EPA honors Navato Unified School District's efforts to improve indoor air quality

SAN FRANCISCO — The Novato Unified School District has been honored with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) 2010 Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Tools for Schools National Excellence Award for its exemplary efforts to improve indoor air quality for students, teachers and staff, according to a press release.

EPA created the IAQ Tools for Schools program nearly 20 years ago in response to studies that revealed the increasing age and deterioration of the nation's school buildings, the alarming rise in asthma and allergies among schoolchildren and the knowledge that indoor air pollutants can bring about or even worsen a variety of health problems, the release stated.

"Novato Unified School District is demonstrating national leadership through its commitment to promote healthy indoor air quality in their community's schools," said Mike Flynn, director of EPA's Office of Radiation and Indoor Air.

"Their work is helping to protect the health and support the performance of students, faculty and staff. We are proud of their valuable efforts and commend them on this outstanding accomplishment," Flynn added.

The relationship between indoor air quality and student performance and productivity is clear: Research suggests that students attending schools in poor conditions score 11 percent lower on standardized tests than students who attend schools in good conditions, the release noted.

According to the release, with nearly 55 million children spending their days inside 132,000 public and private school buildings in the United States, managing indoor air quality in schools is a vital part of improving student performance and achievement.

Click here to read the complete release.

Dirtiest hotels in the United States

WASHINGTON — With the recent resurgence of bedbugs, most hotels are being extra careful when it comes to cleanliness; some, however, haven't done such a good job, according to TripAdvisor.

TripAdvisor has compiled a list of the dirtiest hotels throughout Asia, Europe, India and the United States, based on user reviews of those hotels, the site stated.

The site compiled a list of the top 10 hotels with the highest percentage of reviewers who would not recommend staying there.

The list is accompanied by excerpts from actual reviews, along with photo documentation of all the dirt and decay.

Click around, if you dare.

Washington University introduces new effort to help students go green

ST. LOUIS — In Washington University's continued effort to remain green, the Office of Sustainability has developed a plan that it calls a "pledge for sustainability," according to Student Life. The pledge aims to deal with the issue of sustainability on a micro level, teaching the university community to take small steps toward becoming green, the article stated. The pledge is broken down into five categories: energy, food, water, transportation and waste, and offers 24 recommendations to students who aim to incorporate more sustainable habits into their daily lives, the article noted. "I think the point is to give people an opportunity to learn more about the small parts about leading a sustainable lifestyle," said Will Fischer, assistant coordinator for special projects and fellow in the Office of Sustainability. Click here to read the complete article.

Suspected illegal immigrant hired as custodian at E.A. Cox Middle School, TN

COLUMBIA, TN — A woman who reportedly worked as a custodian at E.A. Cox Middle School is behind bars suspected of being in the country illegally, according to WTVF-TV.

Olga Bueno-Romero, 25, was arrested late last week by the U.S. Marshal's Office, immigration and customs enforcement officers, and investigators from the Maury County Sheriff's Department, the article stated.

"We believe, by the information that we have, that she'd been here quite a long time," said Lt. Mike Diaz, with the sheriff's department. "Possibly since last year, or maybe longer than that."

Romero is wanted, on a felony warrant for violation of probation, in the state of Texas, the article noted.

According to the article, the federal government can either opt for immediate deportation, or it can send her back to Texas to face those charges.

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Sustainable campus planned in Pittsburgh, Chatham University

PITTSBURGH — Chatham University has unveiled a master plan that calls for developing a 388-acre site into what it says will be the nation's first fully sustainable campus, according to a press release.

The Eden Hall campus, donated to the university in 2008 by the Eden Hall Foundation, will be home to Chatham's School of Sustainability and the Environment, whose inaugural class began studies in the fall 2010 semester, the release noted.

"There is tremendous pent-up demand for sustainability education," says David Hassenzahl, founding dean of the School of Sustainability and the Environment (SSE).

"Over the next 10 years, SSE will offer bachelor's through doctoral degrees, beginning with master's programs, as well as professional certification in topics ranging from health care, energy and urban forestry to national security, aquaponics and education," Hassenzahl added.

The campus plan envisions four phases of development, which will result in the construction of climate-positive facilities — where on-site greenhouse gas emissions are actually less than zero — and environmentally sensitive landscape design, the release stated.

Florida gets first LEED-certified acute care building

LUTZ, FL — St. Joseph's Hospital-North, incorporated with evidence-based and eco-friendly design features, has achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certification, becoming the first acute care hospital in Florida to do so, according to the World Interior Design Network.

The $225 million facility has been designed based on environmentally sustainable philosophy featuring ample landscape of open space, providing habitat for wildlife and natural views for patients, the article noted.

The environmentally-friendly building is made of materials that support energy conservation and clean air with low chemical emissions and recycled content; it is designed and developed to meet key categories to achieve green building certification, the article stated.

According to the article, some of the energy saving strategies include: Individual controls for lighting and heating to promote productivity, comfort and well-being of building occupants; high-efficiency systems to lessen energy consumption; and usage of 12 percent less energy than a standard building.

Click here to read the complete article.

Maintenance man escaped Metrodome collapse on forklift

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MINNEAPOLIS, MN — It was one of the most-viewed videos of the weekend: Fox Sports' exclusive footage of the collapse of the Metrodome from inside, according to City Pages.

Producers suspected the Dome was going to give-way and wisely left their cameras running overnight, which is how they captured the 5 a.m. collapse, the article noted.

According to the article, one question remained unanswered — who or what was the shadowy creature on the far sideline who just barely escaped the deluge with his life?

Some suggested it looked like a dog, a horse or a ghost, while some jokingly suggested it was Brett Favre or Zygi Wilf running away from the hole with scissors, the article stated.

"It is one of our maintenance men who was emptying large buckets," said Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission Director Bill Lester.

The maintenance man, who wishes to remain anonymous, wasn't even supposed to be on-duty at the time of the collapse, but was helping out, the article added.