Lead Paint Removal: Our Hazardous Waste Disposal & Abatement Process During Demolition

If you lived in the 1800’s, there’s a good chance your bedroom wallpaper would have contained arsenic. Those toxic ink particles and vapors would lazily float through the air, and slowly accumulate inside your body. It wouldn’t have been long before you joined the growing list of mysterious illnesses being reported.

Thankfully, we’ve learnt a lot since then about protecting our health and wellness. People no longer give whiskey to teething babies. Buildings aren’t insulated with asbestos. And lead isn’t used in makeup or paint anymore. 

Even though these practices are extinct, these hazardous materials often rear their ugly heads during industrial demolition. 

Lead paint is often discovered during the early phases of our demolition projects. Since the product wasn’t phased out until the 1970s, many power plants, mills, mines and other industrial buildings from before that period are likely to require lead abatement procedures.

It’s surprising that it took us that long to rid ourselves of lead-based paint. The CDC reports that “between 1925 and 1927, more commercial painters died from lead poisoning than all other occupational groups combined.” Even despite those risks, painters at the time still chose lead-based paint since it was considered vastly superior. 

This article explores some important information on lead-based paint, and how we at Richmond Steel Demolition Services safely remove and dispose of it.

What Are The Dangers of Lead Paint?

Most people know that lead-based paint is dangerous, but not many people are aware of all the associated risks. Consider this excerpt from the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety:

Effects of Long-Term (Chronic) Exposure: VERY TOXIC. Can cause permanent damage to the nervous system. Symptoms may include restlessness, reduced ability to think, muscle tremors, memory loss and personality changes. In severe cases, symptoms may include muscle weakness, loss of feeling or prickly sensation in the hands, feet, arms or legs, clumsiness and paralysis. Can cause permanent damage to the kidneys. In severe cases, symptoms may include fatigue, increased or decreased urination, nausea, and vomiting. May harm the blood. In severe cases, symptoms may include paleness, fatigue, weakness, dizziness, confusion, shortness of breath and headache. 

The list of concerns doesn’t stop there. Here are just a few of the other potential risks:

While there are government set permissible limits for lead exposure, every effort should be made to minimize contact—especially for demolition crews.

Dump truck and excavator working on demolition site

Why In The World Were Lead-Based Paints Ever Used?!

After reading that laundry list of risks and health concerns, you’re probably asking: “why was lead paint ever used?” Before all of the negative side-effects became apparent, lead paint did offer several key advantages that made it popular at the time.  

Mold and Mildew Resistance: Lead has antimicrobial properties that helped prevent mold and mildew growth on painted surfaces.

Could There Be Lead Paint On My Site?

Earlier, we mentioned the phasing out of lead-based paints began in the 1970’s in Canada. This phasing-out process however took several decades. 

In Canada, it took until the 1990s for regulations to begin applying limits on lead usage in commercial and industrial paint applications. Finally, in the early 2000s, comprehensive regulations effectively banned lead in all paints (although specific industrial uses had longer timelines, but have since transitioned to safer alternatives).

Buildings constructed before the mid-nineteen seventies are more likely to have lead-based paint. With older buildings, the likelihood is often higher. 

Lead-based paints often come with some telltale signs to watch out for: 

The most reliable way to determine if your building has lead paint is through professional testing. Methods such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF) can be used, which can detect lead without disturbing surfaces. Alternatively, paint chip sampling, where small paint samples are analyzed in a lab for lead content, can also be a reliable indicator.

At Richmond Steel, our personal experience in demolitions has shown us that old mines, mills, oil & gas, and power facilities are often likely to contain lead paint.

High reach shear demolishing an industrial building

Overview of the Lead Paint Removal Process: Lead Abatement

Lead abatement during the demolition of a building involves several critical steps to ensure the safe removal and handling of lead-containing materials. 

The process begins with assessment and planning, identifying areas with lead-based paint and assessing the risk. Containment areas can be set up to prevent the spread of lead dust and debris; while workers are equipped with personal protective equipment (PPE) and follow our standard operating procedures (SOPs). 

One of our key practices is avoiding blasting techniques, which can disperse lead dust into the air. Instead, our crews meticulously tear down structures, using precision and care. The use of shears helps to carefully tear apart materials while minimizing direct contact and reducing the risk of lead exposure.

Safety Measures: Protecting Our Crews from Lead Paint Exposure

Considering the many health hazards of lead paint, Richmond Steel has strict procedures in place to ensure the health and safety of our crew during lead abatement. While on site, everyone is required to follow our comprehensive written guidelines and standard operating procedures at all times.

To further protect our crews, we equip them with Powered Air-Purifying Respirators (PAPR) when necessary, ensuring they have the highest level of respiratory protection. Regular blood monitoring is also conducted to track lead levels in our employees, allowing us to take immediate action if elevated levels are detected.

These are just some of the crucial safety measures used in maintaining a safe working environment and safeguarding crews as they handle lead-based materials.

Lead Paint, Our Hazardous Waste Disposal Process

Once materials are carefully removed, they are sent to our integrated mill, which is equipped to process lead-contaminated scrap metal.

At the mill, lead-contaminated materials are processed, and any lead paint on steel is burned and captured off during the melting process. Our facility features a 'baghouse' system with scrubbers that capture fumes and lead particulates released during melting. This advanced filtration system ensures that harmful lead particles do not enter the atmosphere, safely containing and managing the lead residue.

This thorough disposal process ensures that lead paint is managed responsibly, protecting both our workers and the environment from potential lead contamination.

Conclusion

Times have changed. Wallpaper might not contain arsenic these days, but there is still a large amount of lead paint to be found—especially in older industrial sites. 

At Richmond Steel, our lead abatement process handles this hazardous waste disposal in a way that protects people, and our environment. If you have a demolition or material recovery project that could contain lead paint, it’s important to follow the proper procedures. Talk to our demolition specialists today and learn how Richmond Steel’s Demolition Services can guide you through the process safely and efficiently.

Employee Spotlight: Shining a Light on Our Incredible Team Members

In today's fast-paced corporate world, where the focus is often on company achievements and milestones, it's easy to overlook the unsung heroes who work tirelessly behind the scenes. In this Employee Spotlight, we take a moment to honor the dedicated individuals who play an integral role in the success of our organization. These exceptional employees may not always seek the limelight, but their unwavering commitment and passion deserve recognition. Our hats go off to Kevin Romphf this month from our Field Services team, thank you for all that you do! Check out Kevin's answers to our questionnaire below:

What has been your experience with our company? Years of work? Different positions?

High safety detail, worked as a supervisor and operator.

How is your team? 

The team is growing and changing with every project.

What improvements have you seen within yourself after joining RSR? 

Dealing with disorganization 

Who do you think is your biggest inspiration in our company? 

Safety in the workplace and the understanding of the team.

How have you grown professionally after joining our team? 

Dealing with disorganization 

What resources and benefits do you like within the company?

There are many team members that can be contacted for many situations.

Employee Spotlight #1 - Tayla Raschella Gawley

The human resources team at Richmond Steel Recycling is always looking for news ways to engage the various members of our team. We've come up with the bi-monthly employee spotlight, which gives members of staff the opportunity to share a little bit about their experience with us. This month we are proud to present you all with our first spotlight, Tayla Raschella-Gawley. Our HR team asked her the following questions...

1. What has been your experience with our company? Years of work? Different positions? 

I have worked for Richmond Steel Recycling for over two years, during this time I have learned quite a bit about metals recycling and yard operations. I have worked in many different roles such as non-ferrous shipper receiver, heavy equipment operator, scale operator, lead hand, etc.

2. How is your team?

The Edmonton team is fun and approachable; they are always willing to help each other and customers. The environment at the Edmonton yard makes coming to work enjoyable

3. What improvements have you seen within yourself after joining RSR?

I have learned so many things at Richmond Steel but what I have enjoyed the most is learning how to operate the many different types of equipment we have on site.

4. Who do you think is your biggest inspiration in our company?

My biggest inspiration at Richmond Steel is Beverly Cowan. Her vast knowledge and willingness to help is very inspiring. When I have questions - she always has the answer.

5. How have you grown professionally after joining our team?

I believe the knowledge I have gained while working at Richmond Steel has helped me grow professionally which has allowed me to build more confidence in pushing my own limits to take on bigger challenges.

6. What resources and benefits do you like within the company?

One of the better benefits within the company is its willingness to invest in professional development of its employees, I have been fortunate to be able to benefit from this first hand.

Congratulations on the fabulous work Tayla, Richmond Steel is lucky to have you!

National Indigenous Peoples Day

June 21st is National Indigenous Peoples Day here in Canada. Richmond Steel Recycling would like to join and pay homage to the rich history and countless contributions of the First Nations, Inuit, and Metis peoples of Canada and North America.
We operate in numerous communities across British Columbia and Alberta, so we pay our respect to the different bands and territories in which we operate. Our values of respect for the environment align deeply with that of the Indigenous community. Please take a moment to educate yourselves today about the land you live on and the history of the Indigenous peoples. We find https://native-land.ca/ to be a great resource, please check it out.


#NationalIndigenousPeoplesDay #RichmondSteelRecycling #welovetheearth🌍

Recycling Sustains Manufacturing

Sims Metal is celebrating National Manufacturing Day to raise awareness of the critical role recycling plays in manufacturing and the circular economy. By collecting and recycling scrap metal, and other materials, Sim Metal transforms waste into new resources that are reintroduced into the production chain and manufactured into new products.

According to the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), 70 percent of materials processed by the recycling industry in the United States each year are used in American manufacturing, and 70 percent of all steel and stainless steel produced in the United States is made from scrap!

Using recycled metal, versus newly mined metal, significantly reduces the consumption of both natural resources and energy. Sims Metal helps manufacturers be more efficient and achieve their sustainability goals by recycling their manufacturing waste and preparing it to be reused. Nonferrous metals do not degrade or lose their chemical properties in the recycling process, so if they are kept out of landfills they can be recycled an infinite number of times.

Manufacturing and metal recycling go hand in hand. For this reason, we are very pleased to join ISRI in celebrating National Manufacturing Day! Find out more about how Sims Metal helps companies reach their sustainability goals and contributes to our purpose: create a world without waste to preserve our planet.   

Recycling Manufacturing Scrap

Does recycling really do anything to reduce global warming?

Recycling can help reduce global warming — but how, exactly, is still a lesson many people around the world are learning.

Svante Arrhenius published his scientific theory of global warming in 1896. He suggested that the earth’s atmosphere was becoming polluted, and that the pollutants were trapping sunlight rather than releasing it back into space. Earth was subsequently undergoing the greenhouse effect, and its temperature was rising.

It would take nearly a century for global warming to become a public concern.

Environmentalists in the early 1970s circulated information about the correlation between human activity and the planet’s polluted atmosphere. Their cause was met with a confused reaction of belief versus disbelief.

Some doubt the reality of global warming altogether, while others believe that because it appears to have no effect on their life, the planet’s rising temperature is not their problem.

Who is affected by global warming?

Whether they know it or not, everyone on Earth is directly or indirectly affected by global warming.

Among those directly experiencing the effects of global warming are farmers. The health of crops, such as wheat and corn, depends on the amount and steadiness of rain. As the climate becomes warmer, the air retains more moisture, so global warming makes it increasingly difficult for agriculture experts to predict rainfall patterns.

A common misconception is that global warming’s only effect on crops is droughts (a lack of adequate moisture from rainfalls), but these periodic droughts go hand-in-hand with floods.

Sudden overloads of water are catastrophic to farmlands, ultimately straining food production.

The less such crops yield, the less food is available to consumers, who thus indirectly experience the consequences of global warming.

Sure, global warming is gradual, and anyone alive on Earth today is unlikely to experience the end of the world, but the rate of climate change has been increasing since the Industrial Revolution. NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies reports that, “…the average global temperature on Earth has increased by about 0.8°Celsius (1.4°Fahrenheit) since 1880. Two-thirds of the warming has occurred since 1975, at a rate of roughly 0.15-0.20°C per decade.”

Human activity causes small, but significant, changes to the climate every day.

Which is exactly why small changes in our recycling habits can help reduce global warming.

How does recycling help reduce global warming?

Recall Arrhenius’s theory that pollutants in the atmosphere trap heat, causing global warming. Some of these pollutants, referred to as greenhouse gases, are carbon dioxide, ozone, nitrous oxide, and methane.

Greenhouse gases are created both naturally and by human activity. Consider metals, such as aluminum, copper, steel, and iron. When humans manufacture metal commodities from raw materials, the process of industrial production causes greenhouse gas emissions.

In other words, smelting new metal directly contributes to the pollution of the atmosphere. A robust example is steel production. Steel is made of iron ore, the mining of which causes CO2 emissions. NASA reports that CO2 contributes to 20% of the planet’s greenhouse effect, and CO2 has a tremendous duration (think centuries) in the atmosphere.

While scientists are still determining whether or not harmful gases in the earth’s atmosphere may ever completely disappear [4], it has been determined that metals may be reused. Therefore, humans have the opportunity to lessen the rate of climate change. Recycling steel, rather than mining for its elements from Earth’s precious raw resources, is a substantial way to mitigate the emission of CO2.

Where can you recycle scrap metal in Canada?

Most major cities in Canada have facilities for recycling scrap metal.

In Western Canada, Richmond Steel Recycling’s main location is in Metro Vancouver, but also has facilities in three other British Columbia locations: Kamloops, Prince George, and Fort St. John. In Alberta, Edmonton is home to a fifth facility.

If you’re considering bringing scrap metal to a recycling facility, first asses the types of metal you need recycled. Cars, for example, are frequently comprised of steel, aluminum, and iron. If your scraps are comprised of more than one type of metal, it’s important to select a company with the capacity to conduct across-the-board metal recycling.

Richmond Steel Recycling accepts a long list of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, such as steel, tin, brass, iron, aluminum, copper, lead, and zinc.

By bringing your scrap metal to Richmond Steel Recycling, rather than sending it to landfills, you will contribute to a lowered rate of greenhouse gas emissions and the overall reduction of global warming.