Good news for contractors regarding the new Lead based paint law.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
www.nahb.org


NAHB Applauds EPA'S Decision to Delay Lead Paint Certification Enforcement

WASHINGTON, June 21--The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decision to delay enforcement of the new Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting rule will provide much-needed time to get more remodelers and other contractors trained - and for EPA to get the word out to consumers about the importance of hiring a certified remodeler, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

"EPA listened to our concerns and did the right thing," said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones, a builder and developer in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

In revised guidance released on Friday, EPA acknowledged that remodelers in many parts of the country have been unable to obtain the required training to comply with the rule - a problem that NAHB has urged the agency to solve since the rule was announced two years ago.

The issue came to a head in May after floods devastated parts of Tennessee and there weren't enough certified remodelers to complete much-needed home repairs. NAHB and its state home builders association proposed a delay in enforcing the rule -- a decision EPA consented to in its letter on Friday.

While remodelers, electricians, heating and air conditioning technicians and other contractors must adhere to lead-safe work practices, including special equipment filters and a ban on open flames, EPA will not take enforcement action against firms that have been unable to obtain certification until Oct. 1 of this year.

Individual contractors must apply to enroll in a training class by Sept. 30 and complete the training by Dec. 31, 2010.

"This rule potentially affects about 79 million homeowners. That's how many homes were built before 1978, when lead paint was banned," Jones said. "We need significantly more contractors certified than the 300,000 who have taken the training course, and we also need to make sure that affected homeowners understand the importance of hiring a certified contractor."

Homeowners can find a certified firm at this link. Remodelers can search for an EPA-approved training provider at this link or contact their local home builders association here to find Certified Renovator training sessions.


ABOUT NAHB: The National Association of Home Builders is a Washington-based trade association representing more than 175,000 members involved in home building, remodeling, multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design, housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of residential and light commercial construction. NAHB is affiliated with more than 800 state and local home builders associations around the country.

Spring "Greening" Tips

It's finally springtime, and spring cleaning time. How about turning it into spring greening? First, the laundry. Wash only full loads, use cold water whenever possible, hand your clothes and they will be so fresh!

Second, use Hydrogen Peroxide to clean most things instead of bleach and save your lungs and the oceans.

• Soak your toothbrushes in peroxide to keep them free from germs, use it as teeth whitening - way cheaper than other methods!



• Clean your counter tops with it, kills germs and bacteria - same with your cutting board, keep some in a spray bottle.



• Soak any infections or fungus on your body in it



• A cup of peroxide in laundry keeps it white and bright



• It cleans mirrors streak free!

Third, plant your garden with organic seeds and soil, and plant food. You can follow my son Jesse Grimes' adventures in his garden in Dana Point. He calls it the Trailer Trash Gardener at: http://jessebythesea.blogspot.com/ He is planting an organic garden in his yard at his mobile home, proving you can reap lots of food in a tiny space.

Rip up your Lawn - save water, work, use your yard as a grocery store!

As you may have read in previous blogs, I am a great proponent of ripping up your lawn. Why? Well, lawns use an amazingly large amount of water to upkeep, gas mowers contribute to air pollution, and lawns are not native to this area of the country. This is a great time of the year to consider this, as you can coordinate it with your regular spring planting.

Native plants are always a better choice for Mother Earth. Tree of Life Nursery http://www.californianativeplants.com/ has great classes with instructions on how to du this and alternatives once the lawn is removed. There are many beautiful landscape options available. Xeriscape landscaping creates a garden that will withstand drought conditions.

Or, why not grow a vegetable garden? A vegetable garden is not only an attractive alternative to a lawn, but with proper planning it uses significantly less water (30 percent to 60 percent less, depending on which study you read). Growing vegetables as a lawn substitute can be a rewarding experience while creating a very interesting landscape. Urban Plantations will help you with any aspect of this process. http://www.urbanplantations.com/.

Toilet to Tap Campaign? They need a better name!

The City of San Diego City Council just approved a campaign to educate people about reusing greywater. Details can be found here: http://sandiegonewsroom.com/news/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=40233:toilet-to-tap-campaign-approved-by-council&catid=110:city-of-san-diego&Itemid=34

Summary:

San Diego currently imports almost 80 percent of its water from outside the region, according to Coastkeeper Executive Director Bruce Reznik, who addressed the city council on Tuesday. This campaign seeks to lessen the city’s reliance on energy and expensive imported water. “Our over reliance on these sources has tremendous environmental and economic impacts on our region,” Recycling wastewater into drinking water is a reliable, cost-effective and environmentally friendly way to enhance our local water supplies,” said Reznik.

I agree wholeheartedly. Years ago a friend of mine had a porcelain device on top of his toilet tank that took the clean tank water before it went into the toilet and pumped it like a faucet into a small sink that rested on the top of the tank. It was brilliant!! One could wash their hands after peeing with the toilet tank water and not turn on the sink tap and waste water. The soapy hand washing water just went into the tank for the next flush. I recently saw one of these online and vowed to purchase it, just can't remember where I saw it!

The name of the campaign though - Toilet to Tap? What are they smoking? This does not make me want to recycle my grey water, it makes me think the toilet water, not the tank water is being used for the tap.

Recycling grey water is surely the future.

Fallen Fruit vs Forbidden Fruit

I just found this on NAR's website:
Groups are popping up that promote the gleaning of fruit from neglected or overlooked urban fruit trees. One such group is Fallen Fruit in Los Angeles, which offers online maps showing the locations of publicly accessible fruit trees. Fallen Fruit urges others to post maps of their neighborhoods to the website.
The organization is also encouraging homeowners to throw “Public Fruit Jams,” essentially canning parties to share the taste, savings, and sweaty work inherent in preserving peaches, plums, blackberries, apricots, and other fruits. Fruit gathered from public spots like parks is free, and enough canning supplies to get you started will run about $60.
Let's go pickin!