www.charlesjeromeware.com " Here to make a Difference."
The national litigation law firm of Charles Jerome Ware, LLC is a Maryland-based, nationally-respected, landlord lead-based paint poisoning defense firm. For an initial courtesy consultation, contact the firm at (410) 720-6129. We can help you.
Lead-based paints have vanished from Baltimore and other communities in Maryland for residential use because of toxicity concerns. Their residential use was banned by the Federal government actually in 1977. However, in large East Coast cities such as Baltimore, District of Columbia, Philadelphia, New York and Boston, etc., quantities lead-based paint still exist on the inside and outside surfaces of many residential units (houses and apartments) which were built prior to 1978.
For certain industrial painting requirements however, lead-based paints may still be encountered.
Frequently, in cases where metal needs superior corrosion protection and may be subject to abuse a lead-based paint may be considered. For example, lead carbonate ( aka "white lead" is a superior paint pigment which has a high affinity for paint vehicles, and a tremendous " hiding" power. It was used a lot by ancient Greeks in their foods, wines, pottery and other items -- causing a lot of lead poisoning (plumbism) among its citizenry. White lead has more recently been substituted by Titanium Oxide and Barium-Zinc-Sulfur combinations. For color, "red lead" and "blue lead" are used industrially where corrosion protection and color on metal is needed. "Lead Chromates" are frequently used to produce yellow, orange, red, and green paints. "Litharge' is a lead yellow pigment often used in glass or earthenware. lead may be encountered in various glasses and glazes that may turn up in restoration projects. " Lead Flake" still finds use as an exterior primer and "lead oleate" may be encountered as a drier in paints.
Lead (Pb) is a poison in any form. It is one of the "heavy metals" [ Atomic Number= 82; Melting Point= 327.5 degrees centigrade; Boiling Point= 1740.0 degrees centigrade] and, if in waste form, must always be managed as a hazardous waste. According to one Federal government estimate, contamination of as little as 5 parts-per-million makes a waste " hazardous for lead" .
One of the reasons lead (Pb) is considered to be a more harmful poison is because it is a "cumulative" heavy metal [ Ask the Romans and the Greeks, et al.]. It is not able to dissolve in water or any other liquid, nor biodegrade, nor dissipate, nor decay, nor burn, etc. Therefore, it accumulates
to harmful levels. An estimated 10 million or more metric tons of lead residue is in the environment, according to lead (Pb) researchers.
Landlords should be aware of the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, commonly known as TITLE X, a Federal law which was passed in an attempt to reduce the number of lead poisoning victims in the United States. TITLE X is enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and it enforces regulations related to TITLE X to rental property buildings that were constructed prior to 1978.
In order to be in compliance with the EPA's regulations, a landlord must disclose any known lead-based paint or lead hazards on the property before signing a new lease or renewing a lease. In order for the disclosure to be valid, both the landlord and the tenant must sign an EPA-approved document that confirms that the landlord disclosed any known lead (Pb) on the rental property. The landlord must keep this confirming document for their records for at least 3 years after the landlord-tenant contractual relationship began.
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