How Solon Homes Ignored Lead Safety Rules and Put Families at Risk

A Pattern of Negligence

• Uncertified Operations: Solon Homes, a Colorado renovation firm, conducted extensive remodels on multiple pre-1978 Pueblo homes without obtaining the EPA-required firm certification under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
• No Certified Renovators Assigned: The company failed to assign EPA-certified renovators at two inspected sites—violating clear mandates intended to prevent lead exposure during renovations.
• Lead Dust Everywhere: Inspectors found that floors and grounds were left uncovered, allowing toxic lead debris to spread unchecked during renovation activities!
• Hazardous Waste Mismanagement: Paint chips and lead-laden debris were observed uncontained outside work areas, violating EPA waste containment standards designed to prevent neighborhood contamination.
• No Warning to Residents: No signage warned occupants or bystanders to stay clear of toxic zones, leaving community members exposed without even knowing it.
• No Proof of Safety Measures: When asked to produce records of compliance– like certified renovator assignments or post-cleaning verification– Solon Homes had none. Four separate documentation violations confirmed systemic disregard for federal recordkeeping rules.

The Macro Consequences

The Public Health Crisis

Each violation carries the same risk: lead poisoning, particularly in children. Pueblo’s housing stock- much of it pre-1978- is already at elevated risk for lead exposure. When firms like Solon Homes bypass containment rules, microscopic lead dust spreads through air ducts, soil, and household surfaces. This matters because long-term lead exposure is irreversible, causing neurological damage, learning disabilities, and developmental delays across entire communities.

The Environmental Toll

Lead particles obviously don’t stop at the property line. With no plastic ground covering, EPA inspectors found waste falling directly into open soil. That means the contamination could leach into yards, gardens, and storm drains, turning simple home renovations into a public environmental hazard.
Pueblo’s older neighborhoods may now face soil contamination requiring costly remediation, further burdening taxpayers and residents who never consented to the risk.

The Economic Fallout

The EPA’s penalty ($40,200, payable in six installments) represents less than the cost of a single moderate remodel. For a homebuilding firm like Solon Homes, that’s a manageable fine, not a deterrent. The low cost of noncompliance signals to other contractors that violating federal safety rules can be written off as a business expense, undermining fair competition and public safety alike.

The Erosion of Trust

Solon Homes neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing, and the settlement closes the case without adjudication. Residents are left with contaminated homes and no public acknowledgment of harm, while regulators accept partial penalties that fail to reform the system.

Accountability Deferred

The EPA’s consent agreement with Solon Homes ends the enforcement action but doesn’t fix the underlying problem: a regulatory system that fines rather than reforms. The company remains in business, with no requirement to train staff, decontaminate sites, or notify affected residents.

This case, fourteen separate violations reduced to a payment plan, shows how toxic negligence can be settled like a parking ticket. Real accountability would mean mandatory retraining, public disclosure of affected properties, and community testing for lead contamination. Without those, the pattern continues: profit over safety, compliance over justice.

I decided to skip the introduction here since idk if anybody was actually reading it or just skipping straight to the meat and analysis of the case. We’ll see how this new way of doing it works! But first, please visit this following EPA link for a copy of the above consent agreement: https://yosemite.epa.gov/OA/RHC/EPAAdmin.nsf/Filings/9ED4559B70D9F5B285258D10006F63FD/$File/TSCA-08-2025-0009%20Solon%20Homes%20Consent%20Agreement_rev%209.23.25.pdf