Mold Likely to Complicate Rebuilding After Katrina Grrrrrrrr

[Guest guest]

September 22, 2005 latimes.com

GULF COAST BESIEGED

Mold Likely to Complicate Rebuilding After Katrina

By Rosie Mestel, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-

mold22sep22,1,3901394.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

The Gulf Coast is facing a potential financial and legal morass over

mold blooming inside storm-damaged buildings, according to

scientists, contractors and insurance experts.

Mold has grown thickly on wet walls, rugs and furniture of thousands

of buildings — and the problem will worsen as flood waters recede.

Restoration workers are pouring into the Gulf Coast.

" There's an Oklahoma land stampede down there, " said Shane, a

manager for Environmental Microbiology Laboratory Inc. in Chicago.

Some molds cause structural problems such as dry rot, requiring the

replacement of wood. The biggest problem, however, involves the

widespread, but unsubstantiated, contentions that some molds can

cause serious health problems.

" There's a real industry being created around the mold problem —

lawyers who've written about it call it 'black gold.' They see it as

the next great asbestos, " said Dr. Dorsett , clinical professor

of medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. " It is the

fear factor. You mention the word 'mold' and people are afraid. "

Mold is a general term for a group of thousands of different fungi,

including Penicillium, original source of the antibiotic penicillin,

and Stachybotrys chartarum, a black fungus with a fearsome

reputation for its supposed effects on people's health.

Mold spores are always in the air, but they only germinate when

there is enough warmth and moisture, such as from burst water pipes,

condensation, storm damage or flooding.

Feeding on the cellulose in wall board, ceiling tiles and wood, they

grow into long microscopic strands, spawning millions of new spores

that people can inhale.

Publicity about Stachybotrys has created an industry for

removing " toxic black mold. "

In extreme cases, the presence of the mold has caused people to

abandon their homes and remove the earth beneath them because of

their fear of sickness.

The presence of Stachybotrys has resulted in multimillion-dollar

judgments against insurers and contractors.

Scientists say that molds can cause some health problems. In 2004, a

report from the National Academy of Sciences concluded that indoor

mold can exacerbate symptoms such as upper respiratory irritation,

coughing and wheezing in people with asthma.

In rare cases, it can cause a flu-like immune disorder known as

hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

Damp environments often found with mold may also cause shortness of

breath, lower respiratory illness in healthy children and the

development of asthma in people who are prone to it.

The report, however, found no connection between molds and a range

of serious conditions, including chronic fatigue, cancer, bleeding

of the lungs, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, memory loss and learning

disabilities.

Stachybotrys and some other molds do produce toxins, called

mycotoxins, that are dangerous to animals and people if eaten.

But " you can't get enough mycotoxin inside if you're breathing the

spores, " said Bruce Kelman, a board certified toxicologist with

Veritox Inc., a toxicology consulting company.

The problem facing homeowners, insurers and contractors is that

there are virtually no health standards on mold decontamination and

very little data on what is necessary to get spore numbers down to

safe levels.

Because getting rid of mold is expensive, many houses that are still

structurally sound may be razed, experts predicted. The problem will

be exacerbated by the fact that flood and mold damage is generally

not covered by standard home insurance.

[Guest guest]

But " you can't get enough mycotoxin inside if you're breathing the

spores, " said Bruce Kelman, a board certified toxicologist with

Veritox Inc., a toxicology consulting company.

This person, Bruce Kelman should ring a bell with everyone! Formally

GlobalTox now Veritox that filed suit against one of our own. Just

goes to show the media will listen and print just about anything.

--- In , " tigerpaw2c " <tigerpaw2c@y...>

wrote:

> September 22, 2005 latimes.com

>

> GULF COAST BESIEGED

> Mold Likely to Complicate Rebuilding After Katrina

> By Rosie Mestel, Times Staff Writer

>

>

> http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-

> mold22sep22,1,3901394.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

>

> The Gulf Coast is facing a potential financial and legal morass

over

> mold blooming inside storm-damaged buildings, according to

> scientists, contractors and insurance experts.

>

> Mold has grown thickly on wet walls, rugs and furniture of

thousands

> of buildings — and the problem will worsen as flood waters recede.

>

>

> Restoration workers are pouring into the Gulf Coast.

>

> " There's an Oklahoma land stampede down there, " said Shane, a

> manager for Environmental Microbiology Laboratory Inc. in Chicago.

>

> Some molds cause structural problems such as dry rot, requiring

the

> replacement of wood. The biggest problem, however, involves the

> widespread, but unsubstantiated, contentions that some molds can

> cause serious health problems.

>

> " There's a real industry being created around the mold problem —

> lawyers who've written about it call it 'black gold.' They see it

as

> the next great asbestos, " said Dr. Dorsett , clinical

professor

> of medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. " It is the

> fear factor. You mention the word 'mold' and people are afraid. "

>

> Mold is a general term for a group of thousands of different

fungi,

> including Penicillium, original source of the antibiotic

penicillin,

> and Stachybotrys chartarum, a black fungus with a fearsome

> reputation for its supposed effects on people's health.

>

> Mold spores are always in the air, but they only germinate when

> there is enough warmth and moisture, such as from burst water

pipes,

> condensation, storm damage or flooding.

>

> Feeding on the cellulose in wall board, ceiling tiles and wood,

they

> grow into long microscopic strands, spawning millions of new

spores

> that people can inhale.

>

> Publicity about Stachybotrys has created an industry for

> removing " toxic black mold. "

>

> In extreme cases, the presence of the mold has caused people to

> abandon their homes and remove the earth beneath them because of

> their fear of sickness.

>

> The presence of Stachybotrys has resulted in multimillion-dollar

> judgments against insurers and contractors.

>

> Scientists say that molds can cause some health problems. In 2004,

a

> report from the National Academy of Sciences concluded that indoor

> mold can exacerbate symptoms such as upper respiratory irritation,

> coughing and wheezing in people with asthma.

>

> In rare cases, it can cause a flu-like immune disorder known as

> hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

>

> Damp environments often found with mold may also cause shortness

of

> breath, lower respiratory illness in healthy children and the

> development of asthma in people who are prone to it.

>

> The report, however, found no connection between molds and a range

> of serious conditions, including chronic fatigue, cancer, bleeding

> of the lungs, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, memory loss and

learning

> disabilities.

>

> Stachybotrys and some other molds do produce toxins, called

> mycotoxins, that are dangerous to animals and people if eaten.

>

> But " you can't get enough mycotoxin inside if you're breathing the

> spores, " said Bruce Kelman, a board certified toxicologist with

> Veritox Inc., a toxicology consulting company.

>

> The problem facing homeowners, insurers and contractors is that

> there are virtually no health standards on mold decontamination

and

> very little data on what is necessary to get spore numbers down to

> safe levels.

>

> Because getting rid of mold is expensive, many houses that are

still

> structurally sound may be razed, experts predicted. The problem

will

> be exacerbated by the fact that flood and mold damage is generally

> not covered by standard home insurance.