By David Harry

Staff Writer

When it comes to getting the lead out, some local contractors said they are not opposed to the concept of federal Environmental Protection Agency workplace rule changes scheduled to take effect next month.

But the process of certifying and training painters, electricians and contractors before April 22 and the potential $37,500 daily fines for noncompliance drew criticism during an informational session hosted by EPA officials last Friday at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland.

Beginning April 22, renovation work in residential rental units, federal housing units, child care centers, schools and other buildings built before 1978 that involves more than 6 feet of interior space or 20 feet of exterior space must follow strict guidelines to prevent spread of dust and chips from lead paint.

Homeowners making renovations to their own homes are exempt from the new rules.

“In a nutshell, there were a lot of questions and very few answers,” said Ron Dunsmoor, an operations manager for Biddeford-based Eastern Mechanical Inc., and vice president of the Maine chapter of the Plumbing, Heating and Cooling Contractors Association.

Dunsmoor and Matthew E. Marks, chief operations officer of the Maine chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America, both said they are seeking assistance from U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) to extend the date when rule changes take effect because training courses are not widely available.

Contractors who do the work must first be registered and then take an eight-hour training course to learn the procedures. 

The registration fee is $300 and estimates on course fees range from $70 to more than $200.

As outlined at www.epa.gov/lead, procedures include covering all floor surfaces, vents and windows so paint dust and chips cannot spread beyond the work area, using high-powered vacuums to remove chips and dust, placing signs near the affected area to warn of work site hazards, and presenting a pamphlet to those living or working at the affected site to make them aware of lead poisoning dangers.

Dunsmoor said at least two employees at Eastern Contracting will need certification, and the trade association has at least 50 members who will be affected. The association also sends information to about 1,100 other contractors in Maine each quarter, Dunsmoor said.

Training is complicated because there are currently three certified instructors in Maine teaching classes of 25 to 30 workers who will be affected by the changes.

The presence of lead paint in buildings built before 1978, when its use was banned, is not disputed, said Marks, who represents more than 200 general and subcontractors in the state.

“There is no argument we will encounter lead,” he said.

Marks and Dunsmoor said they are part of larger organizations with offices in Washington, D.C., and rule changes developed almost two years by the EPA came as a sudden surprise over the last few months.

“We normally connect with people regarding things like this,” Marks said.

The dangers of lead paint are vast and harmful, said Eric Frohmberg, who manages the Maine Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. The program is overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services.

In 2008, Frohmberg said he dealt with more than 120 cases of childhood lead poisoning, with about half the cases occurring in rented apartments and almost all caused by ingestion of lead paint dust.

The number of children poisoned is on the decline, but he wants lead poisoning to be completely eliminated, Frohmberg said.

“Lead is really bad and we know about it. There is no reason why kids should be poisoned,” he said.

High levels of lead in the blood lead to brain damage, kidney damage, an inability to concentrate and learning disabilities. Because it attaches itself to vital organs, Frohmberg said adults poisoned by lead may see increases in blood pressure, lowered sperm counts and possibly cancer.

Information provided by the EPA estimates 25 percent of homes built between 1960 and 1978 contain lead-based paint. The EPA estimates 66 percent of homes built from 1940 to 1959 contain lead paint, and 86 percent of homes built before 1940 contain lead paint.

Local code enforcement officers and tax assessors were uncertain what percentage homes and apartment buildings were built before 1978, but South Portland Deputy Tax Assessor Robert G. Tripp said the rule changes would affect apartment complexes such as those found in the Redbank area because they were built during World War II.

Saco Code Enforcement Officer Dick Lambert said no study has ever been done in the city to see how old its homes may be, but like Marks and Dunsmoor, he said the lack of training courses for contractors is distressing.

Lambert also wonders who will enforce the new rules at work sites as he has had no indication of what role his office will play. Cases of lead poisoning are referred to the prevention program by physicians treating patients, Frohmberg said.

Questions about enforcement were asked of Nancy Barmakian and James Bryson, two EPA officials leading the session in Portland last week. Both urged contractors and landlords who may do their own renovations to get registered immediately, and to document their efforts to register and comply with rules even if certification classes are unavailable for now.

Barmakian, who manages the Toxic Pesticides Program for the New England EPA office in Boston, said the agency will first look to ensure contractors, plumbers, electricians and painters who flaunt the new rules will be fined, and said the maximum fine of $37,500 per day for noncompliance would only be assessed in extreme cases.

The assurance did not comfort Matt Cook, one of three owners of Scarborough-based Allied/Cook Construction, especially because he did not get an answer to whether the new rules will affect work already in progress.

“I just wish I had a better understanding. It’s not that they don’t want to answer, it’s that they don’t know the answer,” he said.

Cook said his company is becoming more involved in converting historic buildings into residential units. The changes to work under way or for jobs the company has bid on already could be costly, he said, even though the company already owns much of the equipment needed to comply with the new rules.

Jim Soule, owner of South Portland-based A-B.E.S.T. Window said the new rules are a good step, but worried his bids for jobs could be undercut by contractors who ignore the rules.

Soule said moving to compliance has already cost him about $10,000 because of the cost for training courses for six employees and lost work days used to take the courses.

“We do more windows than anybody, and we feel we are doing something right,” Soule said, noting that company vice president Bob Marzul has been tested for lead in his blood at least five times in almost two decades and never showed signs of contamination.

Soule and Marzul estimate 55 to 60 percent of company jobs are done in buildings and homes built before 1978, and compliance will cause increased costs. He agrees with the standards, Soule said, but worries about competition.

“It’s the pickup truck guys who are not certified that can drag down the industry,” Soule said.

Staff writer David Harry can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 219