September 22, 2020 | Posted by MICRO
By Jason Raven | October 17, 2019 at 6:34 PM EDT – Updated October 18 at 12:20 AM
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – Right now in South Carolina, there is no state agency that regulates the remediation of mold. State lawmakers are taking a deep dive into the mold issue in South Carolina. The Mold Abatement and Remediation Study Committee met for the second time on Thursday morning.
Ted Shultz is a project manager with APEX Environmental Management in Mauldin. His company tests for mold in residential, commercial and even public buildings across the state. “Mold is a problem in the Upstate, the Midlands, down to the Pee Dee, the Lowcountry,” he said. “It’s everywhere.”
Lawmakers and officials said, over the last few years, flooding in South Carolina has led to a number of mold-related problems in homes, businesses, and public buildings. Maria Cox, the state coordinator for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resource’s Flood Mitigation Program, said they have been very busy the last few years. “The majority of people dealing with flooding in this state are not well off,” Cox said. “And unfortunately they are flooding repeatedly.”
Representative Chandra Dillard (D-Greenville) said at least a dozen states have addressed mold in some form. She said the committee might be new but they already have some changes in mind.
“Those who test for mold can’t be the same people to remediate it. We need some checks and balances and to find ways to prevent people from being scammed,” Rep. Dillard said. Rep. Dillard said the goal of the committee is to meet with stakeholders and discover best practices.
“If there are guidelines on how to do this work effectively and efficiently, perhaps we’ll address that as well,” she added.
The committee has until December 31 to submit a report to the General Assembly. Currently, there are no standards set by national agencies for mold treatment and prevention.
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