The Stafford County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution to install bipolarization filters on the air conditioning units on all of the county’s government buildings.
The new filters match what has already been installed inside the county’s public schools, and come in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the county’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities, the bipolarization filters have been proven to reduce the spread of disease as well as limit the infection potential of viruses. In laboratory tests, the filters have reduced the strength of certain viruses by 90% or more reducing the number of infectious pathogens in the air and significantly improving air safety.
The technology involves specialized tubes that take in oxygen molecules from the air and convert them into charged atoms that cluster around microparticles such as viruses, bacteria, and other harmful substances and deactivates them. They can also attach to breath droplets and dust particles which can transmit viruses which enlarge them so they can be caught more easily in the filters.
According to an article from Business Insider, these filters first arrived in the U.S. in the 1970s as a tool to control pathogens in food manufacturing. The filters were also utilized during the 2004 SARS outbreak and have been used effectively in other outbreaks such as MERS and various influenza strains since then.
The department also found that the added benefit of the filters is that they require minimal energy to run which will keep utility costs down after their installation.
The board approved $332,000 in federal CARES Act funding to be used in this project. The county has contracted with Louisiana based company Brown and Root to install the filters.
Currently, there is no set date for the installation to begin as according to the County’s Community Engagement Manager Shannon Eubanks that the installer is awaiting delivery of the filters.
Eubanks states that the manufacturer may be swamped because of the high demand for these filters due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
