Don’t Ignore EPA’s New Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule

Interesting and good to know...

Don't Ignore EPA's New Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule

 Permanent linkMark the date April 22, 2010 on your calendar. It is the day when the Environmental Protection Agency's new rule, "Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting," goes into full compliance, and it could have a huge impact on your business.

Electronic systems contractors performing installation work inside homes or buildings built before 1978, which are occupied by children under six years of age, or by a pregnant woman, must be aware of, and comply with, the EPA rule.

To comply with the rule, integrators must earn a new certification by completing an eight-hour, EPA-approved Certified Renovator course.

Half of the course can be taken online, and the other half is "hands-on" training, says Jack E. Leonard, Ph.D., president of the Environmental Management Institute in Indianapolis, Indiana. Two firms currently offer the hands-on training portion, and CEDIA is working in collaboration with the firms to streamline the process for everyone in the CEDIA community.

Integrators can start the certification process online (www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/firmapp.pdf) and by paying the fee. EPA certification is valid for five years, and the fee structure varies. The fee could range from $300 to $550 depending on the jurisdiction and what type of certification for which your firm is applying.

This Old House

The new rule has evolved from the 1992 Lead Poisoning and Prevention Act, and affects renovation, repair, and painting projects that disturb more than six square feet of space on an interior wall, or 20 square feet on an exterior wall.

After April 22, 2010, if your firm is not certified, the EPA can assess fines and you can be subject to liability lawsuits. Ensuring that all workers on the job have been trained by a certified renovator is also important, as is keeping proper documentation and records.

CEDIA recommends that integrators be present during project setup to ensure that access and dust control procedures are in place and that the cleanup removes any dust/debris around the worksite. After the work is done, integrators must notify the homeowner of the cleaning verification. Again, it's important to keep accurate records and files.

Justifying the Cost

It's not an ideal time for integrators to pay additional fees out of pocket, but the positives far outweigh the costs, Leonard says.

Lead-based paint is the most common source of lead poisoning for children in the U.S. Lead was widely used in most interior and exterior oil-based paint prior to 1950. Improper renovation of homes with-lead based paint can generate lead in the air, dust, and soil in and around the home.

"Lead poisoning is the most common preventable health problem for children in the United States today," Leonard said.

National surveys estimate that more than three-million children six years of age and younger have lead poisoning. The condition can lead to learning disabilities and mental retardation.

The EPA awards grants to fund lead poisoning prevention activities in local communities and across the nation. The EPA's National Community-Based Lead Grant Program, EPA's Targeted Lead Grant Program, and Tribal Lead Grant Program are three of those grants.

The Fine Print
Read more...
http://www.residentialsystems.com/blog/39506.aspx

--

God Bless,

Don

Check out my Web Pages and Blog's too...

Don's Music and Poems at DonSongs.com

DonSongs! Download Both Albums in MP3's Free! Also, there's Pages of my Songs, Poems and Pic's of me and friends:>) www.DonSongs.com

DonSongs New Site With Music Players for Both Albums and New Page Design...

Download The Whole Living Beings - Climate Control Album Free!:) We have our New Album Out Now! With me, Don Bishop doing Vocals and Lyrics and Marty Splawn Playing all the Music! And You can Download the whole Album Free!

http://bishopco.com/LivingBeings/LivingBeings-ClimateControl-mp3.html

And here's an alternative Living Beings download site that also has smaller 64Kbps M3U versions for Dialup connections and it has Streams of the complete album too if you just want to listen online without saving the MP3's. http://www.archive.org/details/DonBishopLivingBeingsClimateControl

Living Beings Blog has some MP3 Song clips from our Living Beings - Climate Control album. Also, I put up some of my favorite Pic's. http://livingbeings.blogspirit.com/

And here's an alternative DonSongs download site that also has smaller 64Kbps M3U versions for Dialup connections and it has Streams of the complete album too if you just want to listen online without saving the MP3's. http://www.archive.org/details/DonBishopDonSongs002

CMU - Christian Music Underground

CMU was started by Don Bishop to share the music of myself and of course the rest of you guys who are among the non commercial artists out there who work hard at their music and want to Glorify, Praise and Share the Love of our Lord Jesus.

http://christianrocker.com/index.php?mode=player&type=radio&id=79

DonSongs Blog... This is a Collection of Songs written & Sung by Don Bishop from 01-1991 to 03-2002.http://donsongs.blogspirit.com/

I need help starting a ministry for Kids. Do you love Kids and Teenagers? If you feel a calling on your life to help the least of these grow up and learn to live and love and believe in Jesus, then please check out our vision.

Psalms 68 Ministries http://www.Psalms68.com

My Web Site's Business Page, the Entry Point for all the rest. My New Site is at http://bishopco.com/mambo/ and my old faithful is at http://www.BishopCo.com

Classified Ads, Place Your's for Free Here! Try out my free Classified Ads Site.

Don's Deals Free Classifieds http://epage.com/js/csp/c44364/b44364/r571658/?csp=44364