New York City is making waves - City Agrees to Conduct a Study on the Risks of PCBs in Schools

New York City

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New York City school officials have agreed to assess the environmental risks posed by PCBs in school buildings and to come up with a plan for cleanups and for reducing potential exposure, federal officials said Tuesday.

Officials with the Environmental Protection Agency said that the city, under a binding accord, would conduct a pilot study to address potential violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act related to the presence of caulk containing PCBs above the allowable level of 50 parts per million.

They said the city had found unsafe concentrations of PCBs in testing during construction and renovation projects. They added that the city had estimated that hundreds of school buildings could have the same problem.

PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, are a class of highly toxic chemical compounds that were widely used in construction materials and electrical products in many buildings, including schools, from the 1950s until they were phased out in 1978, the E.P.A. said. They were commonly used around windows and door frames and in masonry building materials; with long-term exposure, they can cause cancer and affect the immune and reproductive systems when they are released from the caulk into the air or through direct contact, the agency said.

As part of the agreement between the E.P.A. and the city, officials with the School Construction Authority will test, assess and reduce exposure to PCBs in five schools. The pact is intended to lead to a citywide approach.

The five have yet to be chosen. Ross J. Holden, vice president and general counsel of the School Construction Authority, said one that was built between 1950 and 1977 would be selected in each of the five boroughs.

Judith Enck, the E.P.A. regional administrator in New York, said in a statement, “We believe that the program outlined in this agreement, along with general E.P.A. guidance on managing the issue, will serve as a model for school systems across the country.”

Miranda K. S. Massie, a senior staff attorney with New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, which sued the city’s Department of Education over the issue, called the agreement “a healthy start.”

She said her group was withdrawing its lawsuit because of the accord and because of an assurance by city officials that the school attended by the plaintiff’s daughter, P.S. 178 in the Bronx, would be chosen for the study.