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“ADVANCED ENERGY BUILDING SCIENCE EXPERT CONTRIBUTES TO RESEARCH–BASED BOOK, HEALTHY AND SAFE HOMES: RESEARCH, PRACTICE, AND POLICY

Raleigh, N.C. (April 6, 2011) Advanced Energy's Arnie Katz, director, of training and senior building science consultant, contributed to a new book published by the American Public Health Association (APHA) titled Healthy and Safe Homes: Research, Practice, and Policy, a research-based guide that explores the links between housing and health.

“This is the first comprehensive look at known health aspects of housing,” Katz said. “It is a great resource for anyone working on houses for reliable information about health implications and impacts.”

Katz researched and co–wrote a chapter of the book with Ellen Tohn, founder and principal of Tohn Environmental Strategies. The section focuses on the relationship between making a home more energy efficient and the health of the people living there.

“We're in a period where billions of dollars are being spent to make homes energy efficient, but we cannot stop at just energy,” Katz said. “Health problems can arise while building or fixing homes. First and foremost, we must make sure we do not harm people in the name of making energy improvements, and then we must recognize opportunities to improve houses — actually make them healthier and safer — while making them more energy efficient.”

Katz further explains that the goal of any home intervention should be to promote a healthy house and avoid harm that could increase exposure to unhealthy contaminants such as radon, lead, carbon monoxide, pests, pesticides and mold.

Healthy and Safe Homes, released November 2010, combines perspectives of public health experts, noted scientists, housing advocates and policy leaders to provide practical tools and information about healthy housing. The book addresses the main problems that affect substandard housing today and offers strategic, innovative solutions to fix them. The research-based text is relatable to all individuals and aims to expand access to healthy and affordable housing across the country.

The book was edited by Rebecca Morley of the National Center for Healthy Housing, Angela Mickalide of the Home Safety Council, and Karin Mack of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Katz has collaborated closely with the National Center for Healthy Housing for six years in his efforts to promote home comfort, safety and durability.

“We work closely with him because of his extraordinary expertise in the energy and healthy housing worlds,” said Morley, executive director of the National Center for Healthy Housing, about Katz. “His sound building science experience and passion for promoting health in homes made him the perfect messenger for the chapter.”

Click here to read Katz's chapter “Weatherization and Opportunities to Improve Health Conditions in Homes.”

For more information, including how to purchase the book, go to www.aphabookstore.org.

About Arnie Katz
Arnie Katz is recognized as one of the leading national trainers in building science. Since joining Advanced Energy in 1984, he has built innovative programs and developed and delivered cutting–edge building science training for builders, real estate agents, architects, insulators and HVAC contractors, as well as nonprofit developers and community educators. He joined Advanced Energy to lead a statewide program that weatherized religious and nonprofit buildings in North Carolina.

In the early 1990s, Katz edited the original version of The Exemplary Home Builder's Field Guide, which was the first in what became a series guides published by the Energy and Environmental Builders Association. He was the first certified HERS Rater in North Carolina and his syndicated column, On the House, has appeared in a number of newspapers and trade publications for more than a decade. In 2001 Katz led the development of SystemVision, Advanced Energy's energy and comfort guarantee program for affordable housing, which has certified nearly 3,000 homes for low-income families in North Carolina. He has served as training director for Advanced Energy's Applied Building Science team since 2005 and became the director of the N.C. Healthy Housing Training Center, an affiliate of the National Center for Healthy Housing Center, in 2008.

Before joining the Advanced Energy team in 1984, Katz worked as a building contractor, landscaper, carpenter, community organizer, farmers' co-op coordinator, middle school teacher, writer, editor, publisher, theater manager, court system investigator, halfway house manager and cab driver. A graduate of Duke University, Katz also holds a Master of Education from Western Carolina University, earned while serving in the Teacher Corps.