Share this Twitter Myspace Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Slashdot Furl Yahoo Technorati Newsvine Facebook Export PDF Print E-mail Tags mold housing ” exposure dca benson health inspection bill flooding residential buildings hazard rental create homes presence years measure abatement Article Index Amid flooding, N.J. Assemblyman Benson offers legislation to help combat indoor mold Page # All Pages

With record flooding occurring throughout New Jersey since Aug. 27, Assemblyman Dan Benson (D-Mercer) is pushing two companion bills to create a framework to identify and eliminate mold exposure in residential housing.

The legislation is designed to create standards for unsafe mold exposure levels, mold hazard abatement methods and certification of professionals who would perform such work.

“As a result of post-hurricane flooding and the second round of flooding we received this week, mold presence is extremely high,” Benson said Friday. “Even homes that have never experienced flooding before were hit this time. Mold is certainly going to be an issue for quite a while. Together, these bills form the framework to protect residents from unhealthy toxins that have the potential to impair their health for years to come.”

Benson noted that according to the federal Center for Disease Control, exposure to molds can cause symptoms such as nasal stuffiness, eye irritation, wheezing, or skin irritation. People with serious allergies to mold, may have more severe reactions. There is also sufficient evidence to link indoor exposure to mold with upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people and with asthma symptoms in people with asthma. Some evidence also links indoor mold exposure and respiratory illness in otherwise healthy children.

Benson’s first measure (A3773) would require the state Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to establish standards for exposure limits to mold in residential buildings that are protective of the public health and safety, and procedures for the inspection, identification, and evaluation of the interior of residential buildings for mold.

The DCA also would be required to establish standards for mold hazard abatement procedures including specialized cleaning, repairs, maintenance, painting, temporary containment and ongoing monitoring of mold hazards or potential hazards.

The bill would also require the DCA to establish a certification program for persons who inspect for the presence of mold hazards in residential buildings and who perform mold hazard abatement work in residential buildings.

The measure has been approved by the Assembly Environment Committee and is awaiting action in the full lower house.

“Mold can endanger homes, businesses and people’s health,” Benson said. “The repeatedly wet and humid weather we’ve been having create a ripe breeding ground for mold, particularly in homes that have been flooded. It’s important to have the proper procedures in place to quickly and effectively identify and eliminate mold.”

The second bill, known as the “Mold-Safe Housing Act,” would help tenants living in mold-contaminated rental housing to have the mold effectively removed, or be relocated to safer rental housing.

In addition, the bill would create a system of inspection for all rental housing in order to detect the presence of mold. Single family and two-family rental housing would be required to be inspected upon a change in occupancy, as well as every five years as part of the multiple-dwelling inspection. Multiple dwellings would be inspected every five years for mold under the “Hotel and Multiple Dwelling Law,” which is currently enforced by the Bureau of Housing Inspection in the DCA.