Trump administration rolls back lead cleanup standards, potentially leaving tens of thousands of omaha families exposed

Tens of thousands of Omaha residents may remain exposed to dangerous lead contamination in their yards after the Trump administration reversed more protective cleanup standards established under President Biden. The policy shift particularly impacts families in what’s already the nation’s largest residential lead Superfund site, where a century of industrial pollution left 400 million pounds of lead scattered across the city.

The stakes are deeply personal for families like the Prines, whose children have tested positive for elevated blood lead levels. When the Biden administration lowered cleanup thresholds from 400 to 200 parts per million in 2024, it offered hope to over 13,000 additional Omaha properties that could have qualified for government-funded soil remediation. However, Trump’s recent guidance tripled the threshold to 600 parts per million, effectively eliminating most of these families from consideration.

The contamination stems from the former American Smelting and Refining Company, which operated on Omaha’s riverfront from 1870 to 1997. While the EPA has already cleaned up nearly 14,000 yards since 1999 using settlement funds, mounting scientific evidence shows harm occurs at much lower lead levels than previously understood. Lead exposure can cause permanent IQ loss, developmental delays, and speech problems in children—effects that may be irreversible.

Many Omaha residents remain unaware of the ongoing contamination, discovering the danger only after their children test positive for lead poisoning. With Nebraska facing budget constraints and the Trump administration cutting EPA funding by half, the future of expanded cleanup efforts remains uncertain, leaving families to take costly protective measures on their own.