Lead dust found in Wallace Building

Testing has identified widespread lead dust contamination on the first and second floors of the Wallace State Office Building, which houses 495 state employees in Des Moines, state officials have confirmed to The Des Moines Register.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says the highest contamination levels were found in and around a former indoor shooting range on the second floor, which had been used by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

The potential threat to workers' health remains unclear.

Lead is a metal used in thousands of industrial products, but many uses have been banned. It can damage the nervous system, kidneys, blood-forming organs and the reproductive system if inhaled or ingested in dangerous quantities.

However, state officials do not believe the contamination poses an immediate health threat to employees who work there, said Caleb Hunter, deputy director of the Iowa Department of Administrative Services, which oversees state buildings.

The Wallace Building, which is just northwest of the Capitol, has been a focus of controversy almost since the gold-glass structure was completed in 1978. Many state employees who work there have said they suffer from "sick-building syndrome," resulting in complaints of headaches, sore throats, nausea and other ailments.

The Legislature in 2013 approved plans to close the facility and rebuild it, but Gov. Terry Branstad vetoed the plans, saying his priority for the state Capitol complex was the repair and remodeling of the State Historical Building.

Worst areas linked to shooting range

A DNR memo obtained by the Register details the results of initial testing at the building. The lead dust was especially found in air exchange duct work, the memo said. Of four vents tested, the second-floor lactation room vent was the only one with lead below the detection limit. Mercury was also found at the former shooting range floor, most likely from broken fluorescent light bulbs, the memo said.

While the worst contamination was found in and around the former shooting range, "lead was also discovered in most of the floor wipe samples from the 1st and 2nd floor," the memo said. Samples were also collected from the third, fourth and fifth floors, but the vent system was not tested above the second floor.

The DNR memo, which was dated Oct. 29 and addressed to DNR Director Chuck Gipp, said the tests were conducted by the state agency's Contaminated Sites Section and included samples collected from 20 locations on the first and second floors. But while the scientific analysis equipment and procedures used for the study met regulatory standards, the DNR's staff is not certified to conduct indoor lead analysis. So the study's findings should be used for information only, the memo said.

No decisions will be made about addressing the lead issue until formal testing is completed by Cardno ATC, a nationally known engineering and consulting company hired by state officials, Hunter said. The Cardno firm's work is still underway, he said Friday. "We understand that there are concerns, and we are going to get an official perspective on that," Hunter said.

Professor: Ranges pose known hazards

Known hazards are associated with indoor shooting ranges, said Dr. Laurence Fuortes, a professor of occupational health at the University of Iowa's College of Public Health. Workers who maintain indoor firing ranges have suffered lead poisoning, and people simply using firearms at indoor shooting ranges have had elevated levels of lead in their blood, he said Friday.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cautioned in a report in April that indoor firing ranges are a source of lead exposure and elevated blood lead levels among employees, their families and customers, despite public health outreach efforts and comprehensive guidelines for controlling occupational lead exposure.

About 1 million law enforcement officers use an estimated 16,000 to 18,000 indoor firing ranges nationwide, the CDC report said. Interventions for reducing lead exposure at firing ranges include using lead-free bullets, improving ventilation and doing wet-mopping or high-efficiency particulate air vacuuming for cleaning, the CDC said.

Jens Nissen, a supervisor at the Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration, said he was aware of the DNR's memo confirming lead contamination at the Wallace Building, but at this point his office is not conducting any enforcement action.

"If we do get a complaint from employees, we will definitely do what we need to do to perform the actions we are responsible for in terms of conducting inspections," Nissen said. He added that any potential problem with lead at the Wallace Building would likely involve surface contamination, not airborne limits.

Many problems cited over the years

State officials say the building's distinctive architecture and unusual interior floor plan have challenged tenants as well as the building's managers over the years. In addition to workers' complaints about sick-building syndrome, the building has had mold and plumbing problems. It's been described as too noisy, and some areas lack privacy.

The plans the Legislature approved in 2013 to rebuild the Wallace Building would have taken three to five years and cost an estimated $40 million to $50 million. The building's employees would have been relocated during the interim to the 36-story Ruan Center in downtown Des Moines. But Branstad issued a veto.

Branstad left Friday for a vacation to Italy with his wife, Chris, and wasn't available for comment.

Stacy Sipe, a DNR land management employee who works on the fifth floor of the Wallace Building, said Friday she "absolutely" has concerns about the presence of lead in the building. But she noted that additional testing is still underway by the outside firm.

However, Brian Lenz of Des Moines, an environmental consultant who often does business at the Wallace Building, said he's not worried.

"The lead is not very volatile," he said. "You are not going to ingest it. Asbestos would be more of a concern."

About the Wallace Building

WHO WORKS THERE: It houses state employees from the Iowa Department of Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources, the state auditor's office, Department of Inspections and Appeals and the Iowa Public Information Board. Other state agencies have also occupied the building in the past.

ITS NAME: The building's official name is the Henry A. Wallace Building, in honor of the Iowa native who served as vice president under President Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1941-45, and earlier as agriculture secretary.