LEAD SERVICES
Lead is a common metal used through the centuries to make items like tools, paint, plumbing, dishware, art products, and folk remedies. There is documentation that even during the time of Socrates, lead was creating a health risk among those working in the lead and silver mines. Lead hazards among children and adults have come to public attention more recently because of studies conducted by the Center for Disease Control, Dr. Herbert Needleman, Pittsburgh School of Public Health, and Dr. Hoo, Harvard School of Medicine, which documented significant damage caused in children, especially in children younger than six years of age. Health effects of even small doses of lead include learning disabilities, hearing loss, and speech impairment in children; hypertension, reproductive damage, kidney damage, & neural damage in adults, and other effects on unborn children. As a result, identifying lead sources in the environments of dwellings and work places where young children, women, workers, and others spend time, is vital to safeguarding public health.
Midwest Environmental Consulting, L.L.C. (MEC) staff have been providing lead inspection, project development and monitoring, and consultation services for over twenty years. The staff actively participates on committees that develop the rules, regulations, and standards for many of the lead environmental protocols currently in use. MEC staff provides training in safe lead work and inspection practices with Minnesota Department of Health approved courses.
ASBESTOS SERVICES
Midwest Environmental Consulting, L.L.C. (MEC) staff have a long-standing excellent record of working with asbestos rules and regulations. Staff members have helped build the National Institute of Building Science Manual "Operation and Maintenance for Managing Asbestos in Place" in conjunction with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). We have worked with building owners and managers to promote sound recommendations while on the Minnesota Department of Health regulatory advisory committees. Our understanding of the construction trades, rules, and regulations and the adverse effects that can be caused by improper management of asbestos have helped us develop sound services for asbestos-related work.
INDOOR AIR QUALITY ASSESSMENT SERVICES
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) problems have become more prevalent as a result of changes in design features within buildings, energy considerations of the 1970s, changes in use patterns of a facility, presence of chemicals, and individual tolerances. Air quality can adversely affect the performance, health, and comfort of occupants. Problems with air quality can often be attributed to inadequate outside air, failing to retrofit the HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) system to a renovation and/or remodeling project, or HVAC system not functioning properly, and, in some instances, microbiological or chemical contamination.
Midwest Environmental Consulting, L.L.C. (MEC) offers services to address indoor air quality with a variety of options, depending on the needs of the client. These can include a pre-assessment of building materials to be incorporated into a building project, a pro-active investigation to evaluate air quality in a facility before it becomes a problem, and a complete investigation to address complaints and/or determine the cause of a specific IAQ problem.