Results are in After Toxic Mold Concerns at School 1/21/2004 By Mike Price, Marion County Bureau Reporter The results of an air quality study are out after parents and teachers in Vanguard High School's School Advisory Committee voiced concerns about possible toxic mold in one of the buildings last month. The group claims they found mold on the undersides of desks. A month later, a study shows there's no sign of toxic mold in the school. But inspectors did find lots of problems and now they say the school board needs to take action. Inspectors from a Tampa-based environmental company did find 11 rooms with visible growth or mildew, 17 rooms with debris or minor mold growth, and 11 rooms with other signs of moisture. Seven classrooms also tested above industry-standards for humidity. "The humidity is a great concern for us," says Marion County Schools Spokesperson Kevin Christian. "However, there isn't a public building in Florida that doesn't have a humidity problem. Every time you open the door, whatever you have different temperatures, humidity, all of that." The report recommends the school upgrade to better air filters, clean neglected AC units, and clean up or throw away furniture with mold or mildew already on it. It also suggests another set of tests for peak-usage times like the summer just in case. "It's unfortunate the reporter, tests were conducted in December when the humidity was so low," says Vanguard SAC Committee member and parent David Alvarez. "And I look forward to re-taking the test when the humidity is in the 90s instead of the 30s or 40s." "If 3, 4, 5 months from now if there's enough concern for us to do another survey," Christian predicts. "I'm sure we'll do that." School officials say they're already in the process of doing all the clean-up the report recommends. And while they don't have an exact number as of Wednesday night, they expect it to cost taxpayers several thousand dollars. Source WCJB.
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