Air Quality Report for the Bingo Hall at Ho-Chunk Bingo  and Casino
Prepared for the Ho-Chunk Nation

By Nick Dasen
Environmental Sanitarian
Sauk County Health Department

This document has been provided to the Ho-Chunk Nation through the services of the Sauk County Health Department.  Statements in this notice are documented for the Ho-Chunk Nation.

Included is a brief report from the inspections conducted on June 29th and June 30th, 2006

Procedure and Testing Recommendations:
The results from the inspection are in no way values that are held at all times in the Bingo Hall.  It is a snapshot of what the condition of the air was at the time the tests were run. The snapshot does give a good idea of what conditions are like at a certain time. We took three snapshot of air quality in the Bingo Hall: one when no one was in the hall; another on a regular night in the Bingo Hall; and lastly, at the peak of a busy night at the Bingo Hall.  The health of the employees seems to be one of the largest issues.   In order to get an idea of how the air quality is affecting the employees, a Time Weighted Average   (TWA) would need to be over a period of eight hours.  In addition, it could be helpful to have testing done for Nicotine and Environmental Toxins.    Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC) is another potential irritant that could be tested for.  TVOC's are any carbon based chemical compound. Two that were tested for are carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.  VOC's are known to be two to five times greater indoors opposed to outdoors. Common sources are paint thinners, wood stain, furniture finish, tobacco smoke, dry cleaning solvents, and some constituents of petroleum products. A blanketed test of VOC's would give a good idea of how much contamination is in the air.

Inspection Results:
On Thursday, June 29th, Inspector Dasen went to Ho-Chunk Bingo and Casino at 2:00 p.m.  Inspector Dasen met with Sue Brenman along with Jon Warner, facilities manager. Inspector Dasen was informed that the air in the room is exchanged approximately four times an hour.  Conditions outside were tested as a base of comparison. Outside, the CO2 was 313 ppm and the relative humidity was at 56%.  All other readings were at zero.   In the Bingo Hall there were five people in it at the time.   The initial readings are as follows in figure 1 and provide a good source reference for natural building conditions.

On the same day at 9:00 p.m., Inspector Dasen re tested the facility. After talking to several of the employees, Inspector Dasen questioned them on what symptoms they have experienced or get from working in the Bingo Hall.  The major symptoms reported were headaches and a dry throat.  The temperature was fairly consistent at 71 to 72 F. Throughout the whole room, chlorine was consistent at 0.2 to 0.3 ppm.   Ammonia was consistent at 0.1 to 0.2 ppm.  NO2 and H2S were both at 0 ppm.   Tests were done in each corner of the Bingo Hall for 15 minutes each.   The results are an average over each 15 minute sample.   The results for carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and relative humidity are as follows in figure 2:

                                      figure 2

Inspector Dasen arrived for the final set of tests at 9:00 p.m., on Friday, June 30th.   The air quality was tested on Friday night to get a picture of the air quality during a busy time. Air tests were again conducted in the four comers of the room for fifteen minutes each and additionally the center of the room was tested for five minutes.   The office of the Bingo Hall was also sampled.   Ammonia was consistent in the room at 0.3 ppm. Chlorine was consistent at 0.1 ppm.  NO2 and H2S were both at 0.0  ppm.  Temperature was fairly consistent ranging from 70-72 F.  The office had a CO of 2.8 ppm and the CO2 was at 1460 ppm.   In the middle of the room the CO was 3.8 ppm and the CO2 was 1888 ppm. The results for the carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and relative humidity are as follows in figure 3:

Conclusions:

The levels of Carbon dioxide are excessive. Typical levels of carbon dioxide in an occupied space with good air exchanges should be between 350 and 1000 ppm.   Between 1000 and 2000 ppm is the beginning of general discomfort. Headaches, poor concentration and nausea are common when the ppm nears 2000. OSHA allows workers exposure up to 5000 ppm for prolonged exposure (TWA). A carbon dioxide level of 5000 or more can cause permanent brain damage, coma, or death. The peak in the Bingo Hall was 1960 ppm. This level of carbon dioxide will affect employee productivity and health.

ASHRAE recommends a humidity of 47% to accommodate a cool temperature around 68-70 F. Carbon monoxide has some similar symptoms to carbon dioxide.  Headaches, mental confusion, and shortness of  breath are most common.  Fortunately, the levels found in the Bingo Hall are considered safe by OSHA and the Department of Health and Family Services (DHFS) standards.  From 0-5 ppm are the typical ranges seen in buildings with good air flow.  After eight hours, OSHA and DHFS only allow workers to be exposed to 35 PPM of carbon monoxide (TWA).   The real problem is the levels of carbon dioxide and the relative humidity along with any other environmental contaminants from the cigarette smoke.   ASHRAE recommends a humidity of 45% to accommodate a cool temperature around 68-70 F.

After the testing and talking with several of the employees of the Bingo Hall, they all gave symptoms of what is recognized by the World Health Organization as Sick Building Syndrome (1984).   Common symptoms are headaches, nausea and/or dizziness, eye, nose, or throat irritation, dry cough or itchy skin, and fatigue. Causes of Sick Building Syndrome are cigarette smoke, artificial fragrances, petroleum products, biological and/or chemical contamination and poor heating and ventilation.  Solutions to the problem are rather simple.  Monitor HVAC principals.  Maintain a relative humidity at  35% to 47%. At the 9:00 p.m. readings, the relative humidity was ranging between 29% and 34%. The lack of humidity can cause discomfort by itself, let alone combine it with the effects of tobacco smoke and VOC's.  Another way to reduce the building sickness is to institute more smoking restrictions.  After sampling the air in the nonsmoking section compared to the smoking section, there was a slight drop in carbon dioxide and there was more moisture in the air. Venting containment emissions would also help. UV light systems in the ducts of the HVAC system will help control the particulate matter along with other contaminants.   Its seems very unlikely that people will quit smoking, so the best route for correction will be through extensive trial and error adjustments to the HVAC systems. The Bingo Hall needs more air exchanges to remove contaminants and gases.

Source: Wisconsin Department of Public Hea1th, Bureau of Environmental Health      www.dhfs.state.wi.us/eh/index.htm.