Establishing a Community Advisory Group

January 2004

After being burdened with figuring out how to clean up the lead, Omaha needed a plan of action. While lead cleanup in the United States was not a new subject, the city wanted to make sure that citizen input played a role in achieving fair representation in this cleanup. The EPA tasked Union Pacific, who owned and operated the land ASARCO based their lead smelting plant on, to help assist in creating a Community Advisory Group as they claimed they were committed to the community of Omaha and its residents. This included members from many organizations across the city such as the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, Metro Omaha Medical Society, Omaha Housing Authority, OPS School Board, members from different sections of city council, representatives from universities such as Creighton University and the University of Nebraska Lincoln, consultants from MFG, and citizens at large. They also mentioned that “a need for increased community participation and technical input in the Superfund process” was necessary, “in order to best manage health risks at the Omaha Lead Site.” (UPRR,1) This allowed for meaningful participation from members of the community to voice their opinions and criticisms as well as “learn about the technical issues relating to risks to human health and the environment” (UPRR, 1). Meaningful participation allows for accessible, frequent, and connecting experiences such as tabling and event holding for the community to fully engage with the situation at hand. 

This document states that Community Advisory Groups have been used across the nation and have provided crucial site-specific knowledge but also allow positive methods that have worked on other EPA Superfund sites to be applied to this Superfund site. Public input came from all over the community from residents, businesses, corporations, other action groups, tribal groups, ethnic groups, etc. in order to have a fair representation of voices from across the community. This document also states that EPA decision makers can “better … integrate community needs” (UPRR, 2) and blend both professional policy and ideas from the community into one overarching plan to clean up lead at residential sites in Omaha. This community-centered approach was especially critical given the deep distrust that had already taken root in East and North Omaha. For decades, residents had lived with lead contamination while industrial operation continued largely unregulated. Many families witnessed their children suffering from the effects of lead poisoning. When the cleanup efforts were announced, skepticism from local groups feared a possible top-down initiative that prioritized corporate interests over community health. The Governor’s task force, "consists of Governor-appointed participants” (UPRR, 2) and “primarily… communicate(s) the status of the project [the residential lead superfund site] with the Governor and the Community” (UPRR, 2) and does not involve community participation in these matters.

The handout finally concludes with what a Community Advisory Group looks like. It mentions that members will be assigned roles and responsibilities within the group and carry out important tasks such as finding objectives for meetings, pamphlets, involving important members in the community and keeping the pace of the project on track by reaching out to local, state, and national government organizations and companies involved a comprehensive plan is met for the community. This also includes goals that need to be set and met by different sectors of the Community Advisory Group. This allows members of the community to hold each other accountable for the necessary work that they need to do. Meetings were held monthly compared to other organizations such as the Governor appointed Lead Safe Neighborhoods group that meet every 3 months. It is also important to note that these people on the Community Advisory Group were from groups/organizations that “want to participate throughout the Superfund process” and work diligently to manage the time spent not cleaning up the residential sites.

United States Environmental Protection Agency, “Advantages of a CAG at Omaha Lead Site,” History of Environmental Inequalities, https://steppingintothemap.com/inequalities/admin/items/show/369.