From my research, the blame is the housing boom. Some “experts” say that builders had to “go outside our borders” to fill the needs of the drywall demand and that Katrina strained the supply even more. I don’t buy it. But just think of those poor folks in New Orleans who lost their homes. Not only did the government-supplied temporary trailer housing have radon gas that was making people sick, now their repaired homes contain the Chinese Drywall. So the Katrina folks just can’t catch a break. The whole thing stinks!

The hardest hit has been the Florida market. Lennar Homes is mentioned in most of the reports. Rep. Vern Buchanan, District 13, Florida, is getting to the bottom of the problem by asking the Federal Trade Commission, The Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency to find out how the Chinese drywall got into the country. I’m going out on a limb here, but could it have been by ship? There, I just saved a huge amount of paperwork and investigation. I don’t think there are enough government agencies to call on, so we need a new one. How about calling the new agency Direct Research Yielding Wallboard Accountability, Liability and Licensing (DRYWALL)?

The Walls of Fame
The Big Guns, Environmental Administrators Inc., were called in to investigate last year. A gentleman named Rick Hollister issued an initial report on April 9, 2009. That report included phrases such as, “premature to put a number on the event,” “have not determined a remedial protocol to clean up the mess,” “Good luck getting money out of the Chinese,” “Some contractors are not insured for this,” “Hell, we don’t know if it has imbedded into the wood,” and, the ever-encouraging phrase, “I have met with the top experts.” The all-important question he didn’t raise was, “How did it get into the country?”

The bulk of the Chinese gypsum arrived before the release of the Import Action Safety Plan (IASP) written from July 2007 and released on November 6, 2007. This report is a 68-page PDF document signed by Michael Leavitt, then Secretary of Health and Human Services. By the content and the 14 points of recommended action, the Chinese Drywall still would have found its way here. Some of the inspired recommendations are as follows:

SAFETY STANDARDS- Create new and strengthen existing safety standards;

CERTIFICATION- Verify compliance of foreign producers with US and safety standards through certification;

GOOD IMPORTER PRACTICES- Promote good importer practices (I can’t make this stuff up);

PENALTIES- Strengthen penalties and take strong enforcement action to ensure accountability. (Good luck …);

COMMON MISSION- “Harmonize” federal government procedures and requirements for processing import shipments;

INFORMATION GATHERING- Create an interactive import-safety information network;

RECALL-Maximize the effectiveness of product recalls; abd

TRACK-and-TRACE- Expand the use of electronic track-and-trace technology.

There also are two full pages of acronyms to translate this masterpiece. (CLICK HERE to view them.)

Now you see why I said the Chinese drywall would have made it here anyway. I don’t know, call me silly, but how about something as simple as making the imported product pass the same ICBO or UL testing that American products must pass?

If These Walls Could Talk
So how did the Chinese Drywall really get into the country? The S. S. Greed, pure and simple. Shame on the United States. I have sympathy for the poor homebuyer/owner, but disgust for all of the Wall Street Builders, whose primary requirement is this: LOW BID. This forces sub-contractors and suppliers to find the cheapest products so they can survive. So how is it profitable to ship a $5 sheet of drywall halfway around the world to the Florida Peninsula, without it being inferior to any degree? It’s another mess that could have been avoided, but as long as the S.S. Greed is afloat, look for more of the same.

I am passionate about “Gettin’ America Back in Business” and invite you to visit my new project, www.USAonly.US, a website for American-made products. List your products and visit for purchasing products made in the U.S.A.