LODI, California – On March 1, an asbestos release at Mokelumne River School forced the closing of the school while air quality was tested. Now, two weeks later, the entire school is in chaos over alleged mishandling of the situation.

The co-founder and board president of the school, Cliff Goehring admits that he could have handled the situation better, but denies that there was any cover-up of the situation after asbestos was found at the school

Since the asbestos was found, several parents have removed their children from the school, and a number of board members have either resigned or been fired. Many other parents are demanding that Goehring leave the school.

Asbestos, widely used in construction before 1980, is not unusual in school buildings. In most cases, the Environmental Protection Agency says, the asbestos should not be removed from the school building despite the health hazards that are associated with the release of asbestos fibers. Asbestos only becomes hazardous to health when the materials that contain it are disturbed or broken, releasing dust that contains asbestos fibers into the air. Inhaling asbestos fibers has been clearly shown to cause mesothelioma, a rare cancer that affects the lining of the lungs. Mesothelioma may take up to 40 years after exposure to develop. The EPA and other health agencies have stated that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.

Because of that, the EPA requires that schools inspect regularly for asbestos and asbestos containing materials in their buildings, and have a written asbestos management plan. Any time that asbestos is detected in the air in a school, there are specific procedures that must be followed in order to ensure the safety of the students.

At a meeting of parents last week, more than 100 people discussed what happened in the aftermath of the asbestos leak at the school. The parents allege that Goehring perpetrated a cover-up of the problem, claiming that among other things, he had failed to notify parents, students and staff in a timely manner and hosed down classrooms so that they would not test positive for asbestos. In addition, they claim that Goehring fired several board members who called for his resignation.

In response to the allegations, Goehring admits that he could have handled the situation better. He didn’t take the asbestos situation seriously enough at first, he said, but he did not engage in a cover up.

In response to the allegation that he had the affected classrooms hosed down to keep asbestos from showing up on air quality testing, Goehring said that the school is hosed down before school each morning to damp down the pollen in the air from over 100 trees on the property.

Goehring also claimed that he did not fire any board members. Rather, he said, that the board members gave him an ultimatum – either he go, or they would go. He responded that he was not going, and therefore assumed that the board members in question had resigned.

The school is currently undergoing asbestos cleanup and abatement. The final price tag of removing the asbestos will come to about $50,000.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008 at 1:35 pm and is filed under Asbestos Abatement, Asbestos Exposure, California. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.