ENVIRONMENTALRACISM

Prerequisite:CompletionofGEbasicsubjects(BlockA)andOneG.E.BlockB1course.Useofepidemiologyinenvironmentalhealth.Morbidityandmortalityincommunitiesofcolorandlower

economicstatusduetodisproportionatedistributionofenvironmentalcontaminants.

CHS370/HS 370
EnvironmentalRacism

?    Spring2013
?    Roberto Flores Ph.D
?    AdjunctAssistantProfessor
?    Dept.ofChicanoStudies
?    Robertof2@socal.rr.com

Remember:
Thissectionofthecourseistaughtfullyonline.!

Environmental Racism

?Definition:

Epidemiology Examinationofthelinkbetweenhuman exposure and health outcomes

HumanExposure
Information

Riskassessment
Estimation ofthelikelihood, magnitude anduncertainty ofhealth risksassociatedwith environmentalexposures

?Theintentionalsitingofhazardouswastesites,landfills,incineratorsandpollutingindustriesincommunities

inhabitedmainlybyAfricanAmericans,Hispanics,NativeAmericans,Asians,migrantworkers andtheworkingpoor.

StatusandtrendsEvaluation of historicalpatterns Current statusand possibleFuturechangeinhumanexposuresand/orhealth outcomes

??Route
??Magnitude
??Duration
??Frequency
??distribution

??Mostexposed
??Temporalaspects
??Geographic aspects
??Demographic aspects

Riskmanagement Determinationofwhich,healthrisksareunacceptableand whattodoaboutthem

?Thesefacilitiesmaybetiedtoacommunity’s
economicsurvivaltherebycompromising
residents’abilitytooppose“locallyundesirablelanduses.”

Importantusesof humanexposureinformation   intheassessment andmanagement ofenvironmentalhealth risks (Sextonetal.)http://www.ehponline.org/members/1995/Suppl-3/sex

ton-full.html

MeasuringEnvironmentalRacism    EnvironmentalRacism:Whydoesit occur?

How doesonegoabout determiningenvironmentalracismexists?

I.    Whatvariablesmatter?
Independent

??Relationshipbetweensocialmovements,industry,
laborandtechnology

variables

Dependent variables

Epidemiology

ONLINE

Raceand class(income,education, occupation) arecriticalvariables to
examine.
II.    ObserveEffects
A.    Wherearepolluting facilitieslocated?Wherearepesticides ortoxinsdisposed of? Inotherwords,whatpatternscanbeobservedintermsof“siting”offacilities,  dumping

oftoxins,clustering, etc.(riskfactors,exposure)
B.    Whateffectsdoes“siting”oftoxicwastehaveoncommunities

ofcolorintermsofqualityoflifeandoccurrenceofadversehealtheffects:morbidityrate&mortalityrate=epidemiological  profile ofcommunitiesexposedtowaste,toxins etc.
III.    Epidemiology examinesrisk,morbidity,mortality
IntheLosAngelesbasin,exposuretopollution fromcar
emissionsiscorrelatedwithmorecasesofasthmain children.
IV.    Assessments/Activities
Clickto seeCancerinLABasinHowdoesenvironmentalpollution affectthecancerratesthroughout theLABasin?

??TheEnvironmentalMovementandEnvironmentalJusticeMovementsprovidedifferent assessmentsandsolutionsforcommunities toaddressEnvironmentalRacism

??Science,research&technologycentraltodebates
andsolutions
?Health&theenvironment
??epidemiology

EnvironmentalismandPolicy

Preservation

??Environmentalpolicyisrootedintwocompetingperspectivesabouttheenvironment:preservationandconservation

??TwoleadingfiguresinfluencingearlyU.S.
governmentenvironmentalpolicyinclude
?Sierra Clubfounder JohnMuir(1838-1914).Activist.proposedwildlifepreservationandadvocatedfornationalparks
?GiffordPinchot(1865-1946.Policy.HeadofU.S.
ForestryService(1905-1910);hebelievedin

JohnMuir,totherightofpresidentTheodoreRoosevelt,convincedhimtoprotect wildernessland.

“Ifyouthinkaboutallthegainsoursocietyhasmade,fromindependencetonow,itwasn’tgovernment.Itwas

activism.Peoplethink,’Oh,TeddyRooseveltestablishedYosemiteNationalPark,whatagreatpresident.’BS.ItwasJohnMuirwhoinvitedRooseveltoutandthenconvincedhimtoditchhissecurity

andgocamping.ItwasMuir,anactivist,asingleperson.”
–Patagoniafounderandoutdoor
enthusiastYvonChouinardinarecentSierraMagazineinterview

http://www.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/

Quarter  coin2005

conservationandscientificmanagementofresources
forhumanuseorprofit

http://www.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/graphics/roosvelt_muir_front.jpg

GovernmentAgencies&ScientificManagement

?U.S.ForestryService

?GiffordPinchotbelievedthatscientificknowledgeneededtobeappliedtomanagementofnaturalresources.Efficiencywasthe goal.

?Inhisview,sciencecouldprovideanindependentvoicecapableofmoderatingbetweenprofitmotivesofindustryandtoomuchgovernmentcontrol.

ControlofNature: Science &Progress

?Trustintechnologytoadvanceeconomic
growth
?Burgeoningindustriesrequirelotsofnatural
resources
?Growingpopulationandurbanizationrequirehighervolumeoffoodproduction
?Pesticideskeyto“controlofnature”and
nationalprogress
?DDTchemicalwidely usedtocontrolinsects;higheragriculturaloutput

SilentSpring:PesticidesandHealth

??PublicationofRachelCarson’sbook“SilentSpring”in1962brings ecologicalawarenesstonationalpublic attention.
??CarsoncritiquesuseofDDTandenumeratesvariousharmfuleffectson floraandfauna andthelastingimpactonsoil, waterandairquality–morecritically ontheviability andvitality

ofourfoodchain.
??Sheconnectsdiseaseinthenaturalenvironmenttotheprevalenceofillnessesin humans
??Callsforlessaggressivepestcontrolmethodsto
preventthedegradationoftheenvironment
??DDTwasbannedintheU.S.in1972

GovernmentGovernment Oversight

??EnvironmentalProtectionAgencyestablishedin
1970
??Citizen inputwasveryimportanttothisnewregulatoryagency
??Stillmuchoftheregulationsfavorbureaucraticexpertknowledgesystemswhichdon’talwaysprotectresidents affectedbyharmfulfacilitiesortoxicsubstances
??Poorerandlesseducatedgroupsaremostly
excludedfrom“meaningfulparticipation”
??SeeWhyEPAwas established?

Environmental Justice Movements

??ConsolidationofanetworkofAfricanAmericanenvironmentalactivistsandorganizationssince1982thrutheUnitedChurchofChrist.

??MinorityEnvironmentalstruggleshavealonghistory.

??NativeAmericancommunitiespointoutthattheyhavebeenengagedinenvironmentalstruggles sincetheirlands
wereinvadedbyEuropeans.

??MajorenvironmentalprotectionorganizationshavebeenestablishedliketheSierraClub

(1898);buttheyhavebeentypicallyfocusedonconservation/preservationissuesandhaveoftenstayedawayfromthestrugglesofpoor communities.
http://www.macalester.edu/americanstudies/afamconf7.html           RicardoLevinsMorales,NorthlandPosterCollective

NativeAmericansandEnvironmentalRacism
??WinonaLaDuke,anativeAmericanscholar,describes thesituationinthesecommunitiesintermsofresourceextraction,dumpingofnuclearwasteandothersubstances,clearcutting

(deforesting).

??Industrialdevelopmentinitiativeshave“devoured”lands, rivers,speciesand entireculturesintheirpath.

??These“invasiveindustrialinterventions”(Laduke1999)threaten notonlythosecommunitiesbutalsobiodiversity.

Native AmericansandEnvironmentalRacism

??ThelossofbiodiversitythreatenstheexistenceofNativeAmericans.

??Attentionto thelossofbiodiversityinthiscommunityraisesissues ofpreservationofculturaldiversityandfuturegenerationsofnativesandnon-natives

??ClickNavajo
http://www.latimes.com/extras/navajo/Day1/

UrbanCommunitiesOrganizedAgainstDumping

??Mother’sofEastLosAngeles,Santa Isabel
?MELASior“LasMELAS”

??Opposedincinerators, pipelineandprisonproposals forEastLosAngeles

??AuroraCastillo,a MELASactivistput
itsuccintly:

UrbanCommunitiesOrganizedAgainstDumping

GoldmanEnvironmental Prize1995

??“Weneedconstructivejobs–nurses,doctors,computerspecialists,skilledworkers…Thestatewantstoplaceallofsociety’sproblemsinour
community–aprison,a pipeline andan
incinerator.Theywillhavetosolve
thoseproblems, notjustdumpthem
fromoneplacetoanother.”

(AuroraCastilloinDevon Pena,TierraYVida:MexicanAmericansandtheEnvironment2005:xxiv)

AuroraCastillo,residentofEastLos AngelesandfoundingMemberof
MELAS(Mother’sofEastLos
Angeles)receivedtheGoldman
EnvironmentalPrizein1995.MELAS
“isrecognizedasapoliticalforceinthe regionthathashelpedtosetimportant legalprecedentsforothergrassroots environmentaljusticegroups.”

http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/89

GoldmanEnvironmental Prize2004        AncestralLands:WaterRights
??LandandCulturevs.Commodities

Petrochemicalsandhealth

“Growing UpinCancerAlley
Margie Richard grewup in the historicallyAfrican-American neighborhood ofOldDiamondinNorco, Louisiana,ina housejust 25feet awayfromShellChemicalsplant’sfenceline.

Yearslater,she wouldleadthe front line of a long, hard-won battle to holdShellaccountableforthe devastatinghealth problems in hercommunity.Richard, 62,whose
campaignhasbeen hailedasalandmark
environmental justicevictory, holdsthe distinctionas thefirst African-American to winthe Goldman
EnvironmentalPrize.”2004

http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/100

??Acequias,centuriesoldwaterirrigationditches, usedin landgrantsinNewMexico&Colorado

??GenerationsofacequiafarmersintheSouthwesthavecleanedupthisvitalresourcesincethe17thcentury

??Communitiesareconcernedwithpollutionandthedeforesting/cuttingoftrees

??Hispanofarmershavenotonlybeenfightingfortheirlandbutalsowaterrights

Farmworkers,Agro-industriesandPesticides

??Activistslinkedpesticideusetoenvironmentaldamageandunknowneffectstoconsumer.
??Theyemphasizedworkplacesafety,qualityoflifeofentirecommunitiesandpesticiderelatedillnesses,birthdefectsanddeaths.
??CesarChaveznotedthatchemicalcompaniesandgrowersconvincedpoliticianandgovernmentregulatorsthatpesticideusewasnecessaryfortheabundanceoffood.
??Hequestionedthecost tofarmworkersandtotheenvironment.

Ecology andKnowledge: LandandCulture
??Asyoucanseetheactionsofdevelopersand
environmentalpollutershavegeneratedresistance.
??Land-basedandlaborstrugglesinruralareaslinktheissuestoecologicalimpactsandthelossofbiodiversity.
??Inurbanareas,wewillexamineeffortstoestablishcommunitygardenstoaddress“food security”butalsotheretentionandrestorationofecologicalknowledge.
??Urbancommunity gardenshighlighttheimportanceoflandinthe foodchainandtheproductchain.
??Fundamentally,thesearestrugglesfordefinitionofvalue;thepreservationofindigenous knowledgeandlivelihood;communityhealth.

EnvironmentalRacism&Justice Struggles    Power&DecisionMaking:EnvironmentalRacism

Power&Decision Makin g: “FromtheGroundUp ”

??Cole&Fosterprofileanimportantexampleofpoweranddecisionmaking

??IntheKettlemancase,thecommunitywasshutoutfromvoicingtheiropinions,concernsandobjectionstoanincinerator proposal.

??Economicbenefits fromrevenueproducedbythissite wenttocommunitiesnotdirectlyaffectedbytheeverydayoperationofthesite.

??TheCountyBoardofSupervisors votedfortheincinerator3-1.

DumpingToxicWaste:StateEnvironmentalLaws

??Publicnoticerequirements under environmentallawsleftthecommunityofKettlemanCityintheSanJoaquinValleyatadisadvantage.
??Therefore,residentsofthiscommunity didnotfindoutaboutatoxicwastefacility untilthe1980s.
??ChemWaste,Incwasproposinganincineratorexpansionthatwouldburnupto108,000tonsof(216millionlbs)toxicwasteeachyear.Thisbasicallywouldbeinadditiontothehundredsofdaily
truckloadsprocessedatthissite.
??ChemWasteownsthelargestwastedumpinEmelle,AlabamaandtwootherlargefacilitiesinCalifornia.

CerrellReport

Dangerous Patterns

??Inlookingatthedistributionofthesefacilities,activistsfoundthatmostofthetoxicwastedumpswerelocatedinpoorminoritycommunities.
??TheCerrellReportprovidedcluesaboutthesitingprocess.
??CommissionedbytheCaliforniaWasteManagementBoardandpaidforbytaxpayerdollars:
??TheCerrellreportsuggestedthatthecommunitiesthatwouldbeleastresistanttoincineratorswere:
??ruralcommunities,poorcommunities,communitieswhoseresidents hadloweducationallevels,…highlycatholic,fewerthan25,000

residents…employedinresourceextractivejobssuchasmining, timberandagriculture.(Cole&Fosterp3)

??ChemWastewasfinednumeroustimes for
unsafehandlingofwaste
??Eventhoughfineswereprettyhigh,their
behaviorcontinued
??Superfundcleanupviolations
?“samplepacking”justcheckingthefirst10trucks
insteadofensuringthatincompatiblewasteswerenotthrowntogether
?“Resident’sfiguredthatifthecompanycan’trunaholeintheground correctly,itshouldn’t begiventheabilitytodosomethingworse.”
??TheincineratorinKettlemanCitywouldbedangerousaccordingtoresidents!(Cole&Fosterp5)

ApprovalProcess:KettlemanIncinerator

??KettlemanCityresidentswereexcludedfrom
“meaningfulparticipation”invariousways.
??LackoftranslationofEnvironmentalImpactreport
??Only5 ofthe1000pagesofthedocument
translatedintoSpanish.
??Community dissentwasnottakenintoaccount intheplanningcommission’sdecisiontoapprovetheincinerator.
??TheCerrellreportwas accurateinthatinstitutionalbarrierspreventedtheKettlemanCitycommunityfrom beingheard,recording theiroppositionandparticipatinginthedecision-

making.

Racism:EffectonCitizenParticipation,Democratic
vsTechnocraticKnowledge

??Citizeninputlimitedbyclass,languageand
technicaldifferences

??Raceasignificantfactor

??Communitieshavetodocumenttheeffectsofexposureandconfrontnotonly pollutersbutalsovariousinstitutionsthatblocktheiraccess

??WhereelseinChapters1&2doyousee evidence
ofbarrierstocitizenparticipation?

GrassrootsOrganizingandCitizenLawsuits
??ResidentsofKettlemanCitysuedandthecourtruledthatlackof participationinthereview processmandatedbytheCalifornia EnvironmentalQualityAct(CEQA)wasaviolation.

??TheresidentshaddemandedreviewoftheEnvironmentalImpactReport (EIR).

??GreenpeaceandElPuebloorganizedtosend5,000postcardstothe BoardandtheFarmBureau.

??Theyalsocollected17,000signaturesinoppositiontotheincinerator.

??ChemWasteappealedthejudgment.

??Thiscasereflectedthe successofgrassrootsresistance.

??ChemWastewithdrewitsapplicationin1993citingdeclineinuseof incineratortechnology.

Terminology

??Environmentalracismandenvironmentalinjustice willbeusedinterchangeablyinallthreetextsandinthecourse.

??Theterminjusticebestcapturesthattoxicassaults moreseverely/directly affectthoselowerwithina hierarchyofclassandraciallocations.

??Environmentalinjusticeacknowledgesinequity
asa problemforeveryone.

(Cole&Fosterp15)

WhereShouldWasteFacilitiesbeSited?
??WastefacilitiesareLULUS(locallyundesirableland
uses)

??Shouldwejust stopcreatingwaste?Howdowe do
that?

??Whatarethegoalsoftheenvironmentalmovement?

Thedistributionofcommercial,hazardousorpotentiallyhazardousfacilitiesaswellasthecleanupof “superfund sites” concernsoccupationalenvironmental health.

Whatyou shouldlearn fromthispresentation
??Thisconcludestheintroductiontothecourseandthedifferent sourcesofinformationIwillbeusing.

??Youshouldreadpage1-53ofCole&FosterFromtheGroundUp: EnvironmentalRacismandtheRiseof theEnvironmentalJusticeMovementthisweek.

??Pleaseposttothediscussionboard,introduceyourselfwithname, majorandabriefbiography.

??Haveyoutakenanonlinecoursebefore?Haveyoutakenother
distancelearningcoursesbefore?

??Iwillpostquestionsfordiscussionfocusedontheoverviewand pp1-53onFriday8a.m.andyouwillhaveuntil8p.m.Mondayto postaresponse.

??MakesurethatyoulogintoWebCtthisweekagainforadditional postingsandannouncements!

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