While Guilford County's current push to make sure every child is tested for lead paint ingestion is laudable, getting the lead out will likely pit historic preservation against the abatement movement in the future.
Under Greensboro's current lead paint abatement grant program, the city provides money to property owners to help pay for the removal all of the lead paint from their houses. And that's a good thing for kids - but it may be real trouble for preservation efforts. Here's how...
Lead can sometimes leach from old paint into the surface of wooden elements of old houses. Many times, even after all paint has been removed from all windows, doors and other elements of older homes, the previously painted surfaces can still test 'hot' for the presence of lead. When this occurs, the only solution that will satisfy the government's lead tolerances is to tear out the original woodwork, throw it in the landfill, and replace it with newly milled elements.
According to Dan Curry, one of Greensboro's Planning Managers, applying a primer and two coats of paint will not 'encapsulate' the old lumber enough to satisfy the the Fed's abatement guidelines in many cases. So off it goes.
For a guy who's business is restoring old windows and doors in historic properties, this can pose a real problem to my livelihood For structures that are identified as having historical significance via local, state or Federal designation - this can spell disaster.
According to the latest in a series of N&R articles about Guilford County's movement toward testing children for lead exposure, it appears that historic preservation and protecting the health of children could very well be on a collision course. Among the new provisions found in the proposed ordinance...
"...Homeowners would face new restrictions. Instead of waiting until a child is poisoned, they’d be required to remove chipped, peeling paint in the house of any child with a dangerous lead level."
But according to Federal HUD guidelines, which is where much of the abatement money will come from - simply removing 'chipped, peeling paint' ain't gonna get it. The historic fabric of old homes just won't release all of the lead in many cases. Greensboro's Historic District Guidelines demonstrate how the City's preservation efforts and County's abatement efforts will eventually run head-long into each other.
...Retain original windows and doors including such elements as sash, glass, sills, lintels, casings, muntin, trim, frame, thresholds, hardware, and shutters. If repair of an original window or door element is necessary, repair only the deteriorated element... The removal of historic materals shall be avoided.
So the 'lead heads' say historic materials must be removed if the bare wood contains lead, but the preservation guidelines say they must remain.
I recently spoke with Curry about how the city's lead abatement grant program can actually work against the city's efforts toward historic preservation. Dan acknowleged the conflicting priorities and admitted that it is worrisome to him as well - but the 'lead vs preservation' issue hasn't yet clashed before the Historic District Commission.
But it won't be long.
****************************
Other reading with differing views on the extent of lead problems
JunkScience.com - Get the lead hysteria out
Washington Times: EPA's lead heads
9:56:20 AM 
|
