Grad Helps Make Green Buildings Safe for Workers: Researcher Develops Tool to Integrate Safety Into Design
Mohamed Omar, a 2011Work Environment graduate, conducted research on the safety of green building features.
12/09/2011 By Karen Angelo
Green buildings are
intended to do good – conserve energy, protect the environment and
improve the health of occupants. But some green systems are putting
people who install and maintain them in harms way, says a research study
conducted by Work Environment graduate Mohamed Omar.
“We found that many of the green buildings that house these
systems were not designed with workers in mind,” says Omar, a Lowell
resident who works as an environmental management engineer at Harvard
University’s Office of Environmental Health, Safety and Emergency
Management. “Unfortunately, in the rush to go green, safety is often
overlooked.”
Working with his adviser Prof. Margaret Quinn, Omar found an
increased risk of occupational safety and health hazards for five common
green building features – geothermal wells, green roofs, rainwater
harvesting systems, energy recovery wheels and natural light percolating systems.
