Hempfield Area to complete air quality, asbestos tests at district buildings

Hempfield Area School Board members are moving forward with an indoor air quality survey in the district’s nine buildings.

During Monday’s school board meeting, members agreed to hire Dauphin County-based Skelly and Loy, Inc. to complete the survey at a cost of $9,475. School board member Sonya Brajdic was absent from the meeting.

According to an air quality proposal from the company, the survey will test for total airborne mold spores, dust, temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide at up to five random locations that could include classrooms, offices, lunchrooms and more on each level of the buildings.

Mold samples will be taken by using a stream of air against a clear adhesive surface inside a sampling cassette the mold spores will adhere to, the proposal reads. While the test will not differentiate between live and dead mold spores, it will help officials understand the conditions of airborne mold spores.

Mold samples will be analyzed by U.S. Micro-Solutions in Latrobe.

In addition, measurements related to air quality will be compared to American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers indoor air quality standards.

Tests to collect for dust particles will be completed in each area where mold and air quality measurements are taken.

Survey reports will be prepared for each school building and will indicate the location of total spore samples, dust measurements and more.

According to Superintendent Tammy Wolicki, the project will begin when students return because “the buildings need to be occupied for the data collection.”

The project is expected to take five days to complete.

In addition to the air quality survey, school board members also authorized Skelly and Loy to perform asbestos reinspection services for all district buildings. Reinspections are required every three years as per the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The reinspection will cost $10,400.

Testing will be done in the district’s nine school buildings, two leased buildings, the administration offices, two central receiving buildings, the high school field house and press box.

That project will take up to 10 business days to complete.