The following has been passed along from the Burlington Township School District to all BTSD families.
Burlington Township School District has remained committed to providing information to our families and community. It is with great relief that we can inform our families that mercury containing flooring, subflooring, concrete and stone has been removed from B. Bernice Young School’s gymnasium. The soil under the new concrete was tested and shown not to have elevated levels of mercury. As an added precaution, an extraordinarily thick vapor barrier was installed.
The final report from our consultant includes information on the monitoring and sampling of the air in the gymnasium and other areas of the building during the abatement. The abatement project increased in scope. After removal of the rubberized flooring, the mercury levels increased. It became necessary to remove the concrete as explained in my letter dated July 21, 2017. After the removal of the concrete, which was treated as hazardous waste, it became necessary to remove the stone and some soil mixed with the stone layer. Testing determined that it was not necessary to treat the stone and soil as hazardous waste.
SAFETY
During this entire process, not only the safety of the occupants of the building, but also the safety of the neighboring residents was considered. The gymnasium was under full containment during the abatement and this included HEPA filters before expelling air. This containment was cleaned and left in place during the installation of the new stone and concrete. This allowed us to keep the walls and ceiling in the gymnasium clean. The area was sealed off from the remainder of the building during this work as well. The rubberized flooring was removed immediately from the site.
MONITORING
As a reminder, the District conducted many rounds of monitoring for mercury vapor in the gymnasium and surrounding areas, prior to the abatement process, to ensure the safety of our students, staff and community. The District is pleased to report that the mercury levels never exceeded exposure limits established by OSHA, PEOSHA, EPA, and the CDC. Our consultant, experts from Rutgers University, and an occupational physician all agree that there was no threat to the people who use the gymnasium on a daily basis. Detailed information regarding mercury vapor and monitoring reports may be found on our website.
IMPACT TO THE SCHOOL OPERATIONS
The District is able to use the gymnasium with the unfinished floor, if needed. The unfinished floor is not ideal and we will avoid using this space not because it is unsafe, but because the contractors will need access to the room for an extended period of time in order to let the concrete fully cure and install the new flooring and bleachers. We expect this work to be complete by the end of Winter Break. In the meantime, alternate plans have been developed: a second multi-purpose room has been created across from the gymnasium for physical education classes; physical education classes will be held outdoors, weather permitting; health classes will be held in the students’ homeroom classroom; assemblies will be scheduled to utilize the cafeteria during non-lunch times; bus staging will be moved to hallways.
In summary, the District took an aggressive approach to protecting the well-being of our students, staff and community. Although our management of the air in the gymnasium was adequate and allowed us to maintain the mercury at acceptable levels, we were committed to removing all mercury containing material to ensure the safety of everyone. Information regarding our efforts is posted on our website.
We want to thank our community for your trust in our efforts and for understanding the necessity of all the steps taken during this time.
