Once again we need YOUR help.( Your Stories)

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends,

A huge thing that everyone can do to help us raise awareness of the

devastating effects of exposure to mold would be to send your story

to the Boston City Council to read and include in the official

testimony of the hearing. Stories can be sent to

Lincoln.@...

and cc me at

MLMJ75@...

Send ASAP as the hearing is December 9th!

We have people coming from all over the country to attend the

hearing! If you can come, if you live close by, please consider

attending.

Congressman Conyers Jr. of Michigan, the author of HR1268 " The

US Toxic Mold Safety and Protect Act " will be attending the hearing

which is huge and a first for this country.

Every US Representative in New England (as well as others), every US

Senator, every major media outlet countrywide has been contacted

about this hearing.

YOUR STORIES (hopefully several cartons full) of stories will make a

big impact!

All of this activity came out of our years of work on the issue of

mold exposure and the work we all did during Mold Awareness Week in

Washington DC in September! People really can make a difference.

As we look forward to the Boston City Council hearing on December

9th, I wanted to share with you a very interesting and inspiring

fact I learned from Stutman, President of the Boston

Teachers Union in his e-Bulletin to Boston's teachers.

In alerting the teachers that the City of Boston's Public Health

Commission just released a long awaited environmental study of all

131 schools in the system, wished to share a little piece of

trivia.

" In reading the Public Health Commission's page, you'll find that

Boston had the nation's first health department, founded in 1799. "

You will also find out That Revere served as Boston's first

health officer.

Where else then would we ever find a better place to launch a

nationwide push for HR1268?

The Mold Bill is coming! The Mold Bill is coming!

Mulvey son

Boston City Council Hearing on Mold

For Immediate Release

Boston City Councillor Maura A. Hennigan would like to inform the

public that a Boston City Council hearing will be held to address

the serious public health threat of mold and poor indoor air

quality, and to learn what Boston can do, as a city, a state and a

region to educate the public and prevent further contamination.

The date of the hearing is Thursday evening, December 9, 2004 at The

Boston Teachers Union Hall, 180 Mount Vernon Street, Dorchester, MA

at 6pm.

This past June, Congressman Conyers Jr. (D-Michigan), 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.

Congressman Conyers, who is sponsoring The U.S. Toxic Mold Safety

and Protection Act, HR1268 will testify at the Boston hearing. This

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. In addition, an Emergency Appropriation Bill is included to

help schools remediate contaminated buildings and improve air

quality.

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. 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. " 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.

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: CDC (Center for

Disease Control), EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), FEMA

(Federal Emergency Management Agency), ASHRAE (American Society of

Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers), ANSI

(American National Standards Institute), NIOSH (National Institute

for Occupational Health and Safety), OSHA (Occupational Health and

Safety Administration), AIHA (American Industrial Hygiene

Association), WHO (World Health Organization), AMA (American Medical

Association), American Lung Association, U.S. Surgeon General,

American Academy of Pediatrics, ACGIH (American Conference of

Governmental Industrial Hygienists), U.S. Army, USDA (US Drug

Administration), Massachusetts Nurses Association, American Academy

of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, American Agricultural

Association, MassCosh (Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational

Safety and Health), Boston Urban Asthma Coalition, National Academy

of Sciences, IAQA (Indoor Air Quality Association), Silent Spring,

Building Environment and Thermal Envelope Council, HUD (Housing and

Urban Development), Indoor Environmental Standards Organization,

Sheet Metal Workers Union, American Federation of Teachers, and

Indian Health Service, and the Massachusetts Teachers Association.

Testimony is expected from; Congressman Conyers, physicians

currently treating mold related illness, teachers, including a group

from California, Environmental groups, Mold Advocacy groups,

research scientists specializing in Occupational and Environmental

Medicine, nurses, and many others. The general public is cordially

invited to attend.

For directions, please visit

http://www.btu.org/topnavbar/directions.html

For further information, contact

Boston City Councillor Maura Hennigan 617-635-4217

Mulvey son 617-522-1372

978-433-0450

Ginny Tomasini Lane 617-268-6044

Boston City Council

Notice of Public Hearing

November 24, 2004

The Boston City Council's Committee on Environment and Historic

Preservation will hold a public hearing on Thursday, December 9,

2004 at 6:00 P.M. at the Boston Teachers Union Hall, 180 Mt. Vernon

Street, Dorchester, Ma 02125.

The subject of the hearing is:

Docket # 1407 - Order for a hearing on 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.

This matter was sponsored by Councillor Hennigan and referred to the

committee on October 20, 2004.

Members of the public are cordially invited to attend and testify.

If you have not testified at a Council hearing before, please arrive

(5) minutes before the call of the hearing to sign up and become

familiar with the hearing format, testimony locations and sound

system. Please bring fifteen (15) copies of any written

documentation you wish to present at the hearing. If you know of

others who may be interested in this hearing, kindly notify them.

Written comments may be made part of the record and available to all

Councilors by sending them by fax or mail to arrive before the

hearing, please use the address below.

For the Committee:

Jerry P. McDermott, Chair

Committee on Environment and Historic Preservation

Mail Address: Docket # 1407 - City Hall, Boston, MA 02201

Fax Number: (617) 635-4203 Attn: Lincoln E. , Docket # 1407

Telephone Number: 635-3043 / E-Mail: Lincoln.@...

Comcast - A-51 / cablecast date: December 10, 2004 @ 10: 00 A.M.

Boston City Council

In City Council

Order of Councillors Maura Hennigan, Chuck , Felix Arroyo,

Yancey, Maureen Feeney, Flaherty, Ross,

Scappiccio, and Tobin

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; AND

WHEREAS: 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; AND

WHEREAS: 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; AND

WHEREAS: 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 contamination.