Prevent Mold From Growing During Rainfalls

In the last few months we have seen significant rainfall in the northeast. This rainfall is causing some minor problems with our plants and grass (how many times are we going to have to cut the grass this year?). These problems are a nuisance; however they are easily resolved with very little expense. When this rainfall enters our homes or business establishments, these problems can lead to some significant costs for repairs and if we ignore the problems then mold can grow. We have seen previously several articles, when the rainfall was previously significant and it intruded into buildings, regarding tenants or occupants having to move or close their businesses because of the water damage to property or equipment. To prevent this from happening in this current period of significant rainfall, remember the following tips from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

• Fix all leaks in the building envelope (i.e., roof leaks, foundation cracks)
• Look for condensation and wet spots, fix the cause and dry these areas quickly
• Prevent condensation by either reducing surface temperature (by insulating or increasing air circulation) or reducing moisture level in air. Reduce moisture levels by either increasing ventilation (if outside air is cold and dry) or dehumidify (if outdoor air is warm and humid).
• Keep heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) drip pans clean, flowing properly, and unobstructed.
• Clean and dry wet or damp spots within 48 hours
• Do not let foundations stay wet. Provide drainage and slope the ground away from the foundation.
• Any water damaged materials that remain wet for more than 48 hours should be disposed of or hire a water restoration expert to handle the situation.
• If you have significant water damage, contact your insurance company immediately.
• Many insurance companies exclude mold growth in their policies. The sooner you notify the insurance company of your claim, excluding your claim becomes less of likely.

Handling Vermiculite Insulation for Building Inspections and Air Monitoring

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recent decision to declare a public health emergency at the Libby asbestos site in Montana has brought vermiculite insulation back in front of people’s minds. EPA’s announcement did not mention what to do if you have this type of insulation. Remember there are some major issues with this type of insulation. First it seems the vermiculite can actually hide the tremolite asbestos from detection, leading to false results. When individuals disturb the vermiculite insulation it can release tremolite asbestos at significant levels into the air.

Because of these technical issues EPA and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) both recommend that if you find vermiculite insulation that you not test it for asbestos. Instead they recommend you assume the vermiculite insulation is from Libby and assume it contains asbestos. The Libby mine was the source for over 70% of the vermiculite sold in the United States from 1919 to 1990. EPA and ATSDR feel that the technical issues involving vermiculite sampling can complicate testing for the presence of asbestos fibers and interpreting the risk from exposure. This is a significant statement and interesting that it has not been published more.

Based on this, as an asbestos inspector, environmental inspector, home inspector, and/or air quality consultant, you must evaluate vermiculite insulation as containing asbestos (without sampling). In addition, you must inform the owner that sampling the material will not provide a definitive answer. EPA and ATSDR both recommend that professional asbestos abatement contractors handle any disturbance of the vermiculite insulation. The best practice for air monitoring and analysis of these projects, for the protection of the public, is Transmission Electron Microscopy. As these issues are not well known, even in the asbestos industry, it is important for owners to be aware of this potential problem and take the precautions necessary.

Public Health Emergency Declared in Libby, Montana

As with everyone else who is aware of this tragedy we applaud the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision on June 17, 2009 to declare that a public health emergency exits at the Libby asbestos site (vermiculite mine contaminated with tremolite asbestos) in northwest Montana. The New York Times, Newsday and other newspapers covered this press release and the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization issued their own release covering this issue. The documentary film “Dust to Dust” directed by Michael Brown told the Libby story (we have watched this film in some of our classes). As the press release indicates, this announcement, which is long overdue, will provide funds for the continued clean-up of the contaminated areas in the towns of Libby and Troy. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services will provide grant money to provide medical care for the area residents impacted by the contamination.

Different Regulations for Different States on Asbestos-Cement Pipe

One of our regular clients, during a class, provided us with a copy of the article linked to the title above. The title of the article is “End of the Line” by Kent Von Aspern, P.E. Public Works magazine published this article in March 2009. One of the first things we need to note about the article is that the author works in Northern California and we should not take this article as the requirements for every state. Each state may and can handle asbestos in their state differently. For example, the New York State Department of Labor under Industrial Code Rule 56 regulates asbestos cement or transite pipe. Under this regulation, only licensed companies (even a sewage or water district or Department of Public Works are required to be licensed to handle asbestos) can handle any quantity of asbestos containing material (ACM). In addition, only workers/employees certified by NYSDOL as operations and maintenance, handlers, or supervisors can handle ACM. The size projects handled by the workers would dictate which certificate the workers are required to have. NYSDOL does not stop at just licensing and certification requirements it also dictates the work procedures. Under the Guidance Document version 2.0, question 237 indicates the work procedures for cement/transite pipe. It indicates that abandoned asbestos containing cement/transite pipe cannot remain in the trench. According to ICR56 buried asbestos cement or transite pipe must be removed and disposed of in accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPS) regulation as Category II nonfriable asbestos containing material and under New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (NYS DEC) asbestos waste regulations. Remember when you read information on the internet or in national magazines or industry publications it is difficult for one author to know all the requirements in each state. Many times the author is writing specifically of experiences they have in their state. That experience many times may not apply in a different state or states.

W. R. Grace acquitted in Libby, MT Asbestos Case

New York Times reported on May 9, 2009 the acquittal of W. R. Grace and three of its former executives on all charges that they had knowingly contaminated Libby, Montana a small mining town, with asbestos, and then conspired to cover up the deed.
In some of our classes we have watched the documentary film “Dust to Dust” directed by Michael Brown. The film told the story of the town’s experience with exposure to tremolite asbestos that contaminated the vermiculite mine which many of the town’s people worked at. The film documented the effects on the town, hundreds of miners, their family members, and townsfolk have died, and at least 1,200 have been sickened from exposure to the asbestos-containing ore. These health effects also threaten workers, their families, and residents everywhere the ore was shipped and people living in millions of homes nationwide where it was used as insulation. The W. R. Grace trial mentioned above was the result of the government’s investigation into the Libby, Montana situation.
Based on the New York Times article, it appears the government’s case was very difficult to prove and that several errors by federal prosecutors, during the trial, made it even more difficult. It really is a shame that the people of Libby, Montana will suffer from the effects of asbestos exposure and many of them will die from this exposure for many years to come, while it seems prosecutors are unable or incapable of providing justice for them.

OSHA Publishes Guidance Documents for Pandemic Influenza

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have published five documents dealing with pandemic influenza. The documents are:

• “Healthcare Workplaces Classified as Very High or High Exposure Risk for Pandemic Influenza” – OSHA designed this fact sheet to assist healthcare workplaces and to protect these workers from exposure to pandemic influenza. Using the Occupational Risk Pyramid (at left) it defines who are very high or high risk and recommends engineering controls, administrative controls, work practices, and PPE to protect these workers.
• “What Employers Can Do to Protect Workers from Pandemic Influenza” – this fact sheet recommends engineering controls, administrative controls, work practices, and personal protective equipment (PPE).
• “Protect Yourself Pandemic Flu Respiratory Protection” – this quick card defines who needs a respirator based exposure risk, defines minimum level of protection as N95 respirator, states that surgical masks are not respirators, and OSHA requirements for a respiratory protection program.
• “How to Protect Yourself in the Workplace during a Pandemic” – this quick card lists suggested precautions and actions workers should take to reduce risk of becoming ill with pandemic influenza.
• “Respiratory Infection Control: Respirators Versus Surgical Masks” – this fact sheet defines the difference between respirators, such as filtering facepiece (used to be known as dust masks) and half mask respirators, and surgical masks, which are a physical barrier to protect users from hazards, such as splashes of large droplets of blood or body fluids. NIOSH certifies all respirators, including filtering facepieces, visit their website for recent warnings for respirator users (www.niosh.gov). NIOSH does not certify surgical masks to prevent inhalation of small airborne contaminants. Only surgical masks cleared by the Food and Drug Administration have been tested for their ability to resist blood and bodily fluids.

NYC Deadline Approaching Regarding OSHA Training Requirement

Starting July 1, 2009, all workers at major building projects in New York City are required to complete a 10-hour course in construction industry safety and health approved by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Local Law 41 of 2008 requires the site safety plans of major buildings must include a statement that all workers have completed this course.

H1N1 Flu

H1N1 (referred to as “swine flu” early on) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009. Other countries, including Mexico and Canada, have reported people sick with this new virus. This virus is spreading from person-to-person, probably in much the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread. Click on the title and visit the CDC website to answer your questions regarding the H1N1 Flu.

Take these everyday steps to protect your health:

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
• Stay home if you are sick for 7 days after your symptoms begin or until you have been symptom-free for 24 hours, whichever is longer. This is to keep from infecting others and spreading the virus further.

Could multiple chemical exposures be the problem with Chinese Wallboard (Sheetrock)?

CNN, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, and Indoor Environment Connections have all reported on the concern regarding imported Chinese Wallboard. It seems once the Chinese wallboard gets wet or damp it off-gases a rotten-egg stench made of sulfur-based gases. Homeowners claim these gases can corrode metals, and may cause headaches and aggravation of respiratory systems, such as asthma. Many of these reports quote health departments as saying that levels are not elevated enough to suggest an imminent or chronic health hazard. However, there should be a concern regarding the potential for multiple chemical exposures, their cumulative effect, and the potential for long exposures to low levels of the compounds on the occupants.

The Chinese wallboard problem may affect over 35,000 homes and so far, is in states with high humidity and temperature levels where homes were constructed or renovated between 2004 and 2008. These homes and buildings, because of the shortage of domestic wallboard (also called sheetrock, drywall, and gypsum board), were installing Chinese-imported wallboard (not all Chinese wallboard is a problem). Up until this point, the reports regarding the tests on the drywall, quoting one health department “has not identified data suggesting an imminent or chronic health hazard at this time.” Some reports actually say levels found in the affected homes are not elevated enough to be of concern. One report gave hydrogen sulfide levels of .05 to .07 parts per million (ppm). Another report detected “carbon disulfide levels of approximately 5 parts per billion – all samples were less than 15 parts per billion.” The same report also reported carbonyl sulfide in the same levels. Chamber testing of the Chinese wallboard emitted carbon disulfide, carbonyl sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide, while other tests of the wallboard found in addition sulfuric acid and sulfur dioxide. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identifies all these compounds as toxic compounds. However, the levels found are below many of the standards used for worker exposure. This is the crux of the problem, the limitations of using worker exposure standards to evaluate indoor air quality have been known for a long time and a professional would use them with limitations, typically dividing them by a factor of 10 to 100. For example, the OSHA permissible exposure limit for carbon monoxide is 50 ppm, while the indoor air quality industry uses 5 ppm to 10 ppm as a guide for evaluating air quality in office buildings.

Exposure research is very limited when looking at exposures to multiple chemicals or to long term exposures to low levels of compounds. Since this research is so limited to the point of nonexistent it is hard to say what the impacts of multiple chemical exposures or long term low level exposures would be. The limited knowledge we have points to potential moderate or minimal effects on individuals based on the compounds they are exposed to. Exposure to the multiple sulfur gases for long periods or low levels could be causing the headaches; sore throats; repeated nose bleeds; breathing problems; respiratory infection; wheezing; sinus problems; and various other respiratory ailments that occupants have complained about. Our health departments should be erring on the side of health but too many times they side on convenience.

Keeping Your Family Safe - Healthy Homes

Monday, March 30, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Pam Meyer of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Dr. Peter Ashley of the U. S. Department of Housing Urban Development (HUD) for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at http://www.voiceamerica.com/ on the Green Talk Network). Our discussion was about the Healthy Homes Program. CDC is the nation’s primary public health agency and is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. CDC provides information to help the public make informed decisions and take actions to promote health and wellbeing. HUD makes affordable housing available to low income households, and supports community development and home ownership. Dr. Meyer and Dr. Ashley discussed how CDC and HUD were working together to promote Healthy Homes. Healthy Homes is a century-old concept that promotes safe, decent, and sanitary housing as a means for preventing disease and injury. In our program, we covered the following points:

• CDC and HUD support Healthy Homes by providing grants to fund research on Healthy Homes
• Increasing amount of scientific evidence linking health outcomes, such as asthma and unintentional injuries, to substandard housing
• CDC has a few cooperative agreements with state or local health departments to take a healthy homes approach
• HUD’s focus is not health research so they rely heavily on reviews, such as the National Academy of Sciences
• HUD recently has funded some research, for example Cuyahoga County Grant – home interventions to address mold/moisture problems resulted in significant improvements in the health of asthmatic children & Seattle Grant – studied new green built public housing units on the health of asthmatic children after they moved into the units (breathe easy homes)
• Discussion on research on allergies & asthma in regards to triggers, unintentional injuries, and poisonings

This was our final show for this period, we hope those of you who listened enjoyed the programs. Remember you can continue to access the podcast of the programs at our host page at http://www.voiceamerica.com/ or on our website http://www.keepingyourfamilysafe.net/ under each topic ticker or http://www.futureenv.com/ under the Training tab in the online training section.

Keeping Your Family Safe - Underground Storage Tanks

Monday, March 23, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Lee Wasserman, founder and President of LEW Corporation and Mr. Larry Graf, Grounds Division General Manager of LEW Corporation, headquartered in Mountainside, New Jersey for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at www.voiceamerica.com on the Green Talk Network). Our discussion was about Underground Storage Tanks (UST). LEW Corp. is a full service environmental consulting company who has managed tank installations, closures, and subsurface investigations from Maine to Maryland, from 275 gallon oil tanks to 12,000,000 gallon storage tanks. LEW Corp. has handled hundreds of soil remediations regarding leaking oil tanks. LEW Corp. is licensed in New Jersey for tank installation, closure, and subsurface investigation. Mr. Wasserman and Mr Graf discussed handling and managing Underground Storage Tanks. In our program, we covered the following points:

• The Federal government does not regulate residential USTs
• State government may regulate them in specific instances, but generally do not
• Residential USTs are primarily regulated by local Counties, Towns, or Villages
• Home Insurance plays an important role regarding USTs
• Homeowners want to ensure they hire specifically licensed UST installers, and removers
• Individuals that test the tanks for leaks, to avoid conflict of interests, are required to be independent of the installers and removers.

This Monday, March 31, 2009, at 2 PM Eastern Time we will be discussing HUD’s Healthy Homes Program with Dr. Peter Ashley, a senior environmental health scientist with Housing Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control and Dr. Pamela Meyer, of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Keeping Your Family Safe - Audubon at Home

Monday, March 16, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Aaron Virgin, Executive Director of the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center (www.ny.audubon.org/CentersEdu_TRoosevelt.html) for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at http://www.voiceamerica.com/ on the Green Talk Network). The Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center was established in 1923 as the first Audubon Songbird Sanctuary in the nation and is one of the largest providers of environmental education in the New York metropolitan area. Mr. Virgin discussed the Audubon At Home Program (www.audubon.org/bird/at_home/index.html). In our program, we covered the following points:

• Together Green (http://www.togethergreen.org/) and what it is all about
• Healthy Yard Pledge
• How the Audubon at home program works.
• Eliminating or reducing the use of pesticides
• Conserving water
• Protecting water quality
• Removing exotic plant pests
• Planting native species

This Monday, March 23, 2009, at 2 PM Eastern Time we will be discussing “Underground Storage Tanks” with Lew Wasserman, President, and Larry Graf, Grounds Division General Manager of the Lew Corporation.

2009 PACNY Environmental Conference

On February 26-27, 2009, the Professional Abatement Contractors of New York (PACNY) held their 13th annual Environmental Conference at the Turning Stone Casino and Resort in Verona, New York. If you have attended this conference before you already know that PACNY does a great job of inviting individuals to speak on current contractor/consultant issues and/or current regulatory issues. In what has become a tradition for the conference, the focus of the second day was the New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL) and what was affectionately referred to as the Chris Alonge Road Show.
Over 200 people attended the conference this year, not a bad number considering the condition of the economy. However, this year the absence of downstate contractors/consultants was particularly noticeable. It was too bad, because this year’s conference was one of the best. The Mohawk Room had nearly 30 vendors including Grayling Industries, DiVal Safety, Aramsco, and Fiberlock Technologies. Aramsco‘s booth was showcasing a new piece of equipment, a floor buffer with an attachment for a HEPA vacuum, that could be used under the NYS DOL Applicable Variance A-3. This floor buffer with the attachment for a HEPA vacuum would allow a contractor using it to perform mastic removal work with a remote decontamination facility.
All the presentations were held in the Oneida Room. One of my favorite presentations was a two part presentation between Mr. Dale Lesinski, Vice President of DiVal Safety and Mr. Eric Giguere. Mr. Eric Giguere was buried alive in a construction accident and told us his story of survival and his life since his near-death experience. Before Mr. Giguere’s presentation, Mr. Lesinki set the audience up with a Behavior Based safety presentation that worked well with Mr. Giguere’s presentation. The presentation created a powerful 1-2 punch for worker safety. This presentation was so powerful we saw several audience members, including myself, wiping tears away.
The other presentations included:

• Dr. Bruce Lippy’s, of The Lippy Group, presentation on lessons learned from Ground Zero and Boca Raton Anthrax Cleanup. Interesting points: (1) Hazwoper procedures should be an integral part of disasters; (2) Better management of critical incident stress among workers; (3) Better management of the transitions from Rescue to Recovery to Cleanup; (4) Most fatalities involved with work zone safety; (5) Better understanding of the linear relationship between extended work schedule and worker risk of injury: (a) 18 hours of sustained wakefulness produces a performance impairment = 0.05% of blood alcohol content; (b) 24 hours of sustained wakefulness produces a performance impairment = 0.10% of blood alcohol content.


• Mr. Aaron Hilger’s, of the Rochester Builders Exchange, presentation on the recent changes to Wick’s Law (Nassau/Suffolk –increase to threshold from $50,000 to $1.5 million) and the economic climate for the construction industry. His discussion also included current view of the stimulus bill and impact of health care reform.


• LeChase Construction/Eastman Kodak’s presentation involved four speakers (Raymond LeChase, Jr., Darren Yehl, Jim Gerek, & Edward Slovak) point of view of the Eastman Kodak’s Footprint Reduction Program. The program consisted of the remediation – demolition of 80 structures totaling over six million square feet.

On the second day the Oneida room presentations included:

• IAQ Technologies’ Mr. Bob Krell did a presentation on Indoor Environments and Green Buildings that was primarily a mold presentation.


• Lawyers from NYS DOL & Mr. Chris Alonge then discussed: (1) The “Asbestos Successor Legislation” that went into effect in July 2008; (2) The Guidance Document version 2.0; (3) Proposed changes for the Emergency Rule Making of Industrial Code Rule 56.


• The final presentation was a panel discussion including Mr. Chris Alonge. This panel discussion was a Q&A session for the panelist to discuss directly with Mr. Alonge. Audience participation was restricted until after the panelist finished their questions.

All in all the conference was very informative and well worth the trip. It was a pleasure to get together with old friends, make some new ones, and reacquaint with some friends we had not seen in years (Special hello to Patty Kirkland of EMSL). Bravo to the PACNY organization and the committee that put this year’s conference together, they did a great job. We look forward to next year’s conference and hope to see you there next year.

Keeping Your Family Safe - Dangers in the Basement

Monday, March 9, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Bob Krell, President and Certified Indoor Environment Consultant for IAQ Technologies for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at www.voiceamerica.com on the Green Talk Network). IAQ Technologies is an indoor environmental and building performance firm offering consulting, mitigation, and training services to a variety of clients throughout the country. Mr. Krell discussed various dangers we can find in basements that homeowners should be aware of and some ways to protect themselves. In our program, we covered the following points:

• Asbestos
• Radon
• Mold and Bacteria (Differences between black, grey, and clear water)
• Better Building Materials and Dehumidification to help prevent mold growth

This Monday, March 16, 2009, we will be discussing “Audubon at Home” with Aaron Virgin Executive Director of the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center.

Keeping Your Family Safe Program - Talks about Drinking Water

Monday, March 2, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Richard Humann, P.E., Vice President and Chief Water Resources Engineer for H2M, for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at http://www.voiceamerica.com/ on the Green Talk Network). H2M, headquartered in Melville, NY, is a multi-disciplined engineering and architectural consulting firm that has worked in the field of public water supply for the past 75 years. Mr. Humann discussed drinking water safety and the processes municipal water suppliers go through to provide us with safe drinking water. In our program, we also covered the following points:

• Municipal water suppliers must test the drinking water to meet Federal, State, and local requirements (State and Local requirements must be as strict or stricter than Federal requirements).
• All municipal water suppliers must test drinking water for a minimum of 150 parameters.
• Treating water contaminated with MTBE is challenging to municipal water suppliers.
• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has guidance documents for testing drinking water once it gets to our faucets.
• Water suppliers are required to continuously monitor the pH (corrosiveness) of water to ensure that the water does not cause the leaching of metals from the plumbing.
• Most municipal water does not need filtering or treatment at home. Chlorine taste or smell can be eliminated by putting the water in the refrigerator.

This Monday, March 9, 2009, we will be discussing “Dangers in the Basement” with Mr. Bob Krell, President of IAQ Technologies.