Terminal report puzzles officials

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Saturday, June 10, 2006

Terminal report puzzles officials

MaineToday.com - Portland,ME

By KELLEY BOUCHARD, Portland Press Herald Writer

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/local/060610terminal.shtml

A final report on Portland's effort to remove toxic mold from the

International Marine Terminal questions whether repairs made by the

city will prevent a reoccurrence of mold in the 97-year-old

waterfront building.

City officials say they are mystified by that conclusion because

they have made all the repairs recommended in the report. The

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health examined the

building after Scotia Prince Cruises evacuated the facility,

canceled its 2005 cruises to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, and sued the

city for more than $100 million in damages. The city and the ferry

company are in arbitration.

Bay Ferries Ltd. now occupies the terminal and began running The

Cat, a high-speed, catamaran-style ferry, between Portland and

Yarmouth in May.

The final report, like a draft report given to the city in October,

was based on an inspection of the facility in March 2005. At the

time, the city was still repairing the terminal following the

departure of Scotia Prince Cruises, said Larry Mead, an assistant

city manager.

The city has since completed $1.3 million in renovations to the

terminal, Mead said, including the replacement of a wall where mold

was found, the installation of vapor barriers and the repair of

openings that allowed water to enter the building and birds to build

nests.

The federal report acknowledges that the city continued to work on

the terminal after federal inspectors visited the site in March

2005. " However, the underlying structural defects of the building

have not been addressed, resulting in a high likelihood of continued

microbial growth, " the report concluded.

" The report speaks for itself, " said Dennis , a spokesman for

Scotia Prince Cruises.

Mead said the city has done everything the report recommends, short

of building a new terminal. He said the report contains a mixed

message. He noted that the report asserts that the city hasn't made

necessary structural changes and then recommends all of the changes

the city has made.

Among other repairs, the city updated the terminal's ventilation

system, established a regular building maintenance plan and tests

air quality and moisture levels in the building every three months.

The latest report from Environmental Safety & Hygiene Associates of

Westbrook, issued April 24, showed no identifiable moisture or water

intrusion and no increase in airborne fungi.

" In fact, this assessment, when compared to the previous

assessments, showed significantly lower levels of airborne fungi and

the absence of specific species of fungi identified in the previous

assessments, " the consultant wrote.

The consultant attributed the improved results to " a number of

factors that include seasonal influence, the lack of moisture

infiltration/active fungal growth and the extensive

corrective/maintenance actions taken by the city. "

The final report was delayed, Mead said, because the agency was

waiting for blood test results for people who had worked in the

terminal. The tests were inconclusive, according to the report.

Workers' health complaints in March 2005 ranged from upper

respiratory distress and skin irritations to irritability and

difficulty concentrating, according to the report.

Mead said he doesn't expect the National Institute for Occupational

Safety and Health to do a follow-up inspection of the terminal

unless the agency receives a new complaint.

The Scotia Prince now sails a chartered route in the Mediterranean

Sea between Italy and North Africa, said.

Staff Writer Kelley Bouchard can be contacted at 791-6328 or at:

kbouchard@...