Indiana Air Quality Testing Proves Need for Stronger Smoke-free Air Laws

Tobacco-education-prevention-logoA study of local air quality indicates workers in Indiana restaurants are breathing easier than before the statewide smoke free air law implemented on July 1, 2012. In Indiana, the decline proved dramatic as the level of fine particles in indoor air dropped 85 percent. Fine particles are released in significant amounts from burning cigarettes, are easily inhaled deep into the lungs, and cause a variety of adverse effects including cardiovascular and respiratory morbidity and death.

State-of-the-art monitors that test fine particle air pollution were used during a study conducted by Professor Mark Krahling of the University of Southern Indiana. Samples of particulate matter in the air smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter were taken in 33 bars and restaurants throughout the state. Each location was tested before and after the July 1, 2012 enactment of the statewide smoke-free air law which requires most work places, including restaurants to be smoke-free. The average level of indoor air pollution in Indiana hospitality venues that allowed smoking before the law was 64 micrograms per cubic meter. The post-law level was measured at 11 micrograms per cubic meter which is just under that of the 2012 state average level of outdoor air determined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This shows that smoke-free air is worth it and bars and private clubs need to be included to insure the protection of all Indiana workers.

“What we see in this study is that, before the law, restaurant and bar workers in Indiana were exposed to harmful levels of secondhand smoke,” said Dr. Mark Krahling, professor at the University of Southern Indiana and co-author of the study. “With the enactment of the statewide law, air quality has significantly improved in the venues that are now smoke free, which will protect the health of both workers and patrons. However, bar and casino workers remain unprotected from secondhand smoke.”

Susan Gleason with Tobacco Education & Prevention Coalition for Porter County agrees that policy is a necessary step to protect the health of all workers and to provide fair and safe work conditions for all workers in Indiana. Gleason said, “Many bar workers don’t have health insurance or paid sick time. If they get sick, they not only lose part of their paycheck, but they end up putting out more in health care costs or avoid treatment because they can’t afford it. We encourage lawmakers to make the best decision for all its residents by including those establishments that the state law excluded in local policies.”

July 1 is the two year anniversary of the state law going into effect. It is time to celebrate how far we have come and continue to fight for independence from secondhand smoke for all workers in the state. Let’s make next year’s anniversary one that includes all workers in the State of Indiana.