Lead-based paint posing problems at youth facility

David Kihara

Thursday, June 16, 2005 | 9:36 a.m.

County officials are trying to figure out what to do about lead-based paint peeling and flaking off the exteriors of several school buildings at the Spring Mountain Youth Camp juvenile correctional facility.

The Clark County School District, which had looked into painting the buildings, discovered the lead-based paint more than a month ago. The district has since refused to paint the buildings, saying that it is the responsibility of the county, said Randy Shingleton, director of maintenance at the district.

The district official who originally took the samples of the paint wasn't aware that the county was in charge of painting the buildings, and once the district learned this it decided not to paint the buildings, Shingleton said.

He said that the additional expenses related to removing the lead-based paint was not a factor in the district's decision to not paint the buildings.

The county, meanwhile, said it is conducting its own analysis of the paint on the buildings before it acts, said Samantha Charles, a county spokeswoman.

The county will complete the analysis in two weeks, she said.

Kirby Burgess, director of the county's Juvenile Justice Services, said that the lead-based paint does not pose a threat "but it is a concern" to the juvenile justice department.

"We monitor and supervise their activity" of the youth detainees at the Spring Mountain facility, Burgess said, so he did not believe that the youths are at risk.

He said that the juvenile justice department has informed the county through e-mail that the buildings are in need of a paint job and that the lead-based paint is peeling off, but it has not formally requested that the county repaint the buildings because it only recently learned about the problem.

Larry Carter, manager of the correctional facility, said that he learned about the lead-based paint about a week ago after the district contacted the correctional facility to tell them that they would not paint the buildings.

"We want to make sure that the buildings are taken care of properly," he said.

Carter said that the peeling lead-based paint doesn't pose a danger to any of the students who attend classes at the buildings because the youths don't spend any time near the exteriors of the building except to walk to and from classes.

He said the youths are monitored and escorted during these times and wouldn't have an opportunity to consume any of the paint flakes.

There are about 100 male youths at the facility at any given time, Carter said. The detainees range from 12 to 18 years old and on average stay at the facility for six months, he said.

The district is conducting tests on the paint to determine the lead content, Shingleton said. One of the buildings slated for painting had an "increased level of lead paint" present, but Shingleton said he could not go into detail on what that increase is.

He said that the district decided not to paint the building because it was merely conducting samples on the paint. He said that the presence of an increased level of lead in the paint had nothing to do with the district's decision to not conduct abatement and paint the buildings.

Jan Villaire, director of safety and environmental services at the district, said that the lead-based paint is not hazardous to the students.

"Would I be concerned? No," she said.

She said workers stripping off the paint would face the most risks. The paint, she said, could pose respiratory distress if it is sandblasted off, but workers would likely take protective measures such as wearing specialized suits and would use respiratory equipment.

Mike Slough, the owner of A & B Asbestos Abatement -- a company that specialized in removing asbestos and lead-based paint -- agreed that the lead-based paint poses the most risk to the workers removing the material.

He said that it could pose health risks if the paint is inhaled during the stripping process, but it would take a "significant" exposure, meaning long-term and heavy exposure to lead-based paint fumes and dust.

Unlike asbestos, lead-based paint dust does not typically remain air borne for long and therefore poses less of a risk than asbestos, he said.

Still, he said he requires that his workers wear protective suits and use respiratory equipment when removing the lead-based paint from surfaces or structures.