pt. 1. Environmental hazards inside the house. 1. Radon : What it is and why all the fuss ; Radon's "discovery" ; How radon gets into a house ; Factors affecting the radon level ; How to find out the radon level ; Kinds of tests ; Acquiring a detection device ; Doing the test yourself ; Professional testing ; WL & pCi/1L what those levels mean ; EPA guideline levels ; Radon reduction: preliminaries ; Radon reduction methods ; Reducing radon in water ; Finding the contractor ; It's finally done, or is it? Follow-up testing ; EPA regional offices for radon ; State agencies for radon
2. Asbestos : What it is and what it does ; Its discovery/its history ; Diseases linked to asbestos ; The toll asbestos is taking ; Asbestos levels ; Extent of problem ; When it's a hazard and when it's not ; Finding the asbestos in your home ; Taking a sample ; Checking the condition of the asbestos ; Other considerations ; Monitoring the air for asbestos ; Evaluating the problem/deciding what to do ; It's OK, for now ; You're ready to begin: finding a contractor ; Final pre-abatement inspection ; Worker protection ; Containment during abatement ; Abatement methods ; How it's done ; Cleanup/follow-up ; EPA regional offices for asbestos ; State agencies for asbestos
3. Lead. A brief history ; Who's at risk and why ; Sources of lead ; Testing for lead ; Levels ; Lead abatement methods for paint ; Before starting the abatement ; Removal ; Replacement ; Encapsulation ; Post abatement: the cleanup ; Ridding your water of lead ; Removing the lead threat from dust/soil ; Eliminating other sources: food/pottery ; EPA regional offices for lead ; State agencies for lead
4. Water. A few water facts ; A brief survey of federal action ; The source of drinking water ; How water becomes contaminated ; The contaminants: what they are and what they do ; Primary drinking water standards; how MCLs are measured ; Microbiological contaminants ; Inorganic chemicals ; Organic chemicals ; Radionuclides ; Secondary drinking water standards ; How safe is your water ; When to test your water ; How to test your water ; Stopgap measures to make your water potable ; Water treatment: preliminary steps ; Where to treat the water ; Purification versus filtration ; Water treatment: purification ; Water treatment: filtration ; EPA regional offices for water ; State agencies for water ; State certification offices for drinking water laboratories
5. Chlordane and the pesticides : A brief history of pesticide use ; What pesticides are used for ; The problem ; Practicing prevention: avoiding the need for pesticides ; Is there a problem? ; Non-toxic pest elimination ; The traditional pesticides ; Reading the label: directions/precautions ; Determining the amount of pesticide ; Using the pesticide ; Storing the pesticide ; Disposing of the leftovers ; Chlordane and termiticides ; Applying a termiticide ; Termiticide hazards ; Choosing a pest control company ; Clearing the air ; EPA regional offices for pesticides ; State agencies for pesticides/termiticides (Chlordane)
6. Formaldehyde : Urea-formaldehyde foam insulation ; The hazards of formaldehyde ; Formaldehyde levels ; How to tell if your home has UFFI ; Formaldehyde in mobile homes ; Testing for formaldehyde ; What to do about a formaldehyde problem ; Formaldehyde prevention ; EPA regional offices for formaldehyde ; State agencies for formaldehyde
7. Other indoor air pollutants : Those at greatest risk ; Ways to reduce indoor air pollution ; Indoor pollutants ; Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS): health hazards and reduction ; Respirable suspended particles (RSP): health hazards and reduction ; Carbon monoxide (CO): health hazards and reduction ; Nitrogen dioxide: health hazards and reduction ; Volatile organic compounds (VOC): health hazards and reduction ; Biologicals: health hazards and reduction ; Electromagnetic fields (EMF): health hazards, control and mitigation ; EPA regional offices for indoor air pollutants ; State agencies for indoor air pollution.
pt. 2. Environmental hazards outside the house. 8. Hazardous waste sites : The problem ; Superfund: what the government is doing ; National priorities list of waste sites/1989 ; What you can do ; EPA regional offices for hazardous waste sites ; EPA solid and hazardous waste agencies
9. Nuclear power plants and weapons plants : A brief history ; Nuclear power mishaps ; Nuclear power: some pros and cons ; Nuclear power plant locations and status ; Nuclear weapons plants ; Hazards at weapons plants ; Weapons plants: location, function and hazards ; Public document rooms
pt. 3. Buying an environmentally sound house. 10. Shopping or a home: using your eyes, ears and nose, and realtor, inspector, lawyer etc. etc. : Step 1: Your own, personal inspection ; Inside the house ; Outside the house ; In the neighborhood ; "Conclusions"
Step 2: Checking the house out, for real : The real estate broker/the owner ; Neighbors ; Government agencies ; The local newspaper ; Local community groups and organizations ; The house inspection ; Legal issues or "caveat emptor"
Appendixes : A. Buying a house: environmental checklist ; B. Other helpful phone numbers ; C. Where to call in Canada.
