Air quality in schools, labor shortages and the three-tier school system are among the many challenges facing the new education minister, Bernard Drainville. He came to explain how he also wants to address these problems on Friday to the microphone of Luc Ferrandez.
The issue of air quality is addressed first. Bernard Drainville explains that if the ideal CO2 target in classrooms were 1000 parts per million (ppm): “At 1500ppm, the air quality is adequate and safe.”
For this reason, this latter target is the established standard for evaluating air quality in Quebec schools, despite tests showing that 75% of classrooms reach 1000ppm.
The minister points out that the problem stems from the aging of schools. He explains that the CO2 sensors installed in 68,548 classrooms have shown that in 99% of cases the air quality is below 1500 ppm. “If you look at classrooms that exceed 1500ppm, over 95% are in schools that date back to before 1980. So there’s a direct link to the fact that we have old buildings.
The solutions
Bernard Drainville adds that significant sums have been invested in the renovation, expansion and construction of new schools over the past four years. “And we will have no choice but to continue for the next four years and much more,” says the new minister.
He specifies that he will “monitor and trace” the approximately 700 classes that exceed the safety standard to be respected so that they are brought back below the 500 ppm threshold. “We will install air exchangers, repair the windows, etc.,” Bernard Drainville also points out.
Hear the new education minister explain how he will tackle the other two problems: the labor shortage and the tripartite school system…
