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Mold Found in U.S. Schools
December
2002
Perhaps Due to Poor
Ventilation, It Causes Health & Financial Problems
(Dec.
6, 2002)
Nashville, Tenn. �
To protest a menace in their school, nearly
1,000 students at East High School in Memphis skipped homeroom one day.
Across the state, another 1,000 students spent
a month at Bristol Motor Speedway not watching NASCAR races, but
studying in the skyboxes while a threat was removed at Sullivan East High
School.
In each case, the problem was the same: mold.
Nationwide, school districts are finding
allergy-inducing mold in walls, on carpets and near ventilation systems.
While one report blames aging buildings and mold-promoting construction
techniques, one expert says it's due to a lack of proper ventilation in
newer schools.
"It's a growing problem, and it's one of the
more high-priority issues that schools are dealing with," said Ericka
Plater, indoor air quality manager for the American Association of School
Administrators.
Mold has forced some administrators to shut
down schools and make millions of dollars in repairs. Others face lawsuits
from students and staff who claim moldy buildings caused long-term health
problems.
In Austin, Texas, voters approved a $49.3
million bond issue in February to pay for mold removal and preventive
maintenance in 91 schools. In Fort Myers, Fla., several teachers sued
county school officials last week, accusing them of failing to fix mold
problems.
In Tennessee, just as the Bristol students
returned to their school, teenagers at Heritage High School about two
hours away in Maryville got an unexpected four-week vacation when mold was
found there. The repair estimate: $1 million.
Memphis school board members called an
emergency meeting after hundreds of students there refused to enter East
High, which some parents described as a "mold-infested hazard."
About 600 students received medical screenings
after Donald Criss Mister Jr., 17, died Nov. 16 following an asthma
attack. So far, no link has been found between the death and mold in the
school, but the school board hired an environmental consultant, and
federal inspectors with the Environmental Protection Agency will tour it
Monday.
Sonji Wright, the mother of a student, told
Superintendent Johnnie B. Watson that bringing in experts wasn't enough.
"My baby is on a respirator, Mr. Watson," she
screamed through a white mask that covered her nose and mouth in a sign of
protest. "She cannot breathe, and what are you going to do about it?"
Mold problems usually go unnoticed until people
become ill. No federal agency regulates or monitors air quality in
schools, and few states inspect for it.
In Tennessee, no state agency monitors mold in
schools.
"It's really everybody's problem because it's
such a new issue," said Judith Morgan, the state Education Department
spokeswoman. "That's why it seems to be falling kind of between the
cracks."
Tennessee's education department sent e-mail to
school officials statewide Friday and directed them to an EPA Web site
that offers guidance on air quality issues.
Plater said a federal report suggests old,
dilapidated schools might be more susceptible to mold. Others say the
Gypsum wallboard and carpeted floors that replaced plaster and wood make
newer schools a greater target because they soak up more moisture.
David Weekley, president of Knoxville-based
Environmental Consulting and Testing, said the 1970s energy crisis
prompted construction of more airtight schools. Less natural ventilation
is part of the problem, he said.
Another factor is the tendency of cash-strapped
districts to delay maintenance and patch leaks, he said.
Mold occurs naturally and can grow almost
anywhere that's warm and damp. Experts have identified more than 100,000
species of mold; at least 1,000 are common in the United States.
While the most common molds generally aren't
hazardous, some types are blamed for headaches, fatigue and respiratory
problems.
Sullivan County Schools director John O'Dell
said the Bristol high school was shut down for about six weeks and
$600,000 worth of repairs after children became ill and several classrooms
tested positive for black mold, or Stachybotrys chartarum, which
can cause breathing problems.
The mold there was primarily around poorly
insulated pipes that carry cold water throughout the building to cool
classrooms. The pipes created condensation that dripped onto porous
ceiling tiles, providing a breeding ground for mold.
"I think we're
all more sensitive to it now," O'Dell said. "We've told the principals and
custodians to keep an eye out for any discolored tile and then replace it
immediately."
Source: Associated Press
Click Here to view a previous, related story on the death of the
Tennessee teenager
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