Chestnut Lodge Public Advisory Issued

The City of Rockville has issued a public advisory for people in the area around Chestnut Lodge. >The full advisory is available here.

Here is the text:

As you know, Rockville suffered a tragic loss when the Chestnut Lodge, located on West Montgomery Avenue was destroyed in a fire. During the fire, paint chips were released to the neighborhood. Rockville officials surveyed the area surrounding Chestnut Lodge and found that paint chips were confined to a relatively small area to the immediate north of the fire in the vicinity of 411 West. Montgomery Avenue.

Test results have confirmed that these paint chips contain lead. While the lead concentration in the chips is lower than the U.S. EPA hazardous waste threshold, these chips should still be handled and disposed of with care. According to U.S. EPA, people exposed to high levels of lead from eating paint chips or breathing lead dust may experience muscle and joint pain, memory problems, nerve disorders, high blood pressure and reproductive problems. Small children are particularly susceptible to adverse effects from lead exposure.

The paint chip distribution appears to be confined to a relatively small area in the neighborhood. Residents finding paint chips are advised to take the following precautions:

• Keep toddler-age children away from areas containing these paint chips.
• Remove any remaining paint chips from your yard. Use gloves and wash your hands after handling this material.
• Residents are asked to bag the material and place it in their refuse containers (where it will ultimately be incinerated). Alternatively, the chips may be taken to the Montgomery County Solid Waste Transfer Facility on Frederick Road (aka Rockville Pike).
• If a significant number of chips have been incorporated into the soil following recent rain events, residents may wish to have that area of their yard tested before continuing to use it as a child’s play area or for a vegetable garden.
• Soil testing can be performed at several area laboratories easily identified in the phone book. The lab will need about a baggie full of soil taken from the first 2 inches of the area in question. Results should be available in about a week and cost approximately $35.

For more information, Residents can call the EPA Lead Hotline (8 am – 6 pm) at 1(800) 424-5323; or the Rockville Environmental Management Office at (240) 314-8870.

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