Carbon dioxide, mold cause concern at Corona del Sol

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December 22, 2007

Carbon dioxide, mold cause concern at Corona del Sol

East Valley Tribune, AZ

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/105018

The Tempe Union High School District is pressing the state to pay

for new heating and air conditioning at one of its schools, saying

malfunctioning equipment, dripping mold and high carbon dioxide

levels could be making people sick.

District studies and consultant reports presented to state officials

last week show that Corona del Sol High School is plagued by smelly

classrooms, mold and high levels of carbon dioxide in the air.

The district wants the state School Facilities Board to pay the $17

million cost of renovations.

The board rejected emergency funding for the project earlier this

year while acknowledging problems including high carbon dioxide

levels.

The Tempe district is now threatening to join a lawsuit against the

state if it doesn't get the money.

School officials have said little about the reports publicly.

Pressed on Thursday, they said they don't believe the buildings make

people sick.

" To be very clear — if there had been things causing our people to

be ill or causing disease or those kinds of things, we wouldn't even

have the school even open, " Tempe Union High School district

Superintendent Steve Adolph said.

Tests done by the state in 2001 showed the air passed muster, but

they were conducted early in the day before students arrived.

Some school workers believe the bad air may be responsible for what

they call a cancer cluster among employees.

" It's a well-known fact that there have been years of concerns at

that school, and we talked about the unhealthy environment every

year, " said Barb , a former Corona special-education teacher

who was diagnosed with a brain tumor this year.

She said she knows of eight other instructors who spent years

teaching at Corona who have had benign brain tumors or other forms

of cancer.

Schapira, a state representative from Tempe and member of the

House K-12 education committee, said Corona's problems were

indicative of a larger issue that legislators need to address.

" The School Facilities Board and the district, neither one has the

resources, apparently, to solve the problem at this time, " Schapira

said.