Mold, mildew fill air in schools 3/15/98

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Mold, mildew fill air in schools

by TONY BARTELME

3/15/98

Section SP Edition SU B & W staff photos by Cureton: At Mt. Zion

Elementary, you can smell the carpets before you see them - they are

constantly soaked by water leaking through the building's walls and roof.

The school is trying to tear out all its carpet, preferring concrete floor;

At Island High, it's hard to keep the filters in air purifiers clean;

Even though maintenance workers change the air conditioning filters

regularly, a black soot keeps St. High School's cafeteria stained

black. SE:Where our children learn

We are poisoning our children.

Every school day, we send many of our kids into schools stinking of mold,

exposing them to contaminants every bit as dangerous as toxic chemicals or

radiation.

Research shows that mold can cause allergic reactions similar to hay fever.

It can trigger asthma, skin problems, fatigue, headaches, memory and verbal

problems, malaise, depression, nausea. Certain strains are so virulent that

they've killed infants.

ton County's schools are especially prone to mold because of

inadequate maintenance, Hurricane Hugo and the Lowcountry's sweatbox

climate, according to architects, doctors and experts in indoor air quality.

You can see the evidence on the black ceiling tiles and smelly carpets at

North ton High School, on the walls at River Elementary School

and in the ducts and air conditioning systems at Laing Middle School.

Across the district, parents report that their children are sneezing,

wheezing and generally miserable because of bad indoor air.

Last summer, parents, teachers and technicians toured all 76 of the county's

schools and wrote comments on special survey forms. El-ma Cook's plea was

typical. ``Please fix up the school,'' she wrote of River Elementary

School. ``I feel that it is making our children sick!!!''

Conditions in some schools were so bad they made a few parents ill during

the tours.

``The quality of the air is very poor,'' wrote Ewa Belcher after visiting

Laing Middle School.

``The odor gave me a headache after being in the school just for 1-1/2 hours

of this survey.''

Parents and teachers pointed out that ventilation systems failed to keep

moisture levels down, that filters never seemed to be changed. They said

moldy and worn carpets were health hazards and should be replaced with tiles

or other hard floors. ``The air quality in this school is awful,'' wrote

Stite-ly at Alice Birney Middle School. ``In the past, I have had many

bouts with sinusitis during the school year, never during extended

vacations.'' The air gets so bad, she said, ``that during faculty meetings

in the band room, I always leave with sinus problems.''

Mold is nothing to sneeze at.

Mold and mildew are interchangeable names for strains of tiny fungi, many of

which thrive in humid areas like the Lowcountry.

Mold strains produce spores that release aldehydes, ketones and other

potentially toxic chemicals called ``mycotoxins.'' These chemicals are

responsible for the musty odor. Mold spores are tiny - five million fit on

the head of a pin - and are easily inhaled.

The EPA says mold, dust mites and other biological air pollutants can cause

infections and harm peo-ple's immune systems, making them more susceptible

to diseases and other chemical poisons. With their young lungs and immune

systems, children are six times more vulnerable to air quality problems than

adults, according to researchers at the University of California at Irvine.

Three years ago, in fact, doctors in Cleveland fingeredStachybotrys atramold

in the deaths of nine babies. Nearly all lived in poorly maintained homes

with severe water damage.

Some researchers also say mold, dust mites and other indoor air contaminants

cause serious behavior problems.

In her book about sick schools, ``Is This Your Child's World?'', New York

pediatrician Doris Rapp cites numerous cases in which children became

nervous, fatigued, distracted and hostile after being exposed to chemicals

or mold. Children with these behavior problems sometimes are misdiagnosed

with attention deficit disorder.

Mold isn't the only air quality issue in schools.

Last month at Oakland Elementary, a state health inspector found that gas

fumes from the boiler room could be pulled into a classroom because an air

conditioner wasn't properly installed. ``This is not a safe or healthful

situation,'' the inspector wrote in a report.

Cleaning supplies and pesticides can also trigger health problems, according

to Allan Lieber-man, a North ton physician who treats environmental

illnesses. One teacher told him that after a janitor used diesel fuel to

clean floors, students became violent and sick.

``Most people expect children to get sick. They don't realize that many are

being made sick,'' Lieberman said.

Hurricane Hugo didn't help.

``A lot of roofs got blown off, and we introduced a lot of water into the

schools,'' said Elliott Constantine, a local architect.

Some local doctors report that allergies and cases of asthma increased

dramatically after the storm.

Making matters worse: Cash-strapped maintenance crews haven't properly

cleaned many air conditioning filters and ducts.

Last summer, The Post and Courier hired a consultant to check the

ventilation system at St. s Elementary. Inspectors found ducts caked

with years of mold and grime. ``The ducts were really terrible. They rate an

F,'' one inspector said. The consultant inspected two other schools and

found similar conditions.

Indeed, district officials have known that bad indoor air is a serious

problem for some time.

Five years ago, the District 20 Constituent Board reported that leaky roofs,

bad air conditioners caused mold to grow to hazardous levels.

``Children and teachers with asthma suffer particularly, but mold spores can

worsen sinus problems, allergies and cause hypersensitivity pneumonitis,''

their report said. ``Sick children don't learn well, and sick teachers don't

teach well. Absent teachers not only cost the county money for substitutes,

but by their absence affect the quality and quantity of education in the

classroom.''

Until recently, though, district officials had done little or nothing to

solve the issue.

Some say, however, that the price of ignoring air quality problems are

expensive lawsuits.

``Indoor air quality is becoming one of the top ten opportunities for

lawyers,'' said Lee Capell of Environmental Studies and Engineering Inc., an

air quality consultant in Columbia.

``Unfortunately, it takes an incident, such as someone being sent to the

hospital, or a lawsuit, before anyone does anything.

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