| Public Awareness of environmental health issues |
Increase public knowledge of the relationship between human and environmental health |
Create or adapt a toolkit for personal and business use that focuses on:
1. Linking human health to environmental health, to highlight the need to prioritize EH more
2. Linking reduced longterm costs (e.g. health care) as a result of prioritizing environmentally sound decision making |
| Exposure to toxins |
Reduce childhood exposure to toxins |
1. Increase blood lead testing in children
2. Increase lead-based paint renovation in pre-1978 rental and owner-occupied housing
3. ID and train home visitation case managers on 'healthy housing' and generating referrals
4. Create or purchase a traveling house that displays potential toxins |
| Waste Management (trash/waste, recycling, dumping) |
1. Improve public knowledge regarding waste management issues
2. Survey communities to ID current practices and limitations
3. Increase available recycling sites and variety of accepted materials |
1. Utilize community service hours to clean up illegal dump sites
2. Create a student project to evaluate current waste management practices countywide
3. Conduct a reusable totebag giveaway with businesses and their customers |
| Water quality/quantity |
1. Improve public awareness and attitudes towards protecting water quality
2. Improve water quality and reduce illicit discharges
3. Support existing fund-seeking efforts to improve water quality |
1. Leverage EPA's 'Supplemental Enforcement Projects' after a release notification to fund community projects. Make sure releases are being properly reported, and follow-up with industries to see that they have risk management plans.
2. Approach SCC's Ag program to incorporate water monitoring/testing projects with their students.
3. Expand the Beatrice watershed monitoring of storm water releases to additional communities
4. Develop a marketing plan for water pollution prevention awareness (for general public, political leaders, students). May include water bill stuffer, UNL Extension newsletter, tours, Homestead education sessions, Riverfront cleanup projects |
| Dilapidated Buildings |
1. Highlight the difficulty rural communities are having with dilapidated buildings to state executive and legislative branches, county commissioners, county attorney's, county judges
2. Establish more incentive programs to foster owner responsibility
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1. Submit grant applications to NDEQ's Deconstruction program in January 2010
2. Establish and expand a self-sustaining task force on this issue (district-wide)
3. Market the issue (and task force) with political leaders so that it remains current and active |
