Mold found at new Bella Vista school
Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2008
BENTONVILLE — A slightly elevated level of mold was found during recent tests at Cooper Elementary School in Bella Vista, but Bentonville School District officials don’t see cause to panic.
It’s believed that the elevated readings are coming from mulch on the playground near the south end of the building, members of the Bentonville School Board’s Facilities Committee were told Friday. Mold tests are performed by taking air samples inside and outside a structure. A building has a mold problem when there’s more mold in the air inside the structure than in the atmosphere nearby.
Cooper, which was built a year ago, came under fire from Bella Vista resident Ed Chitty for what he said was shoddy construction. He claimed the building would be susceptible to mold because of problems that occurred during construction.
Builders and architects stood behind their work and extended the warranty five years on the overall structure with a promise of performing mold tests regularly. The first of those mold tests was completed recently, said Scott Passmore, the Bentonville district’s construction manager and director of facilities.
Passmore said air samples were taken throughout the school, including the cafeteria, the gymnasium and in the north and south ends, both upstairs and downstairs. The only part of the school that came back with elevated mold readings inside the building was the south end. Further testing showed that there was more mold in the air outside the south end compared to other parts.
The data led Passmore and other school officials to believe that the mold is coming from outside the building and that the likely culprit is the wood mulch on the playground at the school’s south side. Although full results of the tests have not come back, Passmore said that preliminary results indicate the type of mold found in the school is common with dying vegetation.
The Facilities Committee discussed several options, including removing the mulch and purchasing a different material for the playground. Committee members decided, however, to wait until all the test results have been returned. It is possible that the results may show simply that this summer’s heavy rains produced higher than normal mold counts.
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
