Find It, Fix It, Fund It is an initiative from the National Safe and Healthy Housing Coalition and the National Center for Healthy Housing committed to eliminating lead poisoning.
Kara Eastman, President and CEO of Omaha Healthy Kids Alliance, says the crisis in Flint brought to the surface the huge issues we have with lead in our country.
She says lead in our pipes is just one of the problems.
Eastman says Find It, Fix It, Fund It is a dedicated response to ensure federal, local and state agencies work together with people on the ground to finally get rid of the number one environmental hazard to kids.
"The interior hazards that are present are not being looked for and found at the same level as we are looking for and finding exterior hazards in Omaha. And so we’ve given people a false sense of security so they feel if they’ve had their yard replaced or the exterior of their home painted, they don’t necessarily have to worry about lead but in 90% of cases where we have a kid that’s been exposed to lead in our city, there’s an interior lead-based paint present.”
Eastman says Omaha Healthy Kids is diligently working on finding the lead in Omaha and educating people on how to address these issues.
For homes with lead paint hazards, this may mean conducting long-term efforts to remove the paint.
For homes with high lead levels in water, you should start using filters and bottled water and ultimately, replace your lead drinking water pipes.