‘Hot Air’

he air has not been cleared in the quarrel over air quality and environmental test reports for the Lester Vaughan School as allegations spread rapidly about the validity and completeness of the reports.

Amidst the controversy, the school’s board chairman Dr Donley Carrington appealed for parents, teachers, staff, and education officials to work together harmoniously to provide the best possible learning experience for students.

After a walkthrough at the Cane Garden, St Thomas school with officials including Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Archer-Bradshaw and others, Democratic Labour Party spokeswoman on education Felicia Dujon claimed there were two reports on the latest tests, but only one was widely circulated. She said the circulated document had “a missing page” and demanded the full report be made public.

Many parents had also contacted the media with the same complaint about a missing page.

In response, Dr Archer-Bradshaw showed reporters the 10-page report she had from Ian Weekes of Environmental Comfort and Safety Solutions Limited, the company that conducted the tests. She denied any pages were missing from the report.

Dr Carrington told Barbados TODAY there were indeed two report documents from Weekes. But, he stressed the “missing page” allegation was misleading, clarifying it was a paragraph that was omitted, not an entire page.

“Neither the board nor the ministry would have tampered with or removed any information from the report,” Carrington said. He explained there was a longer and shorter version of the same report, both received as Portable Document Format files (PDFs) by the board which forwarded them as received.

The paragraph in question theorised about possible symptoms from high volatile organic compound (VOC) exposure for chemically sensitive individuals. Carrington said he believes Weekes may have removed it from the second version to avoid confusion since it did not relate to the findings.

VOCs are organic chemicals that can vaporise into the air and are found in many products including pesticides, paint, varnish, wax, and cleaning products. VOCs can also be found in refrigerants and fuel fumes.

Both reports’ key findings were the same – that based on all tests of each building, drainage system, and a nearby cave, “there was no venting of any sewer gases” at the school.

Barbados TODAY obtained a copy of the report. The disputed section reads: “These levels are applicable to normal individuals; they are not applicable to chemically sensitive individuals. Specific production operations may exceed these levels due to the presence of one or more compounds characteristic of a specific operation. In those cases, it is recommended that OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) or NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) limits be used for those individual compounds and that they not be included in the total volatile organic value. Exposure effects – eye and respiratory irritation, headaches, drowsiness, nausea, general malaise, etc.”

However, Carrington said that what was important was that both reports had the same findings, which stated that based on all the tests done on each block and drainage system at Lester Vaughan, including a nearby cave system, “there was no venting of any of the sewer gases”.

The board chair explained that Weekes’ services were only acquired to verify that a previous environmental study was accurate.

Carrington said Weekes was hired to verify the results of a prior environmental study, after a plumbing company’s two tests – the first finding defects in the sewerage system that were then repaired, with a second successful smoke test showing the systems were properly sealed.

He noted this was the third environmental report in a short period, suggesting another may be needed to determine why students and staff have fallen ill since the latest two reports confirmed no sewer gas leaks on the compound.

The school has been closed for four weeks, with online classes. Carrington hopes fourth and fifth formers can return next week for extra lessons over the Easter break to prepare for exams.

During the walkthrough, principal Suzette Holder showed the sealed sewerage systems to officials. Dr Carl Ward, representing the Chief Medical Officer, said he was pleased with what he observed.

Meantime, the meeting that was scheduled to be held virtually on Thursday evening with parents was called off due to challenges associated with the online platform.

The meeting was to go through the findings of the environmental test and talk about the possibility of reopening the school next week.

The Zoom call only allowed 100 participants to log in and PTA president Sheena Headley said that it was only fair that all interested parents had the opportunity to participate in the session and air their concerns.

Weekes, who conducted the latest environmental test, also experienced some technical difficulties.

“Therefore, at the request of the PTA president, the meeting will be deferred to a day next week when all parents can be accommodated,” the Ministry of Education said in a press release. “At that time, Mr Weekes will be back on island and will be able to explain the report and address any concerns.”

It added that parents would be informed of the date and time for the rescheduled in-person meeting.

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb