Statement of Purpose
The quality of the air we breathe and of the environment we work are important to all of us. Facilities is dedicated to the promise of providing the best work and living environment possible within our resources. The acceptable standards or levels of acceptance, provided by the EPA or other professional environmental organizations, are used for the standards and guidelines that Facilities will base the determination of a healthy building or environment upon.

Not all individuals are affected the same regarding environmental containments. Some are more sensitive than others, even if conditions may be below acceptable professional levels. It is the individual concern that will be the premise for Facilities action and all reasonable effort will be made to eliminate or reduce levels of contamination.

Background
Mold is a natural fungus that exists commonly in our everyday environment. The major problem is not that mold can be found, but that a level of questionable concentration or physical condition exists and may affect those individuals exposed.

Carleton College has some state-of-the-art buildings with HVAC systems (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning). They are controlled by automated systems, with computerized capabilities that allow the indoor environment to be adjusted for outdoor air intake, temperature control, and humidity control. However, there are other buildings and houses that are not under the influence of modern systems that pose challenges, especially regarding humidity control and level temperature parameters.

Dehumidifiers are supplied in many basements of campus houses to help reduce the moisture in the environment. The moisture can be a big contributor to providing a mold growth environment.

There are several main ingredients required for mold growth. Although mold is exceptionally common in the everyday atmosphere, mold is usually harmless and dies as long as there is not a medium or environmental condition that exists which allows the mold to live and/or grow. The most common environmental growth mediums are:

• Moisture: a high humidity content or a source of water or moisture
• Temperature: above normal range of warmth
• Filtration: poor ventilation or an adequate filtering system to capture mold spores coming into the building
• Food source
• Air Exchange: a percentage of fresh air exchange brought into and a percentage of building air brought out of the building

What To Do If You Have Concerns

1. Contact Rob Lamppa at x7893 explaining your concerns.
2. Environmental Health and Safety will be contacted with detail of the problem.
3. Environmental Health will take air samples and perhaps physical samples in the area of concern.
4. Environmental Health will provide documentation on the results of the testing.

If Unacceptable Contamination Exists

Plans will be made to remove the existing mold by:

• Cleaning – using a disinfectant that kills the fungi
• Removing contaminated surfaces and subsurfaces that harbor the fungi

Both could require that the contaminated area be abandoned and an elaborate containment system built for any cleanup to occur.

Once all the work is accomplished and retesting results in a safe environmental level, than occupation can be restored.