Mould turns up at Scugog museum

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Mould turns up at Scugog museum

Tests confirm fungus in basement of schoolhouse building; Scugog's

waiting for word on how to clean up infestation

Tue May 27, 2008

Newsdurhamregion.com - Durham,Ontario,Canada*

By Hall

http://newsdurhamregion.com/news/scugog/article/99503

SCUGOG ISLAND -- A series of tests have confirmed the presence of

mould in a key building at the Scugog Shores Museum site.

According to Sellars, an examination of the museum schoolhouse

was conducted on May 13 when a company was hired to carry out

material and air-quality tests after concerns were raised about the

possibility of mould in the building's basement.

That company, acknowledged Mr. Sellars, the Township's director of

parks, recreation and culture, has " confirmed we do have mould " in

a " localized " area in the basement of the schoolhouse.

Tests have shown the mould to be non-toxic, he said.

Prior to the testing, staff working out of the schoolhouse were

relocated to the Scugog Arena and one museum building still remains

closed. The museum grounds, however, remain open for tours on

weekends as part-time staff continue to work on-site at the Head

Church building.

" No one is allowed in (the schoolhouse), " said the director. " As a

precaution, we felt we would err on the side of caution and close it

until we could assess the situation and take remedial action. "

The municipality has contacted an environmental restoration company

to provide the Township with a plan on how to deal with the mould

and is currently waiting for a report on the matter, said the

director. That information is expected by next week at the latest.

The mould is located along the bottom of a north wall in a basement

storage room, no more than two feet off the ground, explained Mr.

Sellars. It's in the same area as a sump-pump, he added, which could

have played a role in the mould infestation.

Another factor could be the age of the building, which was built on

a stone foundation in the late 1800s, said the director.

While he couldn't pinpoint an exact type of mould identified in the

initial report, Mr. Sellars stressed that of the three possible

levels of contamination, the museum situation ranks as a Level 2.

That means, he explained, the contamination level is above " minor " .

Level 3 is the most severe; that's the type of infestation the

municipality dealt with in 2006 when mould was discovered amongst

the newer Pad 2 at the Scugog Arena. It cost the Township about

$400,000 to deal with that situation.

As for any estimate on costs for the museum clean-up, Mr. Sellars

declined to guess but said the most likely scenario would see some

drywall and carpeting removed as part of the remediation process.

Talk of shutting down the schoolhouse is " premature, " he stressed.

" Once we get the work completed, it'll be work as usual, " said the

director.

He added that a report on the matter is expected to come before

council in the near future.

The schoolhouse is used as the main administrative building at the

Scugog Island heritage site. The archives, containing historically

important documents and photographs, are located in the basement of

the building, as are staff offices.