Duraclean Journal of Marketing, Management and Technical Topics

1. Use Renovator Right! Now: As of December 22, 2008, companies must distribute EPA’s new Renovate Right! pamphlet to owners and occupants unless it is an emergency.

• Cleaning requirements which must be performed by certified renovators or individuals trained by certified renovators.


• Cleaning verification requirements which must be performed
  by certified renovators; and


• Record keeping requirements.
  

While this helps, companies still need to prepare for the new regulation.

Cleaning Verification

EPA has created a new method to determine whether the work site was effectively cleaned. EPA rejected the traditional method of dust clearance testing where, a certified dust sampling technician, lead risk assessor or lead inspector takes a wipe sample from the floor, window sill, and in some cases, a window trough. The lead professional sends it to an EPA-approved laboratory to determine the lead content. If there are more than 40micrograms per square foot on the floor or 250 micrograms per square foot on the window sill, the area has a lead hazard. In essence, these lead hazard standards at 40 CFR 745 are EPA’s answer to the age-old question of “how clean is clean.”

EPA rejected the dust clearance testing and ensuring that the renovation leaves no lead dust hazards behind because the law requires EPA to write rules that ensure that the renovator does not create lead hazards. EPA chose not to make the renovator responsible for pre-existing hazards.

In its place, EPA created a cleaning verification method that is commonly called the “white glove” test. When the cleaning is done, the certified renovator takes wet white wipes— essentially a "Swiffer" pad—and wipes the floor and window sills. If the wipes are dirtier than a laminated image—called a cleaning verification card—of a clean enough wipe, then the room must be re-cleaned and retested.

If it fails a second time, then the certified renovator must use a dry wipe to clean the area and it is done. The wipes never have to be cleaner than the cleaning verification card. There is no third-party verification and the wipes do not have to be saved. As you may imagine, this method has been controversial.

EPA does allow the client to require renovators to conduct a dust clearance test and achieve the standard. On federally subsidized projects, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Lead-Safe Housing Rule (LSHR) may apply. The LSHR requires dust clearance testing to ensure that lead hazards have been eliminated.

Compliance Steps

1. Use Renovator Right! Now: Since 1999, renovators have been required to provide owners and occupants of target housing with the EPA’s Protect Your Family from Lead pamphlet. It is better known as the “blue booklet.” As of December 22, 2008, companies must distribute EPA’s new Renovate Right! pamphlet instead. They must also notify
child-occupied facilities (see definition). The EPA also clarified and simplified the requirements for notice to owners and occupants when work only involves common areas.

2. Get Training: A top priority should be ensuring that crew chiefs and supervisors who may work on housing and child-occupied facilities built before 1978 are trained. They need to successfully complete a one-day "Certified Lead Renovator" course from an EPA-accredited training provider. If the person has already taken an EPA-approved lead-safe work practices course (and can document it) the person can become a Certified Lead Renovator by completing a 1/2-day refresher instead of a 1-day initial training course.

The training provider will issue a certificate to students who complete the course, pass the exam, and pass the hands-on skills assessment. The student’s photo goes on the certificate. With this certificate, the student is now a Certified Lead Renovator until it expires in five years. The Certified Renovator will need to take a four-hour refresher before the certificate expires. Please note that the training provider must submit the information on the student to EPA. Certified Lead Renovators are responsible for providing on-the-job training to all workers on the site.

On April 22, 2009, EPA began accepting application from training providers. As of May 4, EPA has received 42 applications. It will begin approving them during the next one to six months. The National Center for Healthy Housing offers a single place for trainers to post all healthy homes-related training at www.nchh.org/training/calendar.aspx. There is no cost to use the service. From the calendar, you can search by date or state and follow the links to the training provider. Any EPA-accredited training provider can post their training at this site at no charge. It is the best location to find out what training is available.

After April 22, 2010, every renovation project will have to have one certified lead renovator supervising it to be in compliance with the rule. There is likely to be a big rush as the April 22, 2010, deadline approaches. EPA estimates that 235,000 people will need to complete the training.

We believe that subcontractors can operate under the supervision of a company’s Certified Lead Renovator. In this situation, a Certified Lead Renovator will need to provide the subcontractor with on-the-job training. However, the restoration firm will be accepting responsibility for their performance. If a restoration firm doesn’t want to be responsible, the subcontractor will need to have their own certified lead renovator and become a certified lead renovation firm.

3. Get Certified: Unless a restoration firm is able to stay out of housing and child-occupied facilities built before 1978, it will need to become a Certified Renovation Firm. Think of it as a business license from EPA that allows an organization to conduct renovations— even emergency renovations—under the RRP rule.

To become a Certified Renovation Firm, a company will need to
apply to EPA after October 22, 2009, and pay a fee of $300. A firm
does not have to name a certified lead renovator in its application. Once certified, a firm holds this status for five years. EPA says it will be a short and simple form that a company submits on-line or in hard copy. In essence, a firm will be promising to follow the rules including having a certified lead renovator supervise the work and applying to EPA to become a Certified Lead Renovation Firm. It is a one-page application with an associated fee. A certified renovator does not need to be identified to apply.

4. Phase-In Work Practices: For work covered by the RRP rule,
except for emergency renovations, a firm will need to follow specific work practices. These work practices consist of:

• Protect Occupants—Post signs and warn occupants. Keep them out of the work area.


• Containing the Work Area—Isolate the work area so that no dust and debris leaves the space. Think lots of plastic sheeting!


• Don’t Use Certain Work Practices—No open-flame burning or torching of paint. Machines that remove paint through high-speed operation must have High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA)-filtered exhaust control. No heat guns operating above 110 degrees Fahrenheit.


• Manage Waste—Contain dust and debris from waste.


• Clean the Work Area—Use wet methods and HEPA vacuums to clean the entire work area.


• Cleaning Verification—(See above.)

It is recommended that each company work through these practices after the crew chief and supervisors have completed the training and better understand how it will affect the work they do. It is easier to phase-in the work practices to make sure the company will be ready when the rule goes into effect. It is not as efficient to do it all at once. Waiting until the
compliance deadline to begin may also increase mistakes that could create liabilities for the firm.

Also make sure to have systems in place to recognize a child-occupied
facilities. They may be located in office buildings and retail operations as well as residences. According to 40 CFR 745.82 a “Child-occupied facility means a building, or portion of a building, constructed prior to 1978, visited regularly by the same child, under six years of age, on at least two different days within any week (Sunday through Saturday period), provided that each day’s visit lasts at least three hours, the combined weekly visits last at least six hours, and the combined annual
visits last at least 60 hours.”

5. Update Information Management Systems: Like all rules, the
RRP rule requires detailed record keeping. Despite one’s best efforts, record keeping is often the toughest to get right without a system in place to manage it. Keep in mind, when the EPA conducts an inspection, it is likely to review records for the three years for which a firm must maintain the records.

Keep the record keeping requirements in mind. Upgrades to the
information management systems are planned. Better to integrate
with a scheduled upgrade instead of having to patch it together later.

6. StayTuned: Use the resources listed below to stay in touch with the rule as it evolves. EPA estimates that 235,000 people will become Certified Lead Renovators before April 22, 2010. They will train more than 330,000 workers on-the-job and 204,000 firms will become Certified Renovation Firms. When the rule goes into effect, EPA estimates that between 4.4 and 8.4 million renovation events will take place each year. With a rule of this magnitude there will be updates and refinements.

It is entirely possible that the rule will be changed before April 22, 2010. Several organizations have challenged the rule including the National Association of Home Builders and the Sierra Club. In addition, EPA is obligated by law to extend the rule or a variation of the rule to public and commercial buildings built before 1978 and to commercial buildings that may create lead hazards during renovation. While this rule making still has a long way to go— EPA has not yet proposed a rule—it may eventually reach far beyond housing and child-occupied facilities.

Penalties and Citizen Suits

EPA can assess a civil fine of $37,500 for each violation of the rule for each day of a violation. If a firm is not careful, it can commit multiple violations on a single project. In addition, citizens can sue certified renovators and certified renovation firms to force compliance with the rule. They can collect attorney fees and expenses.

The Restoration Industry Association is taking a pro-active approach to educating its members through magazine articles, webinars and live courses around the country. Education and early preparation are the best means of making a smooth transition to compliance with this new regulation.


Resources:

–Healthy Homes Training Calendar – www.nchh.org/training/calendar/aspx.

• EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule Webpage – www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovation.htm

• HUD’s Lead-Safe Housing Rule –
  www.hud.gov/offices/lead/enforcement/lshr.cfm

• National Center for Healthy Housing’s (NCHH) RRP Training Network – www.healthyhomestraining.org/rrp

• Alliance for Healthy Homes (AFHH) RRP Train-the-Trainer Program –
  www.afhh.org/res/res_training_RRP_train_the_trainer.htm

• Small Business Compliance Guide for the RRP Rule –
  www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/sbcomplianceguide.pdf

Labels: Lead, Legal, Safety Compliance

# posted by The Duraclean Team @ 2:12 PM