Researchers say molds are misunderstood

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Researchers say molds are misunderstood

The effects on health have yet to be proved

By JEFF MONTGOMERY

Staff reporter

10/13/2002

Wilmington attorney Kathleen M. still gets calls from around the

country about the $1 million mold-injury award her firm won for two tenants

of a Stanton apartment.

" Some people want to know if they can have my forms. They want to talk about

my case, about the experts we used. Some people call me and ask me to

represent them, " said.

has yet to take another mold-related illness case. But the continuing

calls and evacuations last week of mold-damaged apartments in Elsmere are

evidence of the mushrooming public alarm over all things dark and slimy.

Since the late 1990s, concern over health effects from molds has resulted in

congressional hearings, dramatic increases in claims and lawsuits, demands

for reform by the insurance and real estate industries, and growing business

for those involved in testing for and cleaning up mold.

What's missing in many cases, experts said, are facts.

" I don't want to downplay the risks, but it's not as big a bogeyman as it's

being made out, " said Ropeik, a director of risk communication and

teacher at the Harvard School of Public Health's Center for Risk Analysis.

Few experts disagree that neglected molds and mold spores in buildings can

cause allergic reactions and set off dangerous asthma attacks in some

people, as happened to the victims in 's lawsuit. Others with weakened

immune systems may be at risk for lung infections.

But scientists say thousands of molds exist on Earth and have existed here

throughout and before human history. Many grow easily on wood, drywall paper

or other food sources in damp, poorly ventilated areas of households. A few,

such as penicillium, aspergillus and the black mold called stachybotrys have

gotten an unverified reputation for causing illnesses or deaths. Science has

yet to prove that exposure to toxins produced by household molds has

anything to do with reports of mold-related allergies or more vague

symptoms, such as impaired thinking or bleeding lungs.

" There is no scientific literature that can substantiate what some call a

'killer mold' or 'toxic mold,' " said Neil J. Zimmerman, an associate

professor of industrial hygiene at the Purdue University School of Health

Sciences in West Lafayette, Ind., and a member of an Environmental

Protection Agency advisory panel on indoor air quality.

" That's not to say there aren't symptoms that you can't get from exposure to

the kind of very high levels of mold that you might see in a poultry

processing plant or grain silo, " he said.

Prompt repairs of leaks and cleanup with soap and bleach solutions can end

most problems, experts said.

Yet the mere threat of a mold problem can jeopardize home sales, drive up

insurance costs and force building owners into costly - and sometimes

needless - tests and cleanups, according to the Insurance Information

Institute. The institute, a national lobbying and public relations agency

for the insurance industry, has estimated that mold claims in the United

States cost $1.2 billion in 2001.

Of increasing concern

The growing attention to mold has had an impact in Delaware.

" We have started this past year having some classes in toxic mold, and

having some of the real experts in the area talk about different testing

procedures, " said Gene Millman Jr., president-elect of the New Castle County

Board of Realtors. " It's a topic that has been brought to the forefront by

the buying public. "

However, Millman said he was unaware of any settlements handled by his

agency that have been derailed by mold.

Mold concerns account for about 100 inquiries a year to the state's indoor

air quality health unit.

" It's the leading issue for that program " said Heidi Truschel-Light, public

health spokeswoman. " The questions span the gamut. "

She said the Elsmere apartment case was the worst ever reported to the

state.

But Philadelphia-based attorney F. Schleicher, who represents the

owners of the complex, said during a Chancery Court hearing last week that

officials overreacted to conditions in the buildings. " It's a serious

situation that needs to be dealt with, but there is no emergency, "

Schleicher testified.

Elsemere officials said the company that owns the complex boarded up

apartments damaged by a flood in 1989, making the units fertile ground for

molds that eventually covered the walls. An estimated 650 tenants from 38

buildings were ordered to vacate last week when inspectors declared the

conditions a health threat.

In the lawsuit that argued before Delaware's Supreme Court,

A. Stroot, a tenant of the Haverford Apartment near Stanton, complained

about leaks and molds for more than a year without satisfaction, according

to court records. Asthma attacks forced her to emergency rooms seven times

during that period.

The climax came May 16, 1994, according to the Supreme Court's May 2001

decision that upheld Stroot's $1 million injury award : " Stroot's bathroom

ceiling collapsed and water from the ceiling flooded her bathroom floor. The

drywall debris and the exposed ceiling area were covered with black, green,

orange and white mold. According to Stroot, the room was filled with a

strong, nauseating odor. ... "

Much of the current national debate over mold has roots in attempts to link

mold exposure to the deaths of several babies hospitalized with bleeding

lungs in Cleveland in 1993 and 1994. One investigation by the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention found a possible connection between the

deaths and exposure to stachybotrys mold. Follow up studies were unable to

make the connection, and a review later found insufficient evidence even for

the initial, weak link.

The CDC subsequently reported it had " insufficient evidence " to blame the

deaths on molds. In a statement released in July, a top CDC official said,

" We do not know whether molds cause other adverse health effects, such as

pulmonary hemorrhage, memory loss or lethargy. We also do not know if the

occurrence of mold-related illnesses is increasing. "

Another CDC report, due this month, also found little to support alleged

links between molds and illnesses on a North Dakota Indian reservation.

Exploiting fears

Regardless of these findings by health officials, some law firms today

publish advertisements and maintain Web sites highlighting claims about

" toxic " mold risks and soliciting clients. News accounts, Ropeik said,

continue to raise awareness of the issue while also cultivating fears about

unsubstantiated hazards.

" There are risks to that fear, " Ropeik said. " In our litigious society,

those overreactions can be preyed upon not just by attorneys but by

overzealous journalists and overzealous indoor air quality cleaner-upper

companies. "

No detailed standards exist for indoor mold concentrations on surfaces or in

the air, and the industry operates largely without clear regulation of

testing and cleanup operators.

In Delaware, a single test for surface mold on a 4-inch square area can cost

$100, in addition to $40 to $50 hourly rates for technicians and management

expenses. Air quality tests can run into the hundreds or thousands of

dollars, with uncertain reliability and results.

" Some people do a good job of growing or counting these organisms, and some

people don't, " said Dr. Robins, a physician and professor of

environmental health sciences at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.

" There are no published levels of what's supposed to be hazardous or not

hazardous. All you can do is look to see if levels are much higher than

averages, that's the best we have to go on, " Robins said. " You have a big

industry and a lot of people making a lot of money whether or not they know

how to interpret the results or give any sound advice. "

A. , president and owner of Middletown-based Environmental Testing

Inc., said guidelines are available despite the lack of regulations,

including from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Training

and certification programs also are on the increase.

" It is an evolving field and more is being learned about cause and effect, "

said , who formed his company in 1988. " It's something that a lot of

people are concerned about. Everyone has a home and every home is

susceptible to water leaks. This is something that can affect everyone, but

there shouldn't be undue or unreasonable concern. "

said his company gets " quite a few requests " for testing. But company

officials sometimes suggest a quicker and cheaper solution.

" I may actually try and talk them into fixing the problem first, spending

their money on addressing what they know is a problem, " said. " People

need to be educated and understand the relationship, why mold occurs and the

fact that you need to keep your house in good shape and minimize water

damage. You don't want to let things go. "

Robins said he thinks some of the mold problems are caused by changes in

construction practices and public health in recent decades.

Construction of better-insulated, " tighter " homes can slow the natural

replacement of spore-laden air with fresh air. At the same time, a

well-documented global increase in asthma has made more people sensitive to

bad indoor air of all types.

" There are real, established problems with mold overgrowth that can affect a

substantial part of the population and at least questions about other

effects, " Robins said. " It's something you want to pay attention to. You

have to ask 'would I want my child in this situation?' "

Failure to act can be costly, as it was in the Delaware lawsuit and again a

few months later, when a Texas jury agreed to a $32 million mold damage

claim.

" It was the failure of the maintenance that helped create the mold problem.

There was testimony that leaks would not be fixed again and again, " ,

the Delaware lawyer, said.

Insurance Information Institute president Gordon told a

congressional panel in July that mold claims had added about $850 million to

insurance costs in Texas in the last two years.

" Now are there possible risks in mold that are serious? Yes, "

testified. " Certain individuals may be more susceptible to certain health

consequences, but by no means are all Americans at risk from the mold that

has always been there. They can't be more at risk than they were in 1999. "

Reach Jeff Montgomery at 678-4277 or jmontgomery@....

The News Journal/ROBERT CRAIG

Elsmere Senior Code Enforcement officer Ellis Blomquist (left), Ken Belmont

of the Division of Public Health (center) and Elsmere Public Works Director

Joe Cherneski leave a Fenwick Park building Thursday.

The News Journal/GINGER WALL

Red Cross volunteer andra Batres answers concerns from Fenwick Park

residents Thursday during a meeting in Elsmere. Elsmere officials condemned

38 buildings at the complex, citing the growing mold as a potential health

hazard and displacing about 650 residents.

DNREC

Mold covers the wall and ceiling in the basement of a Fenwick Park apartment

building. Officials say the buildings' owners boarded up apartments after a

flood in 1989, which provided appropriate conditions for the mold to grow.

MOLD

Stachybotrys chartarum (astra): A relatively uncommon greenish black mold

able to grow on material with a high cellulose and low nitrogen content,

such as fiberboard, gypsum board, paper, dust and lint. Requires constant

moisture for growth. Initially linked to deaths of children in Cleveland,

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention later reported insufficient

evidence of a link.

Aspergillus fumigatus: A very common mold found in soil, decomposing plants,

household dust, food and water. Heavy spore exposure may cause illness among

those with respiratory problems or weakened immune systems.

Penicillium: A name for a variety of molds common to indoor areas even in

clean homes.

(Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Washington State

Department of Health)

R E C E N T A R T I C L E S

10/22/2002

.. Elsmere apartment complex has history of flooding

10/18/2002

.. Elsmere council gets report on evacuations

10/16/2002

.. No inspection records found for Elsmere apartments

10/15/2002

.. Elsmere evacuation evokes anger, tears

10/14/2002

.. Elsmere evacuees pack up, move on

10/13/2002

.. Researchers say molds are misunderstood

.. Pets from Elsmere apartments need shelter

10/12/2002

.. Investigators seize apartment papers

10/11/2002

.. Elsmere apartment condemnations upheld

.. Neighbors, friends say goodbye

10/10/2002

.. More must leave Elsmere apartments

.. Anguished residents wonder where they'll go

10/09/2002

.. Elsmere crisis strands 150

.. Residents endure a day of anger, frustration

.. Problem festered since 1989

10/08/2002

.. Apartment condemnations may leave 700 homeless in Elsmere

Reach Jeff Montgomery at 678-4277 or jmontgomery@....