Mold Evicts Occupants from their Westbury Apartments

On March 28, 2008, the Archstone Westbury Apartments deadline arrived for occupants to vacate their apartments. Archstone-Smith, a Colorado company, that manages the Archstone Westbury Apartments terminated the leases of these tenants on Wednesday, November 28, 2007 because mold and mildew had infested the apartments. In order to determine the cause of the infestation, the owner needed to open walls and ceilings to determine the underlying cause of the water intrusion.
It was good to see an owner being proactive in trying to prevent tenants from being exposed to mold or mildew. There are other ways to perform this investigation, including the use of infrared cameras and moisture meters, though it is probably better to ensure the safety of the occupants while determining the underlying cause.
As in many mold problems, according to newspaper articles written at the time this site also had a long list of water intrusion problems that were not addressed by the building maintenance staff. We could only speculate that had the maintenance staff responded faster or performed a more thorough investigation or water clean-up that the current evictions could have been avoided. Building owners should look at there building maintenance programs and ensure that all complaints of water intrusions are handled within 24 hours. Any evidence of moisture intrusion should be thoroughly investigated to determine the cause (again the moisture meters and infrared cameras would be helpful) and the water intrusion should be dried completely utilizing water collection devices (mops & wet vacuums) and drying devices (fans & dehumidifiers). Once mold grows on the property it indicates a lack of attention by the apartment owners, building owners, occupants/tenants, and building maintenance staff. When dealing with mold the best offense is to determine the cause of the intrusion and the best defense is to dry everything within 24 hours. It is also important to remember the use of bleach is unnecessary. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) both recommend the use of detergents instead of bleach. Bleach is a very strong chemical (it is a biocide) and is not needed to clean areas properly.

Asbestos Discovered In Current Building Materials

Based on testing done by the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organizations (ADAO) and announced at a press conference on November 28, 2007 it appears there may be a concern that new building materials may contain asbestos. The ADAO conducted asbestos testing on over 250 different household products utilizing Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis in accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency's test method 600/R-93/116. The link above gives you the detail of the methodology and results of the testing that included positive results for 5 products including Planet Toys "CSI Fingerprint Examination Kit", DAP "33" window glazing and "Crack Shot" spackling paste, Gardner Leak Stopper roof patch (which listed asbestos as an ingredient on the label), and Scotch High Performance Duct Tape.

Of the 5 products found to contain asbestos, 3 products are materials that are considered building materials. The window glazing, the spackling paste, and the roof patch are all materials that an asbestos inspector would sample to determine if these materials contained asbestos in a building built before 1980, but would ignore in a building built after 1980. The results from the ADAO testing found the window glazing contained 2.73% chrysotile and tremolite asbestos, the spackling paste contained 1.05% tremolite, anthophyllite, and chrysotile asbestos and the roof patch contained 15% chrysotile asbestos. All of these materials would be considered asbestos containing materials for an asbestos inspector, if they were sampled. Again, based on the typical opinion of the industry we wouldn't sample these materials after 1980. In fact, New York State uses a cut-off date of 1974.

This new information from the ADAO, obviously calls into question New York State's cut off date of 1974. If the above products still contain asbestos today, it probably means these products had asbestos in them between today and 1974 or 1980. As an Asbestos Inspector this information calls into question our assumption regarding the asbestos content of building materials in buildings after 1974. Since asbestos has not been banned, and it can still be found in building materials we are presently installing, this means we can no longer use the 1974 or 1980 date to determine whether building materials do or do not contain asbestos. This is one of the many reasons why ADAO has been lobbying for a complete ban on the manufacturer and the use of asbestos.

It is important to remember that though the New York State Industrial Code Rule 56 asbestos regulation does not regulate the assumption of asbestos in building materials after 1974, it does regulate the remediation of asbestos no matter the date of the building.

News from PACNY's Environmental Conference

As we previously discussed, I was attending the 12th Annual PACNY Environmental Conference. It was an excellant conference that brought out some new developments in the Abatement Industry. Mr. Christopher Alonge, PE of the New York State Department of Labor, was one of the presenters that most people were anxious to hear from and as usual he did not disappoint the attendees. What has become standard practice at this event Mr. Alonge gave those present some food for thought. First, Mr. Alonge announced a new Petition for an Asbestos Variance Form (SH 752) and the possible release sometime in 2008 of two new variances; "Mechanical fastening of items/components or systems - penetrating through non-friable ACM - Not considered an Asbestos Project" and "Small & Minor Size Asbestos Disturbance Cleanup Projects - to be used for cleanup of all types asbestos disturbances". This new Variance form should be on the DOL website this month (the form is currently on our discussion board website at (http://groups.google.com/group/fed-forum/web/new-petition-for-an-asbestos-variance-form-sh-752). Mr. Alonge also announced a new guidance document (v2.0) that should be on the website in the next few months that will have 120 new questions/answers added. Mr. Alonge is also in the process of working on a new ICR56 that will incorporate some Fire & Life Safety Issues (because of lessons learned at the Deutsche Bank Building tragedy) some examples include the use of fire retardant sheathing, negative air disconnect switch, and maintaining existing fire protection systems.

Another interesting presenter was Thomas V. Roberts, RA from NYS Education Department. Mr. Roberts informed us that NYSED developed "Protocols for Addressing Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Caulking Materials in School Buildings" in June 2007 (http://www.emsc.nysed.gov/facplan/HealthSafety/PCBinCaulkProtocol-070615.html). This protocol is recommending that any school buildings constructed or renovated between 1950 and 1977 and undergoing current renovation or demolition, be evaluated prior to the renovation work to determine whether they contain caulk that is contaminated with PCBs. NYSED would require a PCB abatement plan be submitted with the renovation or demolition drawings addressing the potential environmental and public health concerns in abateing the caulk. If plans are submitted without the PCB evaluation, the plans will be rejected.

Maureen Cox, NYS DOL Director of Safety & Health, presented that DOL has seen a 12% increase in penalties collection this past year and would like to see Senate Bill 372 known as Successor Legislation, pass. The point of this legislation would be to prevent the owners of an asbestos abatement company from closing their business to avoid fines and then open under a new company to continue to do abatement work. The legislation would also increase the penalties and fines issued under the Industrial Code Rule 56.

PACNY introduced the PACNY Asbestos Proficiency Initiative, the purpose of this initiative is to create a certification that will be administered by PACNY that will establish another level of certification specifically for Project Monitors, Supervisors, and Project Designers. To be able to take the computer based certification exam, which will be offered through Slyvan Learning Centers, the individual must show three years of DOH 2832s. The exam will be given in two parts, part 1 will be a 50 question closed book exam and part 2 will be an open book scenario-based questions. PACNY Proficiency Certification (PPC) will require the accumulation of 20 hours of certification maintenance each year and the taking of a refresher exam also at the Slyvan center.

The conference as always was very interesting and exhibit had the usual suppliers Grayling Industry showing off the New Larger Pop-up Decon meeting NYS DOL requirements, and Cole Stanton from Fiberlock Technologies who discussed the revision to the use of chemical tools to the S520 standard from IICRC. IICRC stands for the The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification which publishes the S520 Standard and Reference Guide for Professional Mold Remediation. The new standard which should be out before the end of 2008, basically says that unique circumstances may arise allowing the consideration of antimicrobial coatings, or biocides.

The event is usually held at Turning Stone Casino and it appears that next year's event will be around the same time, we hope to see you there next year.

PACNY - 12th Annual Environmental Conference

One of the more interesting conferences I have attended is the annual Environmental Conference held by the Professional Abatement Contractors of New York (PACNY - http://www.pacny.org/). This year is PACNY's 12th Annual Environmental Conference and as usual the line-up of speakers is impressive. The conference is held at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York on February 28 & 29, 2008. Featured presenters include Chris Alonge, PE of NYS Department of Labor (writer of the current Industrial Code Rule 56 (the asbestos regulations), Maureen Cox also of NYS Department of Labor (her division enforces the asbestos regulations), David Heckman from OSHA, discussing OSHA Cooperative programs, and Carl Thurnau, PE of NYS Education Department, discussing PCBs and the NYSED. In addition, to presenters the conference also features an exhibitor's area where you can meet the suppliers and manufacturers of abatement and safety equipment. Turning Stone Resort and Casino (http://www.turningstone.com/) is an interesting place to have the conference. A little out of the way for us downstaters but worth the drive (almost 5 hours from Syosset, New York) or you can fly into Syracuse and then drive to Verona (approximately 40 minutes). Turning Stone Resort (the Oneida Indian Nation runs this resort and casino) has several excellant dining areas, has several golf courses, has your typical gaming areas, and entertainment (Country singer Toby Keith is playing there on March 1). But the real reason to go is the Environmental Conference, which is probably the best conference that addresses New York State environmental and safety issues. The presenters are industry professionals or regulators that are deeply involved in the New York State abatement industry. I hope to see you there.

NYS Labor Law 220-H

New York State passed Labor Law 220-H this past summer. This law will go into effect on July 18, 2008 and require all laborers, workers, and mechanics on a public work site show certification that they took a minimum of a 10-hour OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) Construction Safety Course. OSHA issues the certification cards after successfully completing the course. Future Environment Designs offers the OSHA 10-hour Construction Safety Course in Syosset or at your convenience and then applies to OSHA for the certification cards. The 10-hour course is actually a two-day course, because 10 hours is the total contact time for the course. That means breaks are not included in the 10 hours. Once you add appropriate breaks (lunch, coffee, etc.) into the time that brings the class to approximately 12 hours which is two days of training 6 hours each day.
The regulation applies to all contracts for state or municipality work totaling $250,000 or more for construction, reconstruction, repair or maintenance. It covers all workers on the job, employed either by the contractor, sub-contractor or other person(s) doing or contracting to do the whole or a part of the work contemplated by the contract. The training must be completed before the workers arrive at the job site. The regulation will be enforced by the New York State Department of Labor.
Future Environment Designs will add this class to our schedule to meet the anticipated demand for the class.