Mold tests bring good news at courthouse

[Guest guest]

Mold tests bring good news at courthouse

Towanda Daily Review - Towanda,PA*

BY JAMES LOEWENSTEIN

STAFF WRITER

03/27/2008

http://www.thedailyreview.com/site/news.cfm?

newsid=19427966 & BRD=2276 & PAG=461 & dept_id=465049 & rfi=6

TOWANDA -- There is good news from recent tests which were done to

detect if there is airborne mold in the Bradford County Courthouse,

according to the county maintenance director.

The results of the air tests were " very good, " said Kim Corbett,

Bradford County maintenance director.

The amount of mold in the air in the courthouse is so small that it

is not even an issue, he said. The tests showed that the amount of

mold in the air inside the courthouse was even less that the amount

in the air outside, he said.

Corbett and Bradford County Commissioner Mark said that, as

far as they know, no one has gotten sick from mold in the courthouse.

" I don't believe there has been any reported illness " from mold in

the courthouse, said Bradford County Commissioner Doug McLinko.

The testing was done about two weeks ago, after concerns about mold

in the courthouse were expressed by the county's Safety Committee,

Corbett said.

The tests were done " just as a precaution, " McLinko said. " We want

to have a good, safe work environment, " he said.

The commissioners hired a private contractor from the Towanda area,

Bernard Barrett, to perform the tests, Corbett said.

Corbett said that he and Barrett did a walk-through through the

entire courthouse, looking for mold.

Barrett took air quality samples in the Domestic Relations Office,

located in the basement of the courthouse. He also took " swab

samples " of suspected mold in the building.

Barrett then submitted the samples to a certified laboratory, EMLab

P & K of Union, N.J., Corbett said.

The results of those tests were provided to the county on Tuesday,

he said.

Mold was only found in only two locations in the courthouse, both of

which are on the first floor. The amount of mold found in those

locations was small, he said.

Specifically, A small amount of mold was found on the outside of a

plastic nozzle that distributes air-conditioned air from the ceiling

in the Domestic Relations Office, he said.

The other location where mold was found was above a drop ceiling in

the Assessment Office, he said.

The mold at those locations was removed and killed on Wednesday

using bleach, Corbett said.

Based on the test results, the mold had formed in underground,

relatively damp locations in the courthouse, he said.

There have been water leaks in the past in the courthouse, including

an existing leak which allows water to seep into the Probation

Department in the area of a window, he said.

However, none of the mold was forming in areas where there had been

leaks, he said.

The types of mold detected in tests " are all naturally occurring

mold, " Corbett said.

The types of mold found in the courthouse using the swab tests and

air samples were clado sporium, basidio spores, and

Penicillium/aspergillus types, Corbett said.