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New York State Toxic Mold Task Force Final Report to the Governor and Legislature
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Tue, 2012-12-04 00:00 — LuLu2012
Submitted by David Perez
Executive Summary
Section 1384 of the New York State (NYS) Public Health Law (enacted in Chapter 356 of the laws of
2005; amended by Chapter 198 of the laws of 2006) established the NYS Toxic Mold Task Force
(hereafter Task Force). The Task Force was charged with assessing and measuring, based on scientific
evidence, the adverse environmental and health effects of mold exposure, including specific effects on
population subgroups at greater risk of adverse effects; assessing the latest scientific data on mold
exposure limits; identifying actions taken by state and local government and other entities; determining
methods to control and mitigate mold and preparing a report to the Governor and Legislature. Under
Section 1384, the Task Force consists of 12 at-large members with specific technical affiliations or
technical expertise and the Commissioner of Health and the Secretary of State or their designees as co
chairs.
The main goals of the Task Force were to summarize and assess existing evidence and information
relevant to the tasks listed in the law and to assess the feasibility of possible recommendations for any
further actions to be taken by the state legislature or state agencies based on its analysis. To achieve
these goals, the Task Force activities were organized into four main areas of inquiry: (1) health effects
of molds in indoor environments; (2) exposure limits and assessment of mold in buildings; (3)
approaches to mold mitigation and remediation; (4) building codes, regulations and other actions taken
by other governments and private-sector organizations that relate to building mold problems.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Conclusions and recommendations are presented below for each of the Task Force’s main areas of
inquiry. Where recommended actions are included, they are accompanied by judgments regarding the
feasibility of the recommended action, as required by Public Health Law Section 1384. The costs of
any recommended action, as well as what the action would and would not be expected to accomplish,
were considered as part of the feasibility judgments
Recommended actions:
• NYS and NYC should continue to improve building code requirements that address building
design, construction techniques and property maintenance so that they prevent or minimize the
potential for water problems to occur. They should both work within the framework of the
International Code Council (ICC) code adoption process to monitor and develop proposals to
prevent or minimize mold in new and existing buildings.
• Provide targeted training and education to CEOs to improve understanding of subtle moisture
problems in buildings (e.g., uncontrolled air flows causing condensation) and to enable them to
address potential or existing water and mold problems more effectively.
The NYS Department of State (NYSDOS) and the NYC Department of Buildings are both
active in the ICC code adoption process. Assistance of the NYS Department of Health
(NYSDOH) in creating code language and providing supporting documentation could be
necessary for code proposals intended to prevent dampness and mold problems.
Feasibility:
c) Education and Outreach
Conclusion:
• Recognition of potential adverse health effects from dampness and resulting mold growth in
buildings has driven preventive education and outreach messages toward water and mold
problems in buildings by state and local health departments for over 10 years. For example,
NYC initially developed guidelines in 1993 (revised in 2000 and 2008) that focused on
minimizing indoor mold exposures by minimizing or correcting water, dampness and mold
conditions in buildings.
• Additional targeted education could enhance efforts to prevent building moisture problems,
mold problems and any concomitant health effects.
State agencies have extensive expertise in many issues related to preventing and mitigation
building water and mold problems. NYSDOH and the NYC Department of Health and Mental
Hygiene (NYCDHMH) have extensive experience in conducting health studies related to
environmental exposures. Obtaining external funding for such research should be explored
when available.
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