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Older buildings get new lead-safety rules
Contractors working on homes, schools and childcare facilities built before 1978, when U.S. regulators banned lead paint, must take extra precautions.
By Michelle Hofmann
May 17, 2010
Finding someone to replace windows just got a little more challenging because of tough new lead-safety requirements for contractors working on older homes.
The Environmental Protection Agency's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, which kicked in last month, requires additional safeguards by contractors working on homes, schools and childcare facilities built before U.S. regulators banned lead paint in 1978. The intention is to reduce the harm from lead for contractors and their workers as well as for the people who live, work or attend school in older structures.
But with the building industry already hit hard by the recession, consumers will end up paying the price for the new protection, some contractors contend.
"The cost is in the procedures and the labor hours to meet the requirements, so I am going to have to do a few jobs before I know the real costs," said Daryl Vidal, owner of California Maintenance Repair Services in Los Angeles. "But I am probably looking at adding about $1,000 to my next job to pay for plastic suits and masks."
EPA spokesman Dale Kemery said the agency estimated the average cost to be $8 to $167 for most types of jobs, attributing the wide range to the fact that many contractors already were following some lead-safe practices.
Lead is toxic if breathed in or swallowed and is considered particularly dangerous for children. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it can cause learning disabilities, behavioral problems, brain and kidney damage and, at high levels, seizures, coma and death.
About 38 million U.S. homes contain lead paint, which can be disturbed by even small renovations, the Department of Housing and Urban Development says.
The EPA rule is an extension of Cal/OSHA rules that expanded the 1979 federal employer lead standards to California's construction industry in 1993, said John Gura, president of HomeSafe Environmental Inc., a Loma Linda inspection service that offers lead-paint safety training classes.
"This is something you are supposed to have been doing already in many cases. And if you haven't, well, then it is time to catch up," Gura said.
The EPA rule calls for lead-dust containment, thorough cleanup, documentation, consumer education and completion of an EPA-accredited course on lead-safe work practices. It does not apply to housing for the elderly or people with disabilities unless a child under age 6 lives in the house. Also exempted are "zero-bedroom dwellings" — studio apartments and the like.
Gura said his firm had trained 1,456 remodelers since November and is booked through June.
"We have been trying to get the word out, but not a week goes by that I don't meet someone who is not aware of the rule," said Holly Schroeder, executive officer of the L.A.-Ventura County chapter of the Building Industry Assn.
With fines of up to $37,500 a day for violations, Schroeder said, misinformation can be costly. "Even small projects — replacing cabinets or fixing a plumbing leak — can trigger this," she said.
If you are doing the work yourself, the EPA rule doesn't apply.
Kemery said the EPA started notifying trade groups, unions and property management associations about the new rule in September 2008 and has a print and radio ad campaign to inform contractors, trade groups, retailers, unions and homeowners about lead-safety certification.
The EPA has offered more than 10,000 courses in lead-safe work practices nationwide, accredited more than 210 course trainers and trained more than 230,000 renovators, Kemery said. That surpasses the original 200,000 target the EPA set as the number of renovators needed to implement the rule nationwide during the first year, he said.
In late April, Shelley Leopold bought her first home, a two-bedroom Hollywood condominium, and is having Vidal do a little work before she moves in. The new EPA requirements haven't been particularly inconvenient, the 40-year-old marketing director said.
"It is a few more papers to sign, but not that bad or as costly as I thought it would be," Leopold said. "We are paying for the mistakes of the past, but I think it is a necessary evil."
business@latimes.com
Copyright © 2010, The Los Angeles Times
latimes.com
Older buildings get new lead-safety rules
Contractors working on homes, schools and childcare facilities built before 1978, when U.S. regulators banned lead paint, must take extra precautions.
By Michelle Hofmann
May 17, 2010
Finding someone to replace windows just got a little more challenging because of tough new lead-safety requirements for contractors working on older homes.
The Environmental Protection Agency's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, which kicked in last month, requires additional safeguards by contractors working on homes, schools and childcare facilities built before U.S. regulators banned lead paint in 1978. The intention is to reduce the harm from lead for contractors and their workers as well as for the people who live, work or attend school in older structures.
But with the building industry already hit hard by the recession, consumers will end up paying the price for the new protection, some contractors contend.
"The cost is in the procedures and the labor hours to meet the requirements, so I am going to have to do a few jobs before I know the real costs," said Daryl Vidal, owner of California Maintenance Repair Services in Los Angeles. "But I am probably looking at adding about $1,000 to my next job to pay for plastic suits and masks."
EPA spokesman Dale Kemery said the agency estimated the average cost to be $8 to $167 for most types of jobs, attributing the wide range to the fact that many contractors already were following some lead-safe practices.
Lead is toxic if breathed in or swallowed and is considered particularly dangerous for children. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it can cause learning disabilities, behavioral problems, brain and kidney damage and, at high levels, seizures, coma and death.
About 38 million U.S. homes contain lead paint, which can be disturbed by even small renovations, the Department of Housing and Urban Development says.
The EPA rule is an extension of Cal/OSHA rules that expanded the 1979 federal employer lead standards to California's construction industry in 1993, said John Gura, president of HomeSafe Environmental Inc., a Loma Linda inspection service that offers lead-paint safety training classes.
"This is something you are supposed to have been doing already in many cases. And if you haven't, well, then it is time to catch up," Gura said.
The EPA rule calls for lead-dust containment, thorough cleanup, documentation, consumer education and completion of an EPA-accredited course on lead-safe work practices. It does not apply to housing for the elderly or people with disabilities unless a child under age 6 lives in the house. Also exempted are "zero-bedroom dwellings" — studio apartments and the like.
Gura said his firm had trained 1,456 remodelers since November and is booked through June.
"We have been trying to get the word out, but not a week goes by that I don't meet someone who is not aware of the rule," said Holly Schroeder, executive officer of the L.A.-Ventura County chapter of the Building Industry Assn.
With fines of up to $37,500 a day for violations, Schroeder said, misinformation can be costly. "Even small projects — replacing cabinets or fixing a plumbing leak — can trigger this," she said.
If you are doing the work yourself, the EPA rule doesn't apply.
Kemery said the EPA started notifying trade groups, unions and property management associations about the new rule in September 2008 and has a print and radio ad campaign to inform contractors, trade groups, retailers, unions and homeowners about lead-safety certification.
The EPA has offered more than 10,000 courses in lead-safe work practices nationwide, accredited more than 210 course trainers and trained more than 230,000 renovators, Kemery said. That surpasses the original 200,000 target the EPA set as the number of renovators needed to implement the rule nationwide during the first year, he said.
In late April, Shelley Leopold bought her first home, a two-bedroom Hollywood condominium, and is having Vidal do a little work before she moves in. The new EPA requirements haven't been particularly inconvenient, the 40-year-old marketing director said.
"It is a few more papers to sign, but not that bad or as costly as I thought it would be," Leopold said. "We are paying for the mistakes of the past, but I think it is a necessary evil."
business@latimes.com
Copyright © 2010, The Los Angeles Times