Editor:

After reading the story about the parent concerns regarding the renovations at Roberts Creek Elementary School (Coast Reporter, Feb. 15), I felt it necessary to provide information in response to assumptions and comments made.

A parent stated it was his understanding that the paint being used lost its green guard certification in 2011. There are two separate brands of paint in Canada labeled with the same name, Natura. Benjamin Moore Paints’ brand of Natura is absolutely current with green guard certification, while our competitors’ may not be.  However, our Natura paint is the most environmentally friendly paint in the market with zero VOC That means no volatile organic compounds are emitted into the air while drying. Our colourant is also zero VOC, which means even after tinting, the VOCs do not change or increase. Natura Paint is LEED green certified, green promise certified and categorized within the MPI guide specifications.

Another assumption was made regarding off-gassing. Zero VOC paints do not off-gas. There is virtually no smell. Natura paint is dry in less than one hour and the parts per million emitted into the atmosphere after one hour of curing are so small it would take years of continuous exposure to even register any type of measurable absorption through a human respiratory system. There are ingredients that go into raw materials when manufacturing paint, so material safety data sheets must show all ingredient hazards with regards to exposure should it be ingested or splashed into the eyes during application or handling.

The risk to our kids being vulnerable to exposure are extremely minimized with one-hour drying and zero VOCs, especially if painting was completed hours before they were permitted into a room.

We recommend Natura for daycares, babies’ rooms, hospitals, schools and office environments.

Paul Morris, owner

Paul’s Paintin’ Place Ltd., Sechelt