MD Awareness Week and School Mold article

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From The Fairfield Minuteman, Fairfield, CT, USA

Concerns about mold bring local residents to Washington

By: Ciarmiello , Staff Reporter 10/14/2004 Over a

year ago, Easton's June Chiaia-Logie sat at a state legislature hearing on

indoor air quality, listening to horror stories of students who believed they

had suffered severe health problems because of mold in their schools, when she

made a decision about her own ailing children.

" I knew when I walked out of that building that my children weren't going to

get that bad, " said Chiaia-Logie, who immediately withdrew her two

youngsters from Staples Elementary School, the building that she

suspected had

caused their illnesses.

Today, Connecticut has indoor air quality legislation in place, and

Chiaia-Logie says her children are healthy again. But she and fellow members of

the

Connecticut Foundation for Environmentally Safe Schools (ConnFESS), a local

group formerly known as the Canary Committee, are continuing to try to help

others avoid the problems that her children and others throughout the country

have experienced. Last month, she and a handful of local members of the group

traveled to Washington, D.C., for a congressional briefing and national press

conference about a bill designed to prevent, and deal with the effects of

mold.

" People are sick. People are really getting sick, " Chiaia-Logie said,

explaining that indoor air quality-related illnesses are a problem throughout

the

country. " We need to get the government to recognize the severity and

magnitude of the problem ... and we really need to put the funding together to

fix

it. "

Despite those concerns, ConnFESS has also acknowledged bright spots

regarding indoor air quality issues. On Oct. 20, the group will issue its 2004

Indoor

Air Quality Hero Awards, with Easton residents Beverlee Dacey and

Czernik, former Easton resident Sheila Ozalis, and Fairfield resident

Kupchick being honored. Dacey, Czernik, and Ozalis' work on Easton School

Building Committee 2003 led to the discovery and cleanup of a variety of molds

at

Staples, according to a ConnFESS release, as well as the exposure and

arrest of Shongar, a convicted felon charged with spraying a mystery

agent in the school after the Board of Education hired him to improve Staples'

air quality.

Chiaia-Logie called Dacey, Czernik, and Ozalis " three soldiers to whom our

children, teachers, staff and parents are indebted for their relentless

commitment and dedication to remediating and cleaning up mold in our school.

....

Their fight continues today, and our children are the safer for it. "

Kupchick, a former McKinley parent and current Fairfield Board of Education

member, is being honored for her efforts to make sure that the old McKinley

building was not reopened following its mold crisis.

Also being honored is Connecticut Attorney General Blumenthal, who

was chosen because of his work on a report detailing elevated asbestos levels

in the Brookfield school district.

Lobbying in the Capitol

The proposed federal legislation that brought the ConnFESS members to

Washington was The United States Toxic Mold Safety and Protection Act,

developed by

U.S. Rep. Conyers (D-Mich.). Conyers' proposal calls for federal

agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and Centers for Disease

Control to perform more research on mold and its health effects. It would also

authorize grants for some types of mold cleanups, and establish a " National

Toxic

Mold Insurance Program " to protect homeowners from catastrophic mold-related

losses, because many insurers do not provide adequate mold coverage.

" I do feel it was important for us to go down there and be the voice for the

schools, " ConnFESS President len Lawson, a former McKinley Elementary

School teacher, said. " We think it really needs to be passed. "

Lawson, who spoke at the Congressional briefing regarding Conyers' bill,

left her job at McKinley School and went on medical leave in 1998 due to severe

chronic health problems that her doctor later linked to mold found in the

building. The school was later demolished and rebuilt. During the press

conference on the bill, U.S. Rep. DeLauro (D-Conn.) told the story of how

Lawson's 23-year teaching career came to an end. " I was very touched when she

shared my story and impressed by her sincerity and commitment to addressing

this

important public health issue, " Lawson said, adding that ConnFESS is urging

other Connecticut lawmakers to support the bill.

U.S. Rep. Shays (R-4), one of the bill's co-sponsors, said

people need to be protected from the dangers of mold. The bill " will go a long

way

to help keep kids healthy by mandating mold inspection, creating standards,

and offering relief for mold victims, " Shays said in a statement last week.

Conyers' bill has also gained celebrity support, as Bianca Jagger, former

wife of rock legend Mick Jagger, was in Washington during the Congressional

briefing to back the legislation. Bianca Jagger has been unable to live in her

New York apartment for two years because of mold contamination that has

impacted her health, according to ConnFESS information.

ConnFESS began as " The Canary Committee, " a grassroots political action

group of citizens, parents, educators, environmentalists, and health

professionals from across the state. Named after the birds that coal miners

used to send

into mines to see if there was enough air for miners to breathe, the group

has lobbied hard for mold-related legislation, and had its first major success

in July 2003, when the state enacted a law regarding air quality in schools.

Over a year after that bill was signed into law, Lawson expressed concern

over how it has been used. " I have very serious concerns about the

implementation of the bill, and we plan to address these in the next

[legislative]

session. "

Chiaia-Logie said more funding is now needed at local, state, and federal

levels to help with air quality problems. " We have to get the funds. That's the

biggest message, " she said. " We need governmental help. "