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dwelling units. Mr. Offermann's analysis hinges entirely on the assumption that the Project's dwelling units <br />would experience similar indoor formaldehyde concentrations as HENGH study sample homes. But, as <br />demonstrated, this assumption is wholly unsupported by fact. <br />There are additional aspects of the HENGH study that have not been considered by Mr. Offermann which <br />further diminish its comparative value to the Project, as well. First, the HENGH study sample homes were <br />occupied and therefore presumably furnished. This is a critical detail overlooked by Mr. Offermann. <br />Formaldehyde off -gassing occurs not just from composite wood products used in building construction, but <br />also from composite wood products used commonly in furniture construction. Tables, bedframes, dressers, <br />sofas, chairs, and any other furniture containing composite wood products would also likely emit <br />formaldehyde, possibly at high levels if such furniture was purchased prior to the CARB Formaldehyde <br />ATCM or outside of California. Common indoor sources of formaldehyde also include household products <br />such as glues, paints, caulks, pesticides, fabric softeners, and detergents. Even personal care products and <br />cosmetics such as shampoos, soaps, hair care products, body washes, and nail polish may release <br />formaldehyde. Moreover, many other consumer products also emit VOCs that react with ozone in the air to <br />produce formaldehyde.3 The HENGH study did not determine or speculate what proportion of its measured <br />formaldehyde concentrations were resultant from building materials only. Therefore, there is no way of <br />knowing what measured proportion of indoor formaldehyde concentrations were emitted solely by the <br />building construction materials used in HENGH study sample homes. This is a pivotal consideration because <br />formaldehyde emissions from the objects (i.e., composite wood furniture) and actions (i.e., use of pesticides, <br />detergents, or personal care products) of future Project residents, and any impact that they would have on <br />themselves, is entirely speculative and outside the scope of the Project's CEQA-related impacts. Put another <br />way, the Project is not "on the hook" for any risk that future Project residents may pose to themselves via <br />their own formaldehyde -emitting objects and actions. But, by assuming that future Project residents would <br />experience similar indoor formaldehyde concentrations as measured in the HENGH study, Mr. Offermann <br />puts the Project "on the hook" for an indeterminate amount of formaldehyde emissions that were caused by <br />the objects and actions of HENGH study participants. <br />Second, it is worth noting that the HENGH study specifically instructed participants not to use windows and <br />doors normally as they might do for routine ventilation (See Exhibit 2). This clearly biases the study's results <br />in favor of increased indoor formaldehyde concentrations. While such instruction may have been relevant <br />to the purpose of the HENGH study, in real life, it is reasonable to suspect that future Project residents would <br />occasionally open their windows or doors for purposes of natural ventilation. <br />Exhibit 2 <br />3 appliance use. The participant was provided with an activity log for each day of the study and <br />4 asked to partake in normal household activities with the exception that windows and doors <br />5 should not be used for routine ventilation. Most homes were monitored for seven days, five were <br />The highlighted excerpt indicates that HENGH study participants were instructed to not use <br />windows and doors for "routine ventilation." (Singer et al.) <br />3 CARB, Formaldehyde Online Fact Sheet. ww.2.arb.ca.gov/resources/fact-sheets/formaldehyde. May 1, 2020. <br />Page 5 <br />