We shouldn't have demo'ed #fixerupperdetroit ourselves: Here's why

When we were getting inspections done on #fixerupperdetroit, the inspector was very explicit that no women of childbearing age (which is different from women who are actually pregnant- this group includes women who may ever become pregnant) should help with demolition unless we took a lot of precautions.

Here's why:

Far from being isolated to Flint water pipes, lead was used in paint until the late 1970s. Our home was built in 1928 and has been remodeled multiple times, so it is virtually guaranteed that some of the paint that we'd be smashing through contained lead. That lead becomes airborne and people inhale it. For average adults with a reasonable diet, the amount is typically not overly harmful- it gets bound in the bones and never leaves.

Unless said adult becomes pregnant. Then the lead often escapes and circulates. And an amount of lead that doesn't harm an adult can have drastic effects on an unborn child.

Rebecca and I are of childbearing age and haven't decided how to have our future family yet. 

So I found myself standing in an aisle at Lowe's looking at dust masks and respirators. When I asked for help, the saleswoman told me that we shouldn't do this demolition ourselves. 

I told her I was aware of the risks, couldn't afford to pay someone, and was looking for protection. She unhelpfully started picking up boxes and reading descriptions. (I know how to read.) I ended up ordering a respirator online and buying safety glasses elsewhere.

I also took calcium supplements over the last couple weeks to try to lessen the impact of any residual lead. We haven't had our water tested yet, but it is very possible that, like Flint,  we also have lead water pipes coming into our house from the street. The question is mostly if they're leaching. We can afford to have drinking water delivery in five gallon jugs or get a whole house filter, but not everyone can.

If you're curious, though, about the high cost and slow going to demolish burnt out houses in Detroit, here's the truth:

A lot of these houses are coated in lead paint, or asbestos, or other hazards. Living in them is unsafe, but many do because they have no choice.

Demolishing them without sending up a dust cloud of environmental hazards that spreads to the rest of the neighborhood takes time, money, and training. Drinking water laced with lead and living in homes with lead paint has caused a silent epidemic of learning disabilities and behavior problems for Detroit's children.

Flint is justifiably in the news. They are suffering deeply for the decisions of politicians, and something needs to be done. Their plight made me hyper aware of the hazards in my own house, more than an hour away, though. I'm concerned that in all the media hype of sending bottled water to Flint, the public is forgetting that this isn't an isolated problem. It isn't one that can be solved in a few weeks from a couple truckloads of water. 

It's a problem that spans the entire state, especially the older urban centers, especially the areas of poverty. The danger comes not only from the water, but from paint and soil also. 

To fix it, we don't need more finger pointing or respirators or bottled water. We need an investment in community, in infrastructure, in our children. 

We need a common sense, comprehensive, moderate, sustainable plan to protect our children instead of using them as the canary in the coal mine.