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In Texas, the U.S. Army and Veolia Environmental Services signed a contract with the City of Port Arthur to incinerate 1.8 million gallons of a deadly nerve agent (caustic VX hydrolysate) near the Carver Terrace housing project.
In chapter 11, Vig provided causes of environmental inequality. Two of those causes were: (1) intentional discrimination and (2) political power. Prior to the City of Port Arthur, Ohio and New Jersey were also considered for incineration sites. The residents in these states fought against allowing the incineration to occur. This relates to political power. The constituents of these states were aware of the impending negotiations and came together to fight against it. The residents of the City of Port Arthur were not notified during that negotiations were occurring between the City and the U.S. Army. The City made an announcement to the residents after the deal was completed. This is also an example of intentional discrimination, where private and public officials choose the site for the incineration without notifying or getting input from the residents.
The City’s population in 2006 was 60% African American. Carver Terrace housing project was built by the City to provide low-income housing to its constituents. In Konisky’s article, he mentions that there are inequalities in environmental enforcement in poor counties. City of Port Arthur is located in Jefferson County. Jefferson County has the largest concentration of chemical-industrial complexes and is ranked in the top 10 percent of dirtiest counties. A variety of statistics were provided in the article that displayed the correlation between hazardous facilities located throughout the State of Texas, including the City of Port Arthur, and the percentage of people of color.
The City of Port Arthur has numerous refineries and chemical plants located within its boundaries. The article claims that residents that live near these locations have a higher rate of cancer, asthma, liver and kidney disease. The Carver Terrace housing project is located near one of these refineries. Therefore, the residents of the housing project are already at higher risk of disease due to exposure to the refineries and will be put to additional risks with the incineration of the nerve agent.
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Interesting story...I was reading about the effects of nerve agents and it sounds like they can have very long lasting effects including chronic neurological damage. You quoted two of the five causes of discrimination as quoted in Vig. Do you think intentional discrimination and political power were the reasons why this facility was located in this neighborhood or do you think it was for another reason such as economic?
ReplyDeleteAs I read your blog, and Kelli’s post, I am drawn to consider how market failures can be also the basis of Environmental Degradation or Injustice. Garrett Hardin’s Tragedy of the Commons understands environmental degradation as a form of market failure. Part of the importance of considering this, is that Harding gives importance to rational behavior in contributing to environmental degradation.
ReplyDeleteHe concludes that simple education or moral exhortation about the harm to the general community is insufficient to induce individuals or companies to change their polluting behavior; therefore in the end, rational self-interest usually prevails.
The prisoner’s dilemma problem is used also to define the defeating endeavor of any sense of moral obligation to advance the common good. Free-riders have the ability to destroy the benefits of communally conscious actions. Therefore, government intervention into environmental problems has come in the form of coercive regulatory action.
Patty,
ReplyDeleteThis was a fascinating article. I find it interesting, after our readings and assignments, that this is a modern-day example of a lack of public participation and community input, specifically related to such a highly toxic incineration project near a housing complex. The other points about hazardous waste site locations and Texas policy are troublesome to say the least.