Colorado City Reduces Lead Hazards
The city of Arvada, Colorado, required cost-effective lead remediation in order to decommission a former indoor firing range facility. The project, completed in March 2013, included both lead dust and lead-contaminated building materials including wood, cinderblock, sheet rock, concrete and ceramic tile. Sampling confirmed very high lead levels up to 100,000 ppm, which posed serious potential health risks.
Even at very low levels, lead can cause significant health problems for adults and children. In adults, exposure to lead can adversely affect the nervous, digestive and reproductive systems; as well as cause renal damage, memory and concentration problems, and joint pain.1
Major concerns for the project included worker safety and protection from lead hazards, prevention of lead dust contamination to other building areas, and effective treatment of lead-contaminated waste for non-hazardous disposal. That is why the city and its contractor, MT2, LLC (MT2), selected ECOBOND® LBP. “The decision to use ECOBOND® LBP was based on the product’s ability to reduce airborne lead dust generation, thereby protecting workers and the environment; and its effectiveness in treating lead to below RCRA lead levels of 5.0 mg/L for nonhazardous waste disposal” said MT2 CEO, James Barthel.
Using a commercial paint sprayer, MT2 applied ECOBOND LBP to all lead-impacted surfaces to seal lead dust and prevent it from becoming airborne. As the ECOBOND dried and cured, it also treated the lead; completing a chemical conversion rendering the lead non-hazardous per US EPA Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA) 40 CFR §261.24 lead TCLP standards. Once the product dried and cured, MT2 removed all impacted building materials for disposal at a non-hazardous waste site.
Pre- and post-samples were sent to an independent laboratory for analysis. Results indicated that ECOBOND technology provided an average 92% reduction in lead dust, while TCLP results for treated materials were well below RCRA 5.0 mg/L Pb TCLP for non-hazardous waste disposal. Barthel stated, “ECOBOND LBP allowed us to meet the city’s goals for worker protection and non-hazardous waste disposal, which saved the city over 30% on disposal costs.”
ECOBOND LBP, LLC is passionate about protecting the environment and people, especially children, from lead hazards and believes that someday the prevalence of lead poisoning around the world will be a distant memory. Additional information regarding ECOBOND LBP is available at www.ecobondlbp.com.
Reference:
1New York State Dept. of Health, Lead Exposure in Adults – A Guide to Healthcare Providers,” 3/09, https://www.health.ny.gov/publications/2584/.
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