Recently, my colleague Victor and I had the opportunity to attend a de-leading certification class. Being associates at Northeast Remediation, we thought it would be in our best interest to be more educated on the lead removal process. The 32-hour course would ultimately gain us a certificate to work on and supervise high-risk de-leading projects. We attended the class at the Institute for Environmental Education in Wilmington, MA for a Monday through Thursday crash course. Going into the class, we had a decent amount of knowledge on lead paint and de-leading. Upon finishing the course, however, and having to complete an extensive exam, I left with every regulation and numeric figure swirling around in my brain. The certification was taught by an educated and experienced lead inspector, Dennis Daly, who instilled in us the proper way to remediate a home without contaminating any additional areas. The regulations pertaining to the state, government, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) were all unique and intertwined. It dawned on me from the start of the course how easy it would be to misinterpret a regulation and accidentally participate in unlawful de-leading. Deleading illegally is not only extremely dangerous, but the title of unlawful de-leading would be attached to the home indefinitely, making it nearly impossible to ever receive compliance.
While this course is not necessary for an ordinary homeowner looking to have their home de-leaded, it was an excellent learning experience for us at Northeast Remediation. Being informed and knowledgeable about what you’re discussing with others speaks volumes. While most lead remediation companies are comprised of primarily contractors, Northeast Remediation has highly qualified contractors and supervisors along with associates that can portray to the customers the importance of lead removal, and can answer any questions a client may have. While I don’t plan on putting on a HEPA filtered face mask and scraping paint anytime soon, I am excited to be an educated employee that can participate in any conversation dealing with lead remediation.
