Re: Digest Number 170

[Guest guest]

Thought you all might be interested in the movements in Boston, Mass. I have been "involved" in this case since the government building in Boston was found to have mold and IAQ problems many years ago. Things are finally starting to move.

Sharon Cross

School Health and Safety Association

Boston City CouncilIn City CouncilOrder of Councillors Maura Hennigan, Chuck , Felix Arroyo, Yancey, Maureen Feeney, Flaherty, Ross, Scappiccio, and WHEREAS: There is growing concern nationally, statewide and within Boston, regarding the problem of indoor mold contamination and poor indoor air quality due to water intrusion in public and private buildings; ANDWHEREAS: EPA, Boston Public Health Commission, Massachusetts Nurses Association, MassCosh, Boston Urban Asthma Coalition, HUD, Sheet Metal Workers Union, National Teachers Association, Indian Health Service, and many other agencies and organizations have conducted vast amounts of research or have recognized through this research the known serious health effects and property damage caused by indoor mold; ANDWHEREAS: The issue of indoor mold contamination in all buildings has been an issue of concern to residents of the City of Boston; AND WHEREAS: Potential health effects and symptoms associated with mold exposure include, but are not limited to, allergic reactions, asthma, and other respiratory complaints; ANDWHEREAS: That the Boston City Council urges the Mayor and Boston Public Health Commission to work locally and nationally with the Boston Congressional Delegation to seek passage of legislation, H.R. 1268 - U.S. Toxic Mold Safety and Protection Act, that could offer help to the City of Boston to remediate public buildings with indoor air quality problems; THEREFORE BE IT ORDERED: That the appropriate committee of the Boston City Council convenes a hearing to address this serious public health threat and learn what Boston can do, as a city, to educate the public and prevent further contaminationFiled in the City Council: Tuesday, October 19, 2004FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEAt-Large Boston City Councillor Maura HenniganPhone: Fax: E-mail: mauraH@...Date: October 21, 2004Hennigan Joins Public Awareness Campaign on the Health Effects of MoldWednesday, October 20, 2004 -Councillor Maura A. Hennigan joined the U.S. House of Representatives as well as various local and national organizations in a public awareness campaign by calling for a hearing on the ill effects of indoor mold. Although indoor mold is sometimes invisible to the naked eye, the potential health effects and symptoms associated with mold exposures are very visible and include, but are not limited to, allergic reactions, asthma, and other respiratory complaints. The aim of Hennigan's order is to educate the public about the problem of indoor mold and poor indoor air quality due to water intrusion in public and private buildings in the city. Many local, state and national agencies and organizations have conducted research and/or have recognized the serious health effects and property damage caused by indoor mold including: Massachusetts Nurses Association, MassCosh (Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Health and Safety, Boston Urban Asthma Coalition, as well as many others.** "Just because you don't see something doesn't mean its not there," said Councillor Hennigan during today's hearing. "This is a serious public health risk and I look forward to continuing to raise awareness and educate the public about this issue by bringing in those who are knowledgeable on this matter," Hennigan concluded. Hennigan's call for a hearing on the issue corresponds with legislation, H.R. 1268, introduced by Congressman Conyers, Jr. of Michigan, which is being considered on the national level by the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill, otherwise known as the U.S. Toxic Mold Safety and Protection Act or The Melina Bill, would generate guidelines for preventing indoor mold growth, establish standards for removing mold when it does grow, provide grants for mold removal in public buildings, authorize tax credits for inspection and/or remediation of mold hazards, and create a national insurance program to protect homeowners from catastrophic losses.This June, Congressman Conyers, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, introduced the first Toxic Mold and Indoor Air Pollution Congressional Caucus and hosted a press conference and briefing on September 22, 2004 in Washington, DC to further raise awareness of this growing public health hazard. A representative group of people from across the country, including Massachusetts, traveled to Washington DC during the week of September 20, 2004 to advocate for immediate Congressional action through the new Mold Advocacy Education and Research Coalition (M.A.P.E.R.) and raise awareness of the public health threat posed by exposure to indoor molds and their by-products.Currently, Hennigan's order for a hearing has been referred to the Boston City Council's Committee on Health and Human Services where it awaits to be scheduled. If you have any questions about this order, have a personal story to tell, or would like to be notified when the hearing is scheduled, please contact Councillor Hennigan's office at or via e-mail at: maurah@.... ####For more information, please call Kenneally in Councillor Hennigan's Office at: or after hours/on the weekend at: .** A partial list of agencies and organizations that have conducted research or have recognized the serious health effects and property damage caused by indoor mold: CDC, EPA, FEMA, ASHRAE, ANSI, NIOSH, OSHA, AIHA, WHO, AMA, American Lung Association, U.S. Surgeon General, American Academy of Pediatrics, ACGIH, U.S. Army, USDA, Massachusetts Nurses Association, American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology American Agricultural Association, MassCosh, Boston Urban Asthma Coalition, National Academy of Sciences, IAQA, Silent Spring, Building Environment and Thermal Envelope Council, HUD, Indoor Environmental Standards Organization, Sheet Metal Workers Union, National Teachers Association, and Indian Health Service.

[Guest guest]

Bob,

Thanks for telling them to "order a dumpster." Most of the time, they don't want to hear it, although it is the most necessary procedure. I do not believe in "eliminating odors" ...I believe in eliminating the cause of the odors. If you had some leftover fish in your kitchen wastebasket would you "spray it with Lysol" or would you wrap it up nice and tight and discard it with the garbage outside? The use of ozone has repercussions, as you stated with the carpet rubber backing offgassing. Just as in an illness, if we just treat the symptoms the root cause is bound to return. Thanks for your sharing that case, it adds to my list of "why not to use ozone."

Sharon Sawyer Cross

School Health and Safety Association

Message: 3 Date: Wed, 20 Oct 2004 23:07:51 -0400 Subject: Ozone to eliminate odorsRe:Message: 2 Date: Tue, 19 Oct 2004 08:58:08 -0400 Subject: Odor problemWe are experimenting with an ozone generator for odor control usingextreme caution (unoccupied times, ventilation, pre-occupancy testing,etc). It does provide some relief and is one alternative in our arsenal forIAQ complaints. It is certainly not meant for all occasions but withadequate precautions can be a useful tool. . Please be very careful. I was called out to a school a couple of yearsago that used Ozone to eliminate a suspected mold based odor in aclassroom. The classroom was carpeted with floor covering with a thickrubber backing. The Ozone had initiated a reaction with the carpetbacking and the secondary reaction products had off gassed to the pointwhere every permeable and semi permeable surface in the room had becomea saturated sink.After one look, my advice was for them to order a dumpster. They wereunwilling to accept that as all of the furnishings were still in theroom and they could not accept throwing them away. They triedeverything they could think of for six weeks and at the end of thattime...they ordered a dumpster.Bob BakerBBJ Environmental Solutionswww.bbjenviro.comThe Standard of Care for Indoor Air

[Guest guest]

Some other examples of "why not to use ozone":

A $5000 sealskin fur coat with leather sleeves stored in a dampish closet had a musty odor. When ozones overnight, the chocolate brown leather turned a light tan, except in the folded-over areas, which stayed dark. Luckily for me, part of the cleaning process involved redying the leather.

Ozone treating a Corvette interior to remove the smoke odor left by the previous owner resulted in an oily substance exuding onto the surface of the dashboard and other vinyl materials. Presumably these were plasticizers and removing them significantly reduced the lifespan of the vinyl.

A friend of mine loaded a chamber with clothing, furniture and other contents items that had a smoky odor as a result of fire damage. He attached inventory tags to each item with rubber bands. In the morning, every rubber band had broken and the tags were all laying on the floor.

In all the above cases, ozone was effective in getting rid of the objectionable odor. But ozone use can have nasty and unpredictable side effects.

Tim Toburen

Odor problemWe are experimenting with an ozone generator for odor control usingextreme caution (unoccupied times, ventilation, pre-occupancy testing,etc). It does provide some relief and is one alternative in our arsenal forIAQ complaints. It is certainly not meant for all occasions but withadequate precautions can be a useful tool. . Please be very careful. I was called out to a school a couple of yearsago that used Ozone to eliminate a suspected mold based odor in aclassroom. The classroom was carpeted with floor covering with a thickrubber backing. The Ozone had initiated a reaction with the carpetbacking and the secondary reaction products had off gassed to the pointwhere every permeable and semi permeable surface in the room had becomea saturated sink.After one look, my advice was for them to order a dumpster. They wereunwilling to accept that as all of the furnishings were still in theroom and they could not accept throwing them away. They triedeverything they could think of for six weeks and at the end of thattime...they ordered a dumpster.Bob BakerBBJ Environmental Solutionswww.bbjenviro.comThe Standard of Care for Indoor Air

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