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As your constituent, I am writing to urge you to vote in favour of modernizing New Brunswick's Clean Air Act when the motion is debated in the legislature. At the moment, that is expected to take place on Thursday, June 8.

New Brunswick is poised to reap the many benefits of clean air, but only if the members of our legislative assembly appreciate the value of improving indoor air quality. By committing to clean indoor air, and following through, New Brunswick would reduce the burden of disease in this province. Illnesses such as influenza and COVID-19 are spread by virus-laden aerosols, which are particles so small that they float and accumulate in indoor air. When we improve indoor air quality, these dangerous aerosols are removed from the air. This can be accomplished through increasing ventilation, filtering indoor air using HEPA filters or other air cleaners, or using germicidal UV irradiation to inactivate viruses.

Fresh air in buildings also improves the productivity of the people in the building, aiding their concentration and ability to focus. Stale air not only contains viruses from other people's respiratory tracts, but the increased carbon dioxide in exhaled air makes it more difficult for people to concentrate and retain information. You can learn more about the many benefits of providing clean indoor air here:

Ontario Society of Professional Engineers Indoor Air Quality Reports: https://ospe.on.ca/indoor-air-quality/
It's Airborne by Joey Fox, P. Eng, chair of the OSPE IAQ working group: https://itsairborne.com/
CDC Ventilation in Buildings: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/ventilation.html 
Engineers Canada National Position Statement on Ventilation Systems and Building Management in Reducing Airborne Contaminants: https://engineerscanada.ca/sites/default/files/2023-03/NPS%20-%20Ventilation-Systems-and-Building-Management-in-Reducing-Airborne-Contaminants-EN-2023.pdf

The cost of New Brunswick failing to improve indoor air quality is high. We will continue to sicken our residents, and make life more difficult for them. When people are hospitalized for preventable illnesses, there is increased human suffering as well as a cost to our healthcare system. Many contagious diseases would be limited by legislating clean indoor air. Demonstrating that New Brunswick understands the science and engineering behind preserving human health would also send a strong, positive signal to potential workers from other provinces: New Brunswick is committed to worker safety and wellbeing on the job. Physicians and other healthcare staff would be interested in coming to New Brunswick to practice, knowing that the province is moving into the future and leading with clean indoor air.

Your colleague Gilles LePage tabled a motion on Thursday, April 6, 2023, which you can read here:

Motion 36 by Mr. LePage, seconded by Ms. Landry to propose the following resolution:
WHEREAS the COVID-19 pandemic brought home the reality that if we do not improve air quality systems in government buildings like schools, hospitals, and institutions, we increase the risk of the spread of airborne illnesses;
WHEREAS air quality in these buildings must be improved for the safety and well-being of patients, healthcare workers, students, educators, employees, and all who enter these buildings;
WHEREAS, while other Maritime Provinces like PEI and Nova Scotia are making strategic investments in systems that improve air quality and ventilation through programs like the federal COVID-19 resilience fund, New Brunswick has not yet made these investments a priority;
WHEREAS there are many regions of the province where air quality is diminished due to airborne pollutants, airborne contaminants, and other harmful agents;
WHEREAS reducing pollutants and improving air quality and thus improving community and environmental health should be a priority of government;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Legislative Assembly urge the government to modernize New Brunswick’s air quality laws and standards with a goal of bringing forward a strengthened Clean Air Act and modernized regulations;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Assembly urge the government to bring forward a plan to monitor, report, and improve air quality systems in public buildings like hospitals, schools, and government buildings to mitigate the risks associated with the transfer of airborne illnesses, airborne contaminants, and other harmful agents "

Please consider the future of our province and its people, and vote in favour of modernizing New Brunswick's Clean Air Act by supporting this motion when it is up for debate.

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