Have a new construction site that has piles and piles of new lumber? Here’s something you might not know -- there is a hidden risk you might not have planned for in your insurance coverages - mold. That’s right! Surface mold can grow on the surface of freshly cut wood. Builders Risk Insurance usually excludes or limits damages from mold. A sample Builders Risk Mold Exclusion provides: “The following types of damage (including but not limited to Dam- age and Contingent Damage) and resulting Time Element are not insured under any circumstance, regardless of whether caused by or resulting from an Insured Cause or Loss: bacteria, fungi, virus, mold, spores, wet or dry rot.” • Claims for mold and water damage should be kept separate so that when property must be removed due to water damage regardless of subsequent mold growth, it is not excluded by a mold exclusion. Fungi grows in suitable temperature, oxygen, and moisture environments. Controlling temperature and oxygen is not possible but controlling moisture is.