Inspections of schools across the province have begun and all schools will be completed this spring,

“Over the last number of weeks, All Tech Environmental

Services Limited has been conducting inspections in schools across the

province,” said Education Minister Doug Currie. “These inspections are identifying areas of possible water infiltration dampness and mould.  The health and safety of students and staff continues to be our top priority.”

The School Inspection Committee, made up of representatives from

all three school boards, as well as the Department of Education and

Early Childhood Development and the Department of Transportation and

Infrastructure Renewal, and the Provincial School Safety Consultant

determined a school inspection priority list based on a number of

factors.  Those factors include, the age of the building, the architecture and construction of the building, the building’s maintenance history and any complaints that have been received from staff or students

A number of school inspections have already been completed and

initial reports are beginning to be submitted.  

Thus far, mould has not been a large problem;  however, there have been areas where water has infiltrated a building and caused water damage. Health and safety committees at each school will receive a copy of their inspection report and reports will be shared with principals. Following that, the reports will be posted to the Department of Education and Early Childhood

Development website at www.gov.pe.ca/eecd/schoolinspections. 

Areas that are identified as needing minor repairs will be

completed as quickly as possible. Those repairs that are more extensive

will be placed on a priority list and repairs will be completed based on

this list. Any remedial work that requires major construction will be

carried out in the summer months. However, any issues that could affect

the health and safety of students or staff will be dealt with

immediately.

This is the first phase of the project. Following any remedial

action, further investigation will take place to ensure the action taken

has addressed the issue. Where concerns are still present, more

in-depth testing will be conducted to determine the source of the

problem.  

Further testing could include comfort testing, which measures

temperature, humidity, carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2), as

well as health surveys to be completed by staff and students at the

school in question. 

The cost of the repairs are yet to be determined. However,

Minister Currie says that the health and safety of students and staff

across the province needs to be the No. 1 priority.  

“For almost a decade, building maintenance budgets suffered across the province, and now we are paying for it,” said Minister Currie. 

“We need to bring all of our buildings to a level where we know that staff and students can work and learn without health and safety concerns impeding the work that goes on in the classroom.”