BIDDEFORD — The City of Biddeford has a message for contractors during National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, Oct. 22-28.
Dust from old lead-based paint, often found in homes built before 1950, is the major source of childhood lead poisoning in Maine. Ordinary renovation and maintenance activities can generate toxic lead dust. Exposure to lead, especially in children under 6, can have a serious and permanent effect on a child’s growth and development, including learning disabilities, behavioral problems, language and speech delays, and more.
As a community with older housing stock, Biddeford is one of five high-risk areas designated by the Maine Center for Disease Control for having the greatest burden of children with lead poisoning. The City of Biddeford’s Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program was launched in response to those concerns in 2019, when the city received a $3.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for lead poisoning prevention.
By 2022, 80 units were assessed for lead hazards and 60 units were made lead safe with the support of the program. The city received another $3.5 million grant in 2022 to continue to the program’s offerings, which also include the ability to provide funding for training and certification in lead hazard control.
“During the next program period of our grant, we aim to make 95 additional housing units in Biddeford lead safe,” said Gail Wilkerson, Lead Program director. “Training and certifying reliable contractors in our area is a key piece of the puzzle to help us reach this goal and prevent future childhood lead poisoning.”
Biddeford’s Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program is sponsoring an RRP certification course on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 from 8 a.m. to p.m. at Clarify Property Services, LLC, located at 140 Lisbon St. in Lewiston and will cover 100% of the costs of certification for contractors based in the Southern Maine area. Renovate, Repair & Paint (RRP) certification is provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and is required by federal law for any renovator, repair person or painter who is making repairs on a pre-1978 property that they do not own.
Other EPA courses are also provided in Maine and can be supported by the Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program. Local contractors are encouraged to contact the City of Biddeford about these or other opportunities to become certified.
“RRP Certification is a great opportunity for contractors to take advantage of the funding the City has to offer,” said Mike Koerner, Risk Assessor/Rehab coordinator for the Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program. “Even if you are not local to the City of Biddeford, we will still pay for you to get licensed so that you can work with lead safely, which only benefits our local community throughout the state.”
For more information, contact Koerner at 207-571-0637.
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