CDC News

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are expected to release a report early this month on the Cleveland infant cluster thought to be affected by Stachybotrys. Also, CDC has yet find a contractor to review the Interagency Report on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity issued in December 1998. Sources tell IE Connections that there are 400-plus comments to review so that the report may be rewritten.

More Moisture Training

MidAtlantic Environmental Hygiene Resource Center (MEHRC) has announced an expanded training roster and fall symposium related to moisture and biocontamination prevention, assessment and remediation. The expansion responds to the growing recognition of the importance of biocontamination to indoor environmental conditions and occupant health, and reflects the growing body of knowledge and progress towards developing standards and guidelines for best practices. Where formerly, a single course addressed investigation and mitigation of biological contamination in buildings, MEHRC now presents three programs focused on specific stages. A two-day program focuses entirely on investigation (including sampling) and assessment, and a second two-day program on designing appropriate remediation strategies and job specifications. These courses are designed for environmental investigators. For information about the new programs, contact MEHRC at (215) 387-4096.

Building Disaster

Ever wondered what water and fire damage in a building looks like? Need to know the immediate steps to dry and clean the structure? MEHRC's Director Sue Smith and Cliff Zlotnik, CR, CMH and Pete Consigli, CR, have put together a new course next month in Pittsburgh outlining what should be done when buildings are damaged by fire, burst pipes, floods, sewage backflows, furnace puffbacks, vandalism and other sudden disasters. Call MEHRC at the number above for details.

Market Up

Chelsea Group, Ltd of Itasca, Ill., recently released the final, adjusted 1999 results from its INvironment® Industrial Average, showing the performance of 17 companies involved in products that create the environment within buildings. The INvironment® Industrial Average was up 8.72 percent over 1999, compared to the 19.5 percent increase in the Dow Jones Industrial Average over the same period. Chelsea Group created the average to help track the emergence of the industry that is growing up around indoor air quality. The INvironment® Industrials are publicly traded companies with a significant image and presence on this issue.

Alpine Down In WI

Wisconsin has reportedly taken a strong stand against the marketing, sale and use of ozone generators produced by Alpine Industries. The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection has put together a information kit on the alleged health effects of using the devices.

CPSC Feels The Heat

In the strongest action yet against candle manufacturers and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the Public Citizen group has petitioned the CPSC for an immediate ban and recall on all candles with lead-containing wicks, candles in metal containers that contain lead, and wicks sold for candle-making that contain lead. The group states that these candles are a imminent hazard to the public health on the grounds that continued sale of these items violates provisions of the Federal Hazardous Substances Act and the Consumer Product Safety Act. The Public Citizen's Health Research Group petitioned CPSC once before on this issue- in 1973. The following year, the candle industry and CPSC arrived at a voluntary agreement to immediately stop making candles with lead-containing wicks.

New H.O.M.E.

At their symposium last month, Air Quality Sciences of Atlanta introduced the HOME kit (Home Owner Mold and Allergen Evaluation), expected to be available soon. The kit collects dust using a special filter that fits on vacuum cleaner hose and also test for molds on surfaces, by collecting samples using cellotape slides.

Perfume-Asthma Link

The December 1999 issue of Allergy published a study that documents that perfume can cause, not simply trigger asthma. The researchers followed a woman who had worked in a drugstore for 26 years and started having problems with demonstrating perfumes. Respiratory challenge tests confirmed the respiratory response to perfumes.

More On Fragrance

Mary Lamielle of the National Center for Environmental Health Strategies will be training about 60 employees of the U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barrier Compliance Board this month on guidelines to implement a fragrance-free policy. The training will cover how to make the workplace as least toxic as possible, including using safer cleaner materials and personal care products. The board has a mandate to implement the Americans With Disabilities Act, and has a lot of influence on building codes. According to Lamielle, a fragrance-free workplace covers both ends of the spectrum: the disabled and the larger work population who may be only affected once in a while.