Lynch Aluminum MFG CO. - Product Samples

EPA - Lead in Paint, Dust, and Soil

Visit EPA website at http://epa.gov/lead/

Lead is a toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around our homes. Lead also can be emitted into the air from motor vehicles and industrial sources, and lead can enter drinking water from plumbing materials. Lead may cause a range of health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities, to seizures and death. Children six years old and under are most at risk.

Most Common Sources of Lead Poisoning:

Deteriorating lead-based paint
Lead contaminated dust
Lead contaminated residential soil

New lead abatement legislation to affect remodeling contractors who istall siding and windows

Beginning April 22, 2010, new legislation from the EPA titled the Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Program will require significant training for firms and remodelers working on certain projects. The projects outlined by the program compromise renovations on residential houses, apartments and child-occupied facilities built before 1978 and containing surfaces painted with lead-based paint.

The EPA requires renovators to complete an eight-hour training course from accredited training providers to receive certification. Renovators must also give occupants of the home or building they are working on the EPA's Renovate Right lead hazard information pamphlet before beginning the project.

For more details, go to the EPA's "Renovator and Trainer Tool Box" at www.epa.gov/oppt/lead/pubs/toolkits.htm.

Hiring someone to renovate your older home is about to become more complicated and expensive. Starting on Earth Day, April 22, contractors working on almost all homes built before 1978 must prove they have the Environmental Protection Agency's stamp of approval to do the work -- or face fines of up to $37,500 a day!

A new federal rule aimed at reducing exposure to toxic lead-paint chips and dust requires renovators to be trained and certified in EPA-approved methods of containing and cleaning up work areas.

The EPA estimates that its new rule will add $8 to $167 to the cost of the average interior remodeling job, but contractors say the expense to homeowners will be much greater.

Expect to add another $500 to $1,000 for remodeling a kitchen, painting a couple rooms or replacing several windows. That is the minimal additional cost to perform lead-safe work practices and associated documentation.

The EPA rule applies to almost every type of renovation -- from paint scraping to window replacement and carpet removal (which can disturb painted baseboards) -- carried out by contractors in pre-1978 houses occupied by young children and pregnant women.

As written in 2008, the regulations allowed some owners of homes built before 1978 to opt out of the requirements. Homeowners could sign a waiver stating that they had no children younger than 6 visiting or living in the home, that no pregnant women were residing there and that the property was not a child-occupied facility.

But a court settlement reached last year by the EPA and several advocacy groups led the federal agency to remove this opt-out provision from the rule to protect more people from lead poisoning.

The EPA is now seeking to amend the regulation so it would apply to all homes built before 1978, when lead paint was banned. The final determination regarding this revision will be made April 22.

That will mean only the most minor remodeling jobs are exempt from the regulation: interiors less than six square feet in size and exterior repairs made to areas smaller than 20 square feet.

Housing for the elderly and disabled (unless a child younger than 6 lives or will live there) and zero-bedroom dwellings such as efficiency apartments are also not affected by the rule.

Contractors: Beware!

The Environmental Protection Agency's new federal Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule has gone into effect and roofing contractors need to be aware of the new requirements. The EPA issued a rule requiring the use of lead-safe practices aimed at preventing lead poisoning of children.

When integrating a new metal roof on a home built prior to 1978, contractors may have to cut into fascia boards or dormers. If your installation will require you to disturb more than 20 square feet of painted surface, it is the roofing contractors responsibility to notify the homeowner of the lead abatement process. (Most minor repair and maintenance activities that involve less than 20 square feet are exempt from the work practice requirements.) Failure to comply with the new requirements is a violation of the law and could cost you up to $37,500 per violation, per day.

Approximately three-quarters of the homes built before 1978 contain some lead-based paint. It may be on any surface, but is most commonly found on exterior-painted surfaces, interior woodwork, doors and windows. Common renovation activities like sanding, cutting and demolition can create hazardous lead dust and chips. So the EPA has made remodelers, siding and window replacement and roofing contractors the enforcement agents for addressing this problem.

"We've posted a lot of information about this topic on our website." says Bill Hippard, president of the MRA. "It is important for contractors to educate themselves on these new guidelines. Pre-renovation education and notification requirements are now in effect. And the EPA has made renovation and replacement contractors the responsible agent for compliance with these rules. Before you start any work on a pre-1978 residential house, you must distribute the lead information pamphlet entitled "Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families." The pamphlet is available at www.metalroofing.com and www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovaterightbrochure.pdf. If your job requires you to distribute 20 square feet of painted material you must conduct the renovation test for the presence of lead and comply with the EPA guidelines.

There are specific EPA guidelines for certification of contracting companies. Furthermore, all renovation companies, regardless of the number of employees, must be certified. To become certified you must have at least one employee complete and EPA or authorized state approved training source conducted by an EPA or state-accredited training provider. Then all workers must be trained on work practices they will be using during the renovation. Renovation workers can be trained on-the-job by a "certified renovator."

Requirements of a certified renovator

Use an EPA approved lead test kit when testing for lead-based paint on painted surfaces and components being distributed.
Provide on-the-job training to other workers on the work practices they will be using; be physically present at the jobsite when warning signs are posted, while work-area cleaning is being performed.
Regularly direct work being performed by others to ensure compliance with work practice standards, including containment requirements.
Be available onsite or by telephone whenever renovations are being performed.
Perform project-cleaning verification.
Have most recent course certificates.
Prepare required records.

All documents must be retained for at least three (3) years following completion of a regulated renovation, repair or painting activity. This includes reports certifying that lead-based paint was not present, records relating to the distribution of the lead pamphlet, any signed and dated statements from owner-occupants the requirements do not apply to their location and documentation of compliance with the RRP Rules.

Enforcement of these rules begins October 1

Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance of thr EPA, recently said in an effort to facilitate the transition to full implementation of the RRP rule, the EPA will offer additional and sufficient time for renovation firms and contractors to obtain the necessary training and certifications to comply. Until October 1, 2010, the EPA will not take enforcement action for violations of the RRP rule. Contractors must apply or be enrolled in a program no later then September 30, 2010. Training must be completed by December 31, 2010. To date, these training providers have offered more than 15,000 classes and have trained 300,000 people.

The EPA issued the Lead RRP rule because a disturbing number of America's children are still poisoned by lead-based paint in their homes leading to learning and behavioral disorders. For more information, please visit: www.metalroofing.com

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