PCB's (PolyChlorinated Biphenyls) are another, obsolete building material that can create both health and financial risks. Like lead based paint this construction component was also banned in the USA in 1978.

Asbestos was banned 4 years earlier in 1974.

Due to the fact that PCB’s don’t easily degrade or break down made them a popular ingredient and was predominately used in numerous construction materials for industrial use.

Even though the USA banned the materials decades ago, it is still widely used worldwide and continues to expose many to its harmful environmental effects.

Like other outdated hazardous building materials such as asbestos and lead-based paint, PCB’s are still in place and unfortunately there is no way to practically remove them all.

If not properly controlled they will subject many to far reaching and damaging health effects along with financial liabilities.

This is especially concerning in schools, hospitals and other public buildings where the risk of health and financial exposer is greater than in other typical buildings.

The more people are educated about the concerns of exposure the greater the chance of avoiding and mitigating that exposure.

The first thing to know is that PCB’s come in both solid and liquid forms and need to be dealt with differently.

For this discussion, we are looking at the solid form of PCB’s and how there is a simple and safe way to control them to avoid exposure.

I’ve personally been on projects where the coatings on a building contained all three solid hazardous materials, PCB’s, Asbestos and Lead-Based Paint.

The release of these toxic materials become more likely over time with those materials breaking down after attack from weather, UV (ultra violet) rays, building movement due to vibration, expansion and contraction along with other environmental factors such as acid rain, chemical air pollution, etc.

The first step is to identify the offending material and then contain it. This can be accomplished by covering and sealing it in place with a simple and hopefully green coating.

Although any coating will seal it in, only a sustainable, industrial coating with specific characteristics that is designed and tested for that use should be implemented.