Abstract

The subject of this paper – chemical treatments and treatment residues in buildings – has become a topic of growing concern for members of the surveying profession who have to make decisions relating to the treatment of fungal infections and insect infestations in buildings. This might include assessing buildings that have already been treated and advising clients who are either already sensitive to chemicals or concerned with the potential effects to their health.
Such concerns are also of relevance to other related practitioners, including those in the environmental health, medical, health care and legal professions.
The use of chemical treatments for the control or eradication of fungal or insect decay in buildings,
and the effects that such treatments and their residues might have on the health of those treating or living in treated buildings, are issues that need to be considered carefully by those responsible for specifying or implementing such works.
Although such a potentially emotive subject can easily become the focus for misinformed prejudice, it
is the intention of the authors to present this work in an informed and informative manner. This paper is intended to raise awareness of the subject, rather than offer conclusive answers to the many questions that it poses. It is sufficient that there is a genuine level of ignorance and misunderstanding to be addressed without imposing additional, and often unsupported, anxieties upon the discussion.