California Assembly Bill 2276 requires all home air purifiers sold in the state to meet strict safety requirements and demonstrate that any ozone the air purifiers may emit must meet ozone limits, i.e. , be less than or equal to the default standards. The California Air Resources Board states:
Pursuant to California Assembly Bill 2276 (2006, Pavley), the Air Resources Board (ARB) developed and adopted a regulation in September 2007 to limit ozone emitted by indoor air cleaning devices to protect public health. All air cleaning devices sold in California must meet regulatory requirements by October 18, 2010, the date of full compliance.
While the standards apply only to California, they’re actually great for residents of all states because independent testing of air purifiers shows which ones meet the strict standards and which ones don’t. When shopping for an air purifier for your home environment, especially if a family member has asthma, don’t you want the best and the safest? Don’t you want to make sure you buy one that doesn’t emit ozone, an odorless gas thought to worsen the home environment for asthmatics and allergy sufferers? Don’t want to buy one that meets independent electrical safety standards?
Any indoor air cleaning device that does not meet California standards but is sold on the Internet or through a catalog must display a notice that says: Does not meet California requirements; cannot be shipped to California. The Air Resources Board even addresses CA-made air purifiers that don’t meet the requirements but will only be sold out of state. The concern is that any unit returned to the manufacturer may enter use in California and therefore the manufacturer must affix non-compliant labels.
Ozone is high up in the sky, but not at ground level. Although an ozone layer high in the Earth’s atmosphere shields the planet from 99% of the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation, tropospheric ozone is a key ingredient in smog and has a negative effect on the air we breathe. Some air purifiers sold in California (Sharper Image’s Ionic Breeze is often cited as an example) emit ozone as a byproduct of generating negative ions using ultraviolet light. Even after elevated ozone levels were reported to be a cause of lung disease, asthma attacks, hospitalizations, and even premature deaths, companies continued to sell ozone-producing air filters in California.
Although the public was informed of the potential health hazards, excellent marketing seemed to compel Californians to continue purchasing these potentially dangerous air purification units. To prevent such devices from being sold in California, Assembly Bill 2276 was passed. Go to CA ARB. The California Air Resources Board, which has asked a state agency to enforce standards for indoor air cleaning devices, created testing requirements for independent laboratories, as well as standards that must be met for an air purifier to work. meet the certification requirements. On the ARB site referenced above, you will find links to a page that lists air purifiers that meet California’s 2010 standards, as well as a link to a page that lists air purifiers/ozone generators that are considered potentially dangerous.
