Twelve families living over a dirt crawlspace have been experiencing various ills for some time; chronic sinusitis, conjunctivitis, respiratory infections, asthma, nosebleeds, coughing, skin rashes, fungal nail infections.  A recent sewage spill served to exacerbate the problem.  The County Board of Health has been here 3 times.  Each inspector claims the problem isn’t in their jurisdiction.  One resident has had to move out.  Within three weeks his symptoms reduced significantly.  No agency seems to be able to help us get the proper testing done in the crawlspace.  Two families have tested positive for Cladosporium, Penicillium and Alternaria.  Can you direct us to an agency that can order our management company/cooperative board to diagnose the problem and remediate it?  Out managing agent told us we can’t prove anything and that he won’t have to do a thing.-Marie, New York 

            You and other residents of this apparent apartment complex have not only health concerns associated with your building environment but also the inevitable problems of those leasing property, that is you are dependant on building management which may not be sympathetic to your concerns.  In such circumstances the question is what do you do? 

            Appealing to public authorities who in fact do not have jurisdiction unless an imminent case of health endangerment can be proven is as you have experienced not very fruitful.  The Board of Health can in fact issue an order to building management if they deem an immediate health threat exists.  However, no such case has in your situation been proven. 

            Therefore, how do you prove your case.  The best way is to hire an independent consultant to conduct an investigation and if needed mold testing.  If the results are definitive, then the Board of Health has something hard to work with.  If the results are less than certain, then you have no course before the Board of Health. 

            Before one engages a consultant in such a case, building management must agree to allow the consultant to come in and conduct an investigation.  Some do and some don’t. 

            If all such steps result in no progress, the last resort is litigation.  It is likely that in your state, property managers are required to maintain habitable building environments for tenants.  If not, this could be one key element of a legal claim. 

            Lawsuits are not for the “weak of heart”.  They are slow to resolve (typically years) and of course adversarial. 

May 30, 3003

 Indoor Environmental Quality (2000), Thad Godish Ph.D., C.I.H

Direct E-mail 00tjgodish@bsu.edu