Mould returns to school that was cleaned recently

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Mould returns to school that was cleaned recently; TEACHERS UNION,

PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD AT ODDS OVER TESTING

Sarnia Observer - Sarnia,ON,Canada

LINDSEY COAD

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Parents and teachers are asking for more invasive testing after

mould resurfaced at a recently-cleaned Sarnia school. Low

concentrations of several moulds were found in Lansdowne Public

School's port-a-pac following a cleanup over the March break, said

Gayle Stucke, education director at the Lambton Kent District School

Board.

" There was one single spore of this more serious mould,

stachybotrys, " Stucke said, referring to two portable classrooms.

The March test was done during a heavy rain and was inconsistent

with testing done a week prior, she said.

Consultants don't believe the spores present a safety concern but

are retesting, Stucke said, adding that a second board-hired

consultant will test Thursday at the request of parents.

She said staff have asked to teach elsewhere in the school during

the retesting.

Trish was told the drywall in her son's Grade 3 portable had

been taken down and rebuilt over the break. Now he's in the gym for

class.

" If it was safe, why is it unsafe a week later? We're getting really

frustrated.

"

She supports a call by the Elementary Teachers' Federation of

Ontario for a mutually agreed upon third party tester to use thermal

imaging versus air quality tests.

Union first vice-president Clegg said the abatement process

was rushed through during the break and left a significant risk.

" It's not simply a matter of fixing it as quickly as you can. The

issue is getting it done right. That's the same portable that had

the abatement done a year ago earlier. "

Nine schools in the district have visible mould, according to tests

done by the board last year. Students at five schools have been

relocated recently because of mould concerns.

A recent ETFO ad stated that exposure to elevated levels of black

mould, or stachybotrys, could potentially cause cancer, learning

difficulties and death.

" We got that from several different medical studies. This is

information that is available to the public. There's been a

significant amount of work done in the United States around it, "

Clegg said when asked about sources.

ETFO cited the Centre for Integrative Toxicology at Michigan State

University, the University of Connecticut Health Center and Toronto

Public Health as sources for the ad.

Stucke said that's " misinformation " according to the board's best

advice from Lambton County's health unit and the Ministry of

Labour. " All of those things would say mould does not cause

illness. "

She acknowledged that high levels of mould would aggravate allergies

or existing symptoms such as respiratory problems, headaches and

rash.

" I'm not minimizing it. It's important that we have safe, healthy

learning environments for our kids and our staff. To have a rash,

headaches or breathing issues, aggravated by mould, is something we

won't accept and we'll remediate, which we've done. "

Stucke said the board's Ministry of Labour resources indicate

that " if you were to search as avidly as ETFO provincial is

directing teachers to do, mould would be found in any school in the

province and most every home.

" I believe this media campaign is being driven by a political agenda

of ETFO at the provincial level. "

Clegg said, " The only agenda we have is the safety and well-being of

students and teachers in the schools in which they spend most of

their day. It's that simple. "

Meanwhile, Central's port-a-pac will soon be replaced with a

year-old unit after unacceptable mould levels were discovered in a

storage room and students were relocated as a precaution.

At Tecumseh in Chatham, Jodi Mandeno is teaching her Grade 2s at an

alternate location after she developed hives from high penicillium

and aspergillus mould spore counts in her regular classroom.

She said the board has responded co-operatively by relocating

students and upgrading the ventilation system. " My class and I won't

be going back until the spore count is safe, " she said.