PROTECT YOURSELF FROM LEAD-BASED PAINT: NEW RULES TAKE EFFECT APRIL 22, 2010

Doing work on on a residence built before 1978?  Be sure your and your contractor know about the new "Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule" (RRP).  If any maintenance, renovation or repair will be done to an area where six (6) square feet or more of a painted surface (about the size of a poster) is disturbed inside, or twenty (20) square feet of painted surface on the exterior (about the size of a door), or if windows are being replaced, special safety practices are required to prevent the spread of dangerous lead paint dust and chips.  Children six years and younger, especially those spending time in schools and day cares constructed before 1978 are particularly vulnerable to lead exposure.

Lead is a toxic metal that was found in common household paints.  It may cause a range of health effects, including behavioral problems, learning disabiliities, seizures, and death; developing brains are most at risk, hence the need to insure that children do not come into contact with this hazard.  The sale and use of lead-based paint was banned for residential use in 1978.

"CMC" can prevent the spread of dangerous lead dust and paint chips:

            - CONTAIN the work area

            - MINIMIZE dust

            - CLEANUP thoroughly

and involves these simple steps:

1)  Posting a warning sign

2)  Spreading plastic to pick up debris

3)  Using sanders or other machines with a filter that prevents the spread of dust

4)  Thorough clean-up

5)  Checking the work area

Professionals (contractors, landlords, etc.) will need to be trained.  It takes a day.

REMEMBER:  LEAD HAZARDS CREATED BY RENOVATION AND PAINTING PROJECTS CAN CAUSE ONE IN THREE KNOWN LEAD POISONING CASES IN AREAS WHERE OLDER HOMES ARE TYPICALLY FOUND!