticides and environmental tobacco smoke. The public perceived universities and research institutes to be the most credible sources of health-related information although the media was seen as the most important source of information on the health risks of indoor air pollutants.

How Do Households Perceive Risks at the Scale of the Environment in Their Own Home?

“…However, perception of the issues ranged from undervaluation, as in the case of indoor air, to overvaluation, as in the case of water. These observations are in agreement with those found in the literature [16,19]. These differences between perception and reality could have dramatic consequences for households, as they limit their ability to anticipate harm to health or economic damage.…”

“…This study provides support for the idea of extending this personalised advice to other matter and energy fluxes associated with housing (towards an energy/water/waste/air/EMR package). As Dingle and Lalla [16] have shown, it is important that a structure like this is based on scientific findings, to ensure maximum credibility. Given the socio-demographic profiles observed here (Figure 7), it is relevant to target those who are involved with these concerns on a daily basis (associations, trade unions, etc.)…”

“…At the scale of the environment in the home, however, it must be acknowledged that the measures in area rarely are taken into consideration, namely, the perceptions of the occupants. There have already been various studies in this field, covering indoor air quality [16][17][18] and, to a lesser extent, drinking water [19], EMR emissions [20,21] and energy [22]. These studies reveal that there is frequently a discrepancy between the level of exposure to a flux and the level of awareness or recognition of this flux.…”

Reflections on the state of research: indoor environmental quality

“…More than a decade after the California study, a study involving surveys of 1462 people was completed in Perth, Australia (Dingle and Lalla, 2002). Responses suggested that the public perceived the risks associated with indoor air quality to be low.…”