Our Certifications and Qualifications

Academia

PhD, Environmental Health Sciences
MPH, Environmental Health
BS, Biological Chemistry
PhD, Industrial Engineering
Master of Public Health
MS, Environmental Science
MA, Security Science
BS, Engineering Technology

American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH)

(CIH) Certified Industrial Hygienist

American Council for Accredited Certification (ACAC)

(CIEC) Council-certified Indoor Environmental Consultant
(CEICC) Council-certified Environmental Infection Control Consultant
(CFSC) Council-certified Fire and Smoke Damage Consultant

Board of Certified Safety Professionals

(CSP) Certified Safety Professional

Board of Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists

(PE) Registered Professional Engineer

National Association of Fire Investigators

(CFEI) Certifies Fire and Explosion Investigator

State of California Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH)

(CAC) Certified Asbestos Consultant
(CSST) Asbestos Site Surveillance Technician

California Department of Public Health (CDPH)

Lead Sampling Technician
Lead Inspector/Assessor
Lead Project Monitor

United States Department of Labor – Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)

(HAZWOPER) Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response
(FRO) First Responder Operations

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC)

(AMRT) Applied Microbial Remediation
(ASD) Applied Structural Drying Technician
(WRT) Water Damage Restoration Technician

Awards

IICRC Key Standards Contributor Award – 2024

Appointments/Board Positions/Committees/Standards

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), Member of the Standards Committee. The Standards Committee (SC) is responsible for developing and maintaining IICRC standards. It consists of the Standards Chair and Vice-Chair, along with the Chairs and Vice Chairs of each of the Standards Consensus Body.

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), Chairman of the IICRC Continuing Education Committee.

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) Chairman of Consensus Body - BSR/IICRC S760 Standard for Professional Restoration of Structures and Items Damaged by Wildfire Smoke.

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) Voting member of Consensus Body -BSR/IICRC S700 Standard for Professional Fire and Smoke Damage Restoration.

Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) Voting member of Consensus Body -ANSI/IICRC S520 Standard for Professional Mold Remediation.

ACAC CIEC Certification Board (2011 – 2013), American Council for Accredited Certification. Accredited by the Council for Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards (CESSB) and the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA).

IESO/RIA Fire Damage Standard 6000 (FS-1) Member of the Consensus Body and primary author. Analysis and characterization of combustion byproducts impacting structure and contents.

ASHRAE/Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) Education Committee, Member (2012 -2017). Responsible for all educational courses and webinars. The committee reviews all course curricula to ensure that the quality of the training and educational materials meets the expectations of members. All application and renewal documents are analyzed by the committee to determine the credentials and capabilities of the training providers. Additionally, the committee evaluates educational requirements embodied in new legislation and comments on its findings through the IAQA Government Affairs Committee.

Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) Think Tank Committee, Chairman (2014-2015). Develop and foster strategic alliances, MOU’s and partnerships through IAQA education and training programs.

Indoor Air Quality Association/ASHRAE International and Association Relations Committee, Member (2014-2015).

American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) IAQ and Environmental Issues Committee - Wildfire Project Team. Sampling, Analytical and Data Interpretation for Wildfire (SADI) Sub-committee Chairman.

ASTM International, D22 – Air Quality Committee Member, D22.08 Sampling and Analysis of Mold – Sub Committee Member.
Indoor Environmental Standards Organization (IESO) Standards Development Committee & Consensus Body (2013). Review proposals for indoor environmental standards within the scope of IESO. Create and approve standards to be submitted to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

American Council for Accredited Certification (ACAC), Council-certified Fire and Smoke Damage Consultant Steering Committee, Chairman. Responsible for the creation and development of the industry’s first Fire and Smoke Damage Investigator credential with accreditation by the Council for Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards (CESSB).

American Council for Accredited Certification (ACAC), Council-certified Fire and Smoke Damage Consultant Study Review Guide Committee, Chairman. Principle drafter of the 62-page Study review and exam preparation guide. As committee Chairman, I was responsible for overseeing any changes/additions to the study review/Exam preparation guide and build consensus among committee members to approve final draft.

Journal for the Association of Interdisciplinary Doctors of Health Sciences (AIDHS). Indoor air quality peer-review for submitted manuscripts.

Journal for Cleaning, Restoration and Inspection published by the Institute for Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). Technical and subject matter peer-review for submitted manuscripts.

Editor-in-chief Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene

World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program Science/Technical Advisory Committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Founding Director and Treasurer of the School Shooting Research Foundation

Published Journal Articles/Technical Case Studies/Select Publications

P. Chakravarty and B. Kovar, 2013, Evaluation of five antifungal agents used in remediation practices against six common indoor fungal species. Published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene 10: D11-D16.

B. Kovar, November 2014, Preventing Indoor Air Quality Hazards during the Holidays, The Interdisciplinarian, Newsmagazine of the Association of Interdisciplinary Doctors of Health Science, Volume 1 - Issue 1, November 2014

Martin L. King and Brad Kovar, 2013, Distribution of Combustion Particles in Buildings. Journal of Cleaning, Restoration & Inspection. A peer reviewed publication of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). December 2014 and Journal of Wood Design Focus. A quarterly publication of the Institute of Forest Products Society (FPS). Summer 2015 edition.

Shufutinsky, A., Kovar, B., Fordyce, L., Shufutinsky, B., Pernsteiner, E., & Johnson, D. (2014). Toward Effective Public Health Emergency Risk Communication: Modification of the Social Cubism Conflict Analysis Model for Assessing Risk Communications to Vulnerable Populations. International Journal of Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Studies, 2(2), 177-189. December 2014.

Martin L. King and Brad Kovar, 2013, Evaluating Smoke Odor Damage. Journal of Cleaning, Restoration & Inspection. A peer reviewed publication of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). February 2015.

Brad Kovar, Martin L. King, and Dr. Priyotosh Chakravarty, 2013, Suggested Guidelines for Wildfire Smoke Damage Investigations and Remediation. Edited by Dr. Michael Larrañaga. Journal of Cleaning, Restoration & Inspection. A peer-reviewed publication of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). June 2015.

Brad Kovar and Martin L. King, 2014, The Use of Primers and Sealers after Fire and Smoke Damage, Journal of Cleaning, Restoration & Inspection. A peer reviewed publication of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). February 2016.

Brad Kovar, Russ Crutcher, and Heidie Bettes, Wildfire Smoke Exposure: Comparative Study between Two Analytical Approaches; Particle Assemblage Analysis and Soot, Char and Ash Analysis, August 2016.

American Industrial Hygienist Association (AIHA) Technical Guide for Wildfire Impact Assessments; A Guide for the Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety Professional. Brad Kovar primary author and citation. March 2018. AIHA Stock #ESAH18-796

American Industrial Hygienist Association (AIHA) Health and Safety Issues in Natural Disasters. Brad Kovar contributing author and citation. April 2017

Brad Kovar and Anthony W. Burton, Esq., Investigating and Litigating Mold Claims, The Gavel – Orange County Trial Lawyers Association, Volume 21, Number 4, Fall 2018

Brad Kovar, Engineering Case Study: What is the Long-Term Effectiveness of Antifungal Agents Commonly Used in Remediation Practices, Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA), In the Air – Technical Articles & News for IAQA Members, Winter 2018, Volume 2, Issue

Craig B., Parker T., Wang Q., Larrañaga M.D. (2021). Indoor chlorine gas release in a natatorium: A case study. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, 18(12), 533-540.

Smith, P., Benjamin, C., Kristina, H., Michael, L., (2021). ‘Analyzing the national fire incident reporting system to identify carbon monoxide incidents in the U.S. lodging industry’ Preventive Medicine Reports.

Larranaga, M.D., Smith P., (2020). ‘Theoretical underpinnings of homeland security technology’, in Ramsay, M.D. (ed.) Theoretical Foundations of Homeland Security: Strategies, Operations, and Structures. Routledge.

Smith, Patrick K., et al. “Human error analysis of the Montara well blowout.” Process Safety Progress (2020): e12182.

Comiskey, John and Michael Larrañaga. “Climate Security: A Premortem Approach to a Sustainable Global Future.” Homeland Security Affairs 15, Article 8 (December, 2019). www.hsaj.org/articles/15605

Holder, H. W., Larrañaga, M. D., Smith, P.K., Stacy, E.A., Krismer, M., (2015). Calculating Dew-Point Design for DOAS. ASHRAE Journal, 57(12), 24-32.

Smith, P. K., Bennett, J. M., Darken, R. P., Lewis, T. G., & Larrañaga, M. D. (2014). Network–based risk assessment of the US crude pipeline infrastructure. International Journal of Critical Infrastructures, 10(1), 67-80.

Smith, P., Kincannon, H., Lehnert, R., Wang, Q., & D Larrañaga, M. (2013). Human error analysis of the Macondo well blowout. Process Safety Progress,32(2), 217-221.