The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) at Dillard University (DU) organized and established advisory boards in Baton Rouge, LA, Atlanta, GA, Houston, TX, and Jackson, MS where many displaced New Orleans residents still reside. These advisory boards have been established to ensure that displaced New Orleans residents are involved in the decision-making process related to the clean-up of environmental toxins caused by post Katrina flooding, and on decisions related to the re-population of the city of New Orleans.
The brunch re-united displaced New Orleans residents in the Houston area, informed the displaced residents of the environmental conditions of New Orleans, and began preparing them rebuild the city of New Orleans. Dr. Beverly Wright director of the DSCEJ briefed the audience on an environmental report conducted by the Natural Resource Defense Council. The sediment study reported elevated levels of arsenic, pesticides, and petroleum in New Orleans East, Gentilly, the Lower Ninth Ward, Mid City, Lakeview, and St. Bernard Parish. Contaminated sediment could pose a long-term health risk to the people who are moving back into these areas.
There were approximately 50 displaced residents in attendance. Participants were able to express their concerns about the health risks that exist in the city of New Orleans, and get their questions answered about the overall state of the city. DSCEJ staff members recorded the concerns and suggestions of the displaced residents and will continue to work hard to meet their needs until they are able to return to the place they call home.
Several participants volunteered to serve on the Houston Environmental Advisory Board. The board is comprised of individuals from New Orleans and the Houston community. The board will serve as a liaison to New Orleans evacuees currently living in the Houston area.
Dr. Beverly Wright, executive director, of the DSCEJ, addressed environmental concerns in the city. Dr. Wright gave a presentation on the Safe Way Back Home project, a clean-up initiative that helps New Orleans residents be proactive in removing contaminated sediment from their yards. She explained that there are elevated levels of contaminants in the soil that can be removed efficiently. Since the breach in the levees that caused these sediments to be deposited on residential properties was due to poor engineering practices by the Corps of Engineers, the slow response of the federal government in cleaning up the contamination is unfair and unacceptable. The effort to help residents to remove contaminated soil from their properties is being funded by the Ford Foundation and the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation.
A Katrina Survival Toolkit was provided to participants attending the Atlanta, GA and Houston, TX community forums hosted by the DSCEJ. The toolkit included:
- New Orleans Resource list with contact information to government agencies and non-profit organizations;
- “Protecting Yourself While Helping Others” safety awareness booklet;
- Information and application for the Safe Way Back Home project;
- Brochure for “The Road Home” housing plan for Louisiana neighborhoods;
- Registration information for New Orleans public schools;
- The Katrina Town Crier newsletter;
- In The Wake of the Storm, report.
A SAFE WAY BACK HOME
A Safe Way Back Home is a collaborative effort between labor, environmental, and community organizations. It offers neighborhood residents whose homes were flooded by Hurricane Katrina an opportunity to join forces with local labor union members and environmentalists to take a proactive approach to cleaning up their neighborhoods. Contaminated sediment soil, grass, and other tainted items are removed from yards, 
streets, and sidewalks located on the block. Several inches of grass and top soil are removed from each yard and staged in a vacant lot for removal. Sidewalks, curbs, and streets are pressure washed until all accumulated sediment is removed. Each lot is re-landscaped with graded river sand and fresh sod. A demonstration project ran from Thursday, March 23, 2006 to Sunday, March 26, 2006. Volunteers trained in hazardous materials cleanup removed contaminated soil from properties in the 8100 block of Aberdeen Road, located in a New Orleans East community.
Health and Safety Training and Equipment
Health and Safety training and equipment was provided to volunteers before starting the clean up. The training was supported by grants from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to Dillard University, home of the DSCEJ, and to the United Steelworkers’ Tony Mazzocchi Center for Safety, Health, & Environmental Education.
Volunteers
Hundreds of volunteers participated in the demonstration project and subsequent projects implemented over the past two years. These volunteers came from universities, church groups, government programs, community programs and initiatives, and participant neighborhoods. Without their assistance, this project could not have been successful.
Collaborative Organizations
The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice at Dillard University partnered with the United Steelworkers, a labor union organization with 1.4 million working and retired members throughout the United States and Canada, working together to improve jobs; to build a better future for families; and to promote fairness, justice and equality both in the workplace and in our society.
Collaborative organizations for the clean up effort included Common Ground, Moving Forward Gulf Coast, Orleans Parish Prison Re-entry Training Program, Advocates for Environmental Human Rights, the Natural Resource Defense Council, and Clark Atlanta University Environmental Justice Resource Center. Corporate support comes from contributions made by four USW employers: McWane, Inc.; Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, BF 
Goodrich; and Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc. The Parish of St. Maria Goretti Catholic Church generously made available the use of their facility. Other professional services were donated by, R & P Landscaping and House Call Home Care Associates.
A Safe Way Back Home is funded in part by the Ford Foundation, the Mid South Foundation, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the Public Welfare Foundation, the Gulf Coast Ecological Health & Community Renewal Fund, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Rebuilding Lives
Aberdeen Road residents celebrated the transformation of their block with a block party July 15, 2006. Community residents from other neighborhoods came to see the “extreme makeover” of Aberdeen Road. Councilmember Cynthia Hedge Morrell who represents the community, shared in the celebration and commented “It doesn’t look like Hurricane Katrina hit this block.” Councilmember Cynthia Willard-Lewis of District E also shared in the celebration and offered her support of the project. Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff Marlon Gusman has committed the continual use of the Prisoner-Re-Entry program with the project.
Coming Home, One Block at a Time
The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) continues its efforts to return New Orleans residents to a safe environment, block by block. In its commitment to clean-up communities in New Orleans the DSCEJ implemented its Safe Way Back Home project on Notaway Lane, Little John St. and Fieldston Rd. The DSCEJ has reached out to New Orleans residents via the web newsletter The New Orleans Agenda, neighborhood association meetings, and by word of mouth. The response has far exceeded the Centers’ expectations. Neighborhood blocks have been cleaned up therefore reducing the health risks of exposure to harmful contaminants. As a result of the Safe Way Back Home project we have found that more residents have made a commitment to return home.
The clean-up on Notaway Lane, March 26, 2007, had over 80 volunteers from the United Methodist Church, Common Ground, and Dillard University. Cornerstone United Methodist Church allowed the Center to set up a staging area on their property for tents, tables, and chairs for volunteer training.
On Thursday, June 27, 2007 over 50 volunteers helped remediate 12 yards in the 4900 block of Little John Street. This clean up effort has helped forge a bond between neighbors that they had not experience before the storm. Some of the residents are helping their out-of-town neighbors maintain their yard by keeping their lawn watered. The volunteers from the United Methodist Church were phenomenal. They came energized and ready to work. DSCEJ Advisory Board member Margie Richard volunteered her time and donated food for this project.
To commemorate the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, on August 28, 2007 the DSCEJ joined forces with the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and the Urban League to help rebuild hurricane damaged communities in New Orleans. A Day of Service was a full day of community service events. This event highlighted community service and self empowerment. Volunteers helped Mount Zion United Methodist Church remediate the grounds of the churches’ property. Seventeen yards were remediation on Fieldston Road in New Orleans East. Former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial participated in a press conference held on Fieldston Rd. The residents in this community worked tirelessly and traveled long distances to return to their community. These New Orleans residents didn’t wait for the government to “make them whole.” There are approximately 50,000 residents that have returned to New Orleans East since the storm. The return of residents on Fieldston Rd and the surrounding community is evidence that these residents are committed to rebuilding New Orleans.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Charter School
The DSCEJ expanded its Safe Way Back Home soil remediation project to its first school at Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) Charter School in New Orleans. Volunteers from the United Methodist
Church Disaster Recovery Team, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Prisoner Re-Entry Program, the Counselors for Social Justice and the Kiwanis Pontchartrain Club spread fresh soil and laid new sod on the playground at MLK Charter School. The faculty and staff at MLK expressed their appreciation and commended the volunteers for their efforts in helping to ensure that the students at MLK Charter play in a healthy and safe environment.
Community |
Number of Yards Remediated |
Date |
Number of Individuals Trained |
Type of Training |
Aberdeen Rd. New Orleans |
25 |
3/2006 |
180 |
Health & Safety Training |
Primrose Dr. |
1 |
12/2006 |
6 |
Health & Safety Training |
Notaway Lane |
6 |
3/2007 |
80 |
Health & Safety Training |
Little John St. |
12 |
6/2007 |
50 |
Health & Safety Training |
Fieldston Rd. |
17 |
8/2007 |
35 |
Health & Safety Training |
Martin Luther King, Jr. Charter School |
1 School Playground |
6/2008 |
45 |
Health & Safety Training |
Totals |
62 |
|
396 |
|
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KATRINA HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT HEALTHY HOMES
The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice at Dillard University (DSCEJ at DU) in collaboration with Howard University received a grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) called the HUD Healthy Homes Initiative.
The purpose of the project is twofold. The first goal is to subsidize environmentally safe renovations and remodeling in 25 houses in areas of New Orleans affected by Hurricane Katrina. The second goal is to conduct Environmentally Safe Renovation and Remodeling Work Practices (ESRRWP) Training. The target audiences for training are community residents with low to moderate incomes and elderly residents, Dillard University faculty, staff and or students in the School of Nursing, and contractors whose clients are low to moderate-income families and elderly residents. The DU School of Nursing participants will be trained and mentored in ESRRWP so that they will have the capacity to provide training to students and community residents in the future.
The DSCEJ will oversee the renovation and remodeling of the 25 units. Approximately $4,000 per household will be provided to assist in environmentally safe repair and renovation work. Residents are able to select one of four services: mold remediation, soil remediation, installation of hurricane resistant windows, or installation of moisture resistant sheetrock.
In preparing for the ESRRWP training, a demonstration house was prepared to provide hands-on training for contractors as well as a visual tour for the community training. Participants learned that the number one concern in rebuilding their homes should be to build a home that is environmentally safe, and flood and moisture resistant. Workshop participants were provided with information on ways to preserve double hung wood windows and repair plaster, and how to create a clean room while rebuilding. The clean room is created to allow residents to live in a clean and safe isolated room within the house while renovation is in progress.
The next steps for program implementation include obtaining a cost analysis for repairs on each of the 25 houses from the assigned contractors, conducting an environmental review of the houses with before and after pictures, and setting the time line for the completion of the work.
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COMMUNITY PROFILES
Agriculture Street Landfill
Orleans Parish
The Agriculture Street Landfill, operated by the city of New Orleans from 1909 to the late 1960’s was a 190 acre solid waste dump. This landfill received municipal waste, construction debris, ash form incineration of municipal waste, and debris from the 1965 devastation of Hurricane Betsy that ruptured the city of New Orleans. In 1969 a program to give low income families an opportunity to become first-time homeowners was implemented by the federal government. Forty-seven acres of the landfill was developed in the 1970’s and 1980s to build Moton Elementary School and two subdivisions, Press Park and Gordon Plaza. The remaining acres of the landfill was never developed.
Agricultural Street Landfill is a middle-income community of 267 residents. The community is one hundred percent African American and has an average annual family income of $25,000. This community is contaminated with air, soil, and water pollution. In 1995, the Environmental Protection Agency declared this community a Superfund site because of the potential risk posed to the human health and the environment by hazardous contaminants.
- Although residents were not granted temporary relocation during the clean-up of their community, the workers were requested to wear protective gear “moon suits” during the clean-up.
- EPA denied a request for relocation to Agriculture Street Landfill residents and decided to instead offer the community a clean up that included the removal of two feet of soil from land around their property. Test results showed the contamination to be as deep as 17ft.
The cost of the clean up for the community was estimated at $30 million. The cost for relocation of the entire community was only $12 million.
After Hurricane Katrina, when the EPA tested the ground in New Orleans the old Ag Street landfill area yards had 50 times the normal level of the cancer-causing petroleum byproduct benzo(a)pyrene.
Nevertheless, FEMA trailers were supplied for properties in the area. Road Home officially initially said the program would provide rebuilding grants, but not buyouts, in the area. And HANO told homeowners they could move back into their homes, even though a judge had called the neighborhood unfit for people.
Residents of Press Park and Gordon Plaza are waiting for HANO and the city to pay a class-action judgment, in a suit sparked by pre-Katrina contamination issues. It took 13 years to win the lawsuit in Civil District Court, where Judge Nadine Ramsey declared the neighborhood "unreasonably dangerous" and "uninhabitable." She ordered HANO, the city and their insurers to pay fair-market value, plus amounts ranging from $4,000 to $50,000 for emotional distress, depending on how long a resident lived at the site before contamination was found in 1993.
On Jan. 30, 2008 the state's 4th Circuit Court of Appeals largely upheld Ramsey's ruling, although it cut the emotional distress awards in half. HANO appealed to the Louisiana Supreme Court.
Alsen Community
East Baton Rouge Parish
Alsen, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, lies at the beginning of Cancer Alley, and is several miles from Baton Rouge. This community of 1,000 residents is ninety-nine percent (99%) African American with an average annual family income of less than $15,000.
Alsen is burdened with toxic releases from 11 near-by petrochemical plants, a lead smelter, coke ovens, two Superfund sites, a commercial hazardous waste incinerator, numerous hazardous waste landfills, and city garbage dumps.
The people in Alsen complain of many illnesses. More than 80% suffer respiratory problems including asthma (21%), difficulty breathing, and sinus problems. Rashes are common (8%). Spontaneous nosebleeds including severe hemorrhaging began showing up in 1991. Many suffer frequent headaches, irritated eyes, nose bleeds, sore throats, arthritic-like pains (including children), bleeding gums, and host of other illnesses. The cancer rate also appears to be very high. On one street, Springfield Road, there have been seven cases of cancer and two deaths, with two very seriously ill as of this writing within a span of six years, all out of nine families. The health assessment, begun in early 1991 by ATSDR is still not complete. We just keep getting excuses, while people keep getting exposed, getting sick, and dying. –By Florence T. Robinson
Alsen, Louisiana finds itself continually fighting to keep hazardous and dirty industry out of their community. The most recent fight was with a Colorado company that once again, was trying to secure a permit from the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) to dispose of originally designed for hazardous waste from tow contaminated sites west of Alsen.
Juanita Stewart of the North Baton Rouge Environmental Association said, the plant of put another dump near Alsen is “just another injustice to the minority community.” Residents from the Alsen 500 letters contesting a permit for the industrial waste dump northwest of their community. After a long protracted battle LDEQ denied the permit.
Central City
Orleans Parish
Central City, an inner-city New Orleans community that emerged in the early 1800s, was first occupied by German, Irish, and Jewish settlers. Today, approximately ninety-five percent of Central City’s community population consists of African Americans. Central City is plagued by high rates of crime, drug addition, school dropouts, unemployment, underemployment, and poor health conditions.
Environmental hazards are of special concern in low-income and inner city urban areas such as Central City, where the incidence of toxic exposure, lead poisoning, asthma, and risks from living in older homes are greater than in other communities.
- The US Public Health Service has stated that lead poisoning is “the most devastating environmental disease of young children.”
- Statistics in New Orleans show 37,000 children screened for lead over a 3-year period.
- A 1990 lead effects study linked low levels to higher school drop-out rates, reading problems, lower class standing, poorer hand-eye coordination and higher school absenteeism.
- A 1996 lead effects study linked low levels to antisocial behavior, delinquency, and aggression.
- The Central City community has organized around a large community revitalization through economic development endeavor.
- The Handelman’s Project is the restoration of a large building on Dryades Street, formerly a thriving business area that was the heart of that community. Buildings were adapted for use as a cultural center for the development and promotion of African, African American, and Caribbean arts.
Convent
St. James Parish
In the small community of Romeville, the population is approximately 2,100 with African American comprising 82% of the population. The Romeville’s unemployment rate is 12% and 45% of its citizens live below the poverty level. The main economic base of Romeville is agriculture, tourism, and the petrochemical industry.
Within a three-mile radius, there are approximately five operating plants: Occidental Chemical, Zen Noh Grain Elevator, IMC-Agrico (Eastbank and Westbank), and Star Enterprise Refinery. The plants and other parish industries emitted more than 16 million pounds of toxic emissions into the environment making St. James the fourth ranking parish in total toxic emission for 1994. This accounts for 360 pounds of toxic chemicals per person. Construction is underway for three new iron mills.
The Convent Victory
The Shintech Corporation, which is Japanese owned, attempted to build the world’s largest polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics production facility in Convent, Louisiana. Convent is a small rural town approximately 2000 people in St. James Parish and is located in what is popularly called “Cancer Alley”. The area in Convent closet to the proposed Shintech site is 82% African American.
The proposed Shintech plant was to have been a massive operation. It would have had three components:
- Three chemical processing units.
- A hazardous waste incinerator.
- A number of on-site storage tanks.
The releases also would have been quite enormous. It was estimated that this facility would release 600,000 pounds of toxic chemicals into the air and daily pump 8 million gallons of waste into the Mississippi River. The community of Convent, especially the area of Convent selected for the construction of the PVC plant, is already inundated with chemical plants and toxic emissions. Within a three-mile radius there are six operating plants. Construction is also underway for three new iron mills. The residents of Convent bitterly complained about the pollution in their community. They reported numerous health problems such as asthma, respiratory problems, cancers, and other diseases they associate with the chemicals spewing form so many plants in the neighborhood. Tired of the pollution, the Shintech Corporation had become the last straw for a very large and vocal group of Convent citizens. After local politicians refused to be of any assistance with this matter, the St. James Citizens for Jobs and the Environment (SJCJE) was formed. SJCJE has aggressively moved ahead in a legal battle to stop the construction of Shintech.
On April 2, 1997, Greenpeace and Tulane University Law Clinic, representing Convent residents and 16 environmental and pubic interest organizations, filed a citizen’s petition (administrative complaint) under Title V (the permitting program) of the Clean Air Act that demanded an objection to air permits proposed for Shintech by the state of Louisiana. On May 21, 1997, Greenpeace and Tulane University Law Clinic filed an amended petition with EPA that provided the agency with additional grounds for objection to Shintech’s air permits. Among these were the contention that Convent is a community that has the protection of the President’s Executive Order of 1994 on Environmental Justice.
On September 10,1998, as a result of enormous pressure from SJCJE and its allies, EPA administrator Carol Browner, in an unprecedented action, rejected Shintech’s permit on technical grounds but rejected the environmental justice arguments in the Title V petition. The EPA found 50 technical deficiencies in Shintech’s permit. This was the first time EPA has accepted a citizen complaint under Title V.
On September 18,1998, Shintech announced that it had aborted its plans to develop its plant in Convent, LA, but had decided to move about 25 miles up river to Plaquemine, Louisiana, located near Baton Rouge.
Geismar
Ascension Parish
Geismar is predominately African-American community (70%) with a median income of $26,000. Located in this community is Borden Chemicals and Plastics which is one of the states leading air polluters. Additionally, other polluters such as BASF and the Arcadian Corporation are housed in this community.
The Geismar/St. Gabriel area consists of a 10 square-mile region that houses 18 petrochemical plants that discharge approximately 200 million pounds of toxic emissions in the air, soil, and water each year. The area is also surrounded by known Superfund sites that contribute to the health concerns of nearby residents.
In 1998, the United States Environmental Protection Agency settled a legal suit with Borden Chemicals and Plastics for $3.6 million dollars in penalty and cost for the clean up of groundwater pollution at its plant in Geismar.
EPA’s contention is that Borden Chemicals and Plastics was responsible for toxic contamination of groundwater and posed a threat to public health. The contamination was approaching the NORCO Aquifer, which flows under the site and provides drinking water to nearby residents. The settlement requires the following actions from Bolden:
- Pay a civil penalty of $3.6 million to the government.
- Set aside $400,000 to pay for equipment for local emergency response units and other environmental projects.
- Perform a facility wide “corrective action” aimed at studying and cleaning up groundwater contamination at the site.
- Investigate possible contamination of the Norco drinking water aquifer, which runs under the plant, and at eight specific sites at the facility.
- End the use of injection wells, which Borden used to pump non-hazardous waste underground. Ending their use is expected to cost $3million.
- Apply for a license for its so-called VCR unit, which EPA claimed is an incinerator and which Borden asserted was a waste minimization project that used “super-heated air”.
Edward Jackson, of Geismar recognizes that the EPA is taking notice of and combating the detrimental effects of the polluters, but he believes that it is “too late….the damage has set in.” According to Jackson, EPA is not doing enough because without living in and with the pollution one cannot fully understand the situation. Corporations take on the oblivious “plantation attitude,” believing all that the government says about the insignificant environmental harm of the industries is true.
Norco Old Diamond Plantation
St. Charles Parish
Old Diamond Plantation in Norco, Louisiana is one hundred percent (100%) African American. This community has a total population of 1,020 with an average annual family income of $14,000. Residents at Old Diamond Plantation are inundated with pollution form the nearby Shell Refinery and Shell Chemical Company. Shell Chemical Plant is located on one side of town and Shell Oil Refinery is located on the opposite side. The Old Diamond Plantation community in Norco, Louisiana is within 10 feet of the fence line of Shell Norco Refinery that emits toxins routinely thus endangering the health of residents.
In September of 1997, residents went to court against Shell but the final ruling was not favorable to them. Residents learned to sample their own air when releases occurred using the “bucket”. Sample analyses proved unfavorable to Shell. After many samples, demonstrations, meetings and national exposure due to an Internet camera focused on them, Shell has said that a buy-out of the community is possible, allowing residents to relocate, paying them fairly for their current residences. However, the final chapter has not been written and much remains on the table for discussion.
The residents of the Diamond Community in Norco, Louisiana are sandwiched between the Shell Chemical Plant and the Shell/Motiva Refinery. Loud noises, noxious odors and deadly chemicals are constant neighbors of the citizens of Norco. The view from their front windows is of the pipes, storage tanks, and production towers of a petro-chemical plant. Flares erupt noisily and unpredictably, sometimes roaring through the night. Delivery trucks and vehicles servicing the chemical plant move deadly chemicals through their communities. Unexplained booming noises shake their homes in the night. Strange smells waft into their homes producing headaches and breathing difficulties (Shell Norco Toxic Neighbor, 1999).
- Norco community residents exposed to a white gas that entered their homes causing their eyes and throats to burn with feelings of nausea that sent many residents to the emergency room was described by Shell as only steam.
- Samples of the air taken by Citizens for a Better Environment, that were analyzed by an EPA approved laboratory showed that it was Methyl-Ethyl Ketone (MEK) which is known to cause irritation of eyes and nausea and other health effects.
- Shell conceded that a tank containing MEK was over-pressurized, but continued to assert their position of “no chemical releases from the tank”.
After years of struggle for relocation away from Shell facilities, Concerned Citizens of Norco has achieved an environmental justice victory. The group is organized by African American families living in the Diamond Community of Norco, Louisiana. On June 9, 2002, Concerned Citizens of Norco and Shell announced to the Diamond Community the "Diamond Options Program" that allows residents to relocate away from Shell facilities. In addition, Shell has committed to investing $200 million in environmental improvements at its facilities. This program marks a historic moment for both Shell and communities that are on the fencelines of industrial facilities.
Treme’ Community
Orleans Parish
Treme’ is one of New Orleans’ most historic communities. It was the home of Louis Armstrong and many other legendary jazz musicians and artisans. This community, however, has fallen victim to voluminous highway traffic that can be mostly attributed to the construction of Interstate 10 (I-10), which spews toxins in the community. The area also has a very old housing stock that contributes to lead paint problems. The accumulation of lead from deteriorating paint and emissions from cars that produce ozone, greatly contribute to lead poisoning among children and increased incidences of asthma and death due to asthma in both children and adults. The people of Treme’ live directly in the shadow of I-10. Its creation marked the demise of the most viable, economically sustainable community for African Americans in the city of New Orleans. The construction of interstate-10 not only destroyed the economic viability of this community, but also put the community in harm’s way for toxic emissions from motor vehicles.
- Death from asthma is two to six times more likely to occur among African Americans and Hispanics than among Whites.
- Motor vehicles account for approximately one-fourth of emissions that produce ozone and one-third of nitrogen oxide emissions.
- Some 76.6% of Carbon Monoxide emissions are provide each year by transportation sources.
- In 1956, the Louisiana Highway Department announced that the I-10 Expressway would be built on the North Claiborne Avenue “Neutral Ground” (median). This median was the heart of Treme’ community, one of the oldest neighborhoods in New Orleans. The “neutral ground” was important to black economic development and black life.
- With the construction of I-10, the use of the Claiborne Avenue neutral ground was irrevocable changed.
- The I-10 has become a physical barrier that is quite unsightly and literally divides the community in half. The once beautiful neighborhood has become host to an array of illicit and illegal activities. Once the home of up to 200 black business and great musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Mahalia Jackson, it is now a community that has lost its economic and social viability.
While the community was still reeling from the effects of I-10, a second insult was launched by city government on the community. Twenty-five blocks of the community, containing many historic homes of great black architects were destroyed to make way for the construction of a European Culture Museum. The response from organized groups was so intense that the plan was changed to construction of the Louis Armstrong Park. This decision, of course, came after the destruction of a large portion of this small historic community. The Greater Terme’ Consortium and other community organizations are working hard to redevelop this community.
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COMMUNITY RELOCATION
After years of struggle for relocation away from Shell facilities, Concerned Citizens of Norco achieved an environmental justice victory. The group is organized by African American families living in the Diamond Community of Norco, Louisiana. On June 9, 2002, Concerned Citizens of Norco and Shell announced to the Diamond Community the "Diamond Options Program" that allows residents to relocate away from Shell facilities. In addition, Shell committed to investing $200 million in environmental improvements at its facilities. This program marks a historic moment for both Shell and communities that are on the fencelines of industrial facilities.
The residents of the Diamond Community have long complained about harmful toxic chemicals spewing from Shell's chemical facility that was located across the street from residents' homes. A survey conducted by the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice found that over 35% of husbands and wives reported they have suffered chest pains or respiratory congestion. The survey also showed that 34.5% of the Diamond community children have asthma and 27.8% have bronchitis. For years, residents have protested against the foul odors and soaring flares from the nearby facility that shadows their community. Their struggle has not been in vain, as Shell has agreed to offer residents under the "Diamond Options Program" the choice of either relocating away from its facilities or remaining in Diamond to take advantage of home improvement and community development programs.
For years, Shell refused to offer relocation to residents of the Diamond Community, who suffered many losses including a nuisance lawsuit. Then in the year 2001 after significant media attention to the plight of Diamond residents, Shell agreed to offer relocation to one-half of the residents living on two of the four streets that make up the Diamond Community. This move resulted in dividing families and breaking communal bonds that lasted from generation to generation for more than 100 years. However, Concerned Citizens of Norco never gave up the struggle for relocating the entire community. In a remarkable series of facilitated discussions to resolve the relocation issue, Concerned Citizens of Norco, allied organizations, including the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, and Shell achieved a victory called the “Diamond Options Program” and Shell’s commitment to invest $200 million in environmental improvements at its facilities.
Concerned Citizens of Norco is aided by a diverse coalition of supporters that include Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), who demanded that Shell US CEO Steve Miller offer relocation to all residents of the Diamond Community. (click here for Waters' correspondence and news reports). In addition, the socially responsible investment group, Trillium Asset Management, joined in the call for Shell to offer relocation to Diamond residents and brought this issue to the attention of Shell investors.
Concerned Citizens of Norco continues to count on the support of environmental justice and environmental organizations that participated in two months of facilitated discussions between Shell and Concerned Citizens of Norco that focused on resolving the relocation issue and ultimately resulted in the Diamond Options Program. These organizations include Commonweal, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Earthjustice, Environmental Health Fund, LA Bucket Brigade, Refinery Reform, and Dr. Wilma Subra, The Subra Company. In addition, the Delta Chapter of the Sierra Club has contributed to raising public awareness about the plight of Diamond residents and providing resources that enabled Concerned Citizens of Norco to monitor air pollution and travel to advocate before organizations and governmental decision-makers.
"We have come to recognize the Diamond neighborhood is truly unique. The community is like an extended family, and we realize now that our previous efforts to create a greenbelt around our facilities may have created difficulties for some families and caregivers in the Diamond neighborhood. While our first preference is to preserve the historic fabric of the Diamond neighborhood, we believe it is important to give residents the choice of determining what is best for their families."
-- Wayne Pearce, Shell Chemical Site Manager & Armand Abay, Motiva General Manager
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[ "Comments from Shell & Concerned Citizens of Norco"]
"In March of this year, environmental organizations helped us to arrange open and frank dialogue sessions with Shell representatives. These sessions focused on the issue of relocation in the Diamond community and included discussions of improvements at Shell facilities as well as community development programs in the Diamond community and the rest of Norco. I want to tell you that these sessions have not been easy to participate in because of the history and our experiences of living with the impacts of the facility and the impacts of Shell’s decision to relocate just one-half of our tight-knit community of families and friends.
What we wanted was for Shell to offer residents the choice of relocating from Norco in a fair and just way. For the last two months, Concerned Citizens of Norco has met with Shell and our supporting environmental organizations to work on resolving the issue of relocation. Many a night, we have worked late into the evening carefully planning our next steps and keeping our community involved. We have been frustrated and challenged, but we were always hopeful and dedicated to bringing about a positive result."
-- Delwyn Smith, President
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["Comments from Delwyn Smith, President of Concerned Citizens of Norco"]
Concerned Citizens of Norco
Katrina Survivor’s Brunch - On November 27, 2005 the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) hosted the Katrina Survivor’s Brunch for displaced New Orleans residents currently residing in Houston, Texas. This event served as a catalyst for a series of events that will take place in the areas most heavily populated with displaced New Orleans residents.
DU’s DSCEJ in collaboration with the Environmental Justice Resource Center (EJRC) at Clark Atlanta University (CAU) and Saving Our Selves hosted the Atlanta Katrina Survivor’s Forum, Wednesday, July 19, 2006 at CAU. The forum served as a resource to displaced New Orleans residents living in Atlanta, Georgia. Topics included environmental issues, city services, and housing. The forum gave displaced residents an opportunity to express their concerns about the repopulation of the city. Their most salient concern was the lack of affordable housing. Many of the participants expressed a desire to return to New Orleans; however, their inability to find affordable housing is a serious barrier. The residents also expressed a sense of disconnection from the city due to the lack of communication and the dearth of “factual” information being disseminated to them. 
Rev. Tom Watson, who has been assigned to the Repopulation and Housing Subcommittee by Mayor Ray Nagin, discussed the development of a systematic plan to repopulate New Orleans. He explained that a resource center called “The Journey Home” was scheduled to open at the end of August 2006 in Houston, TX. The center’s case managers will assist with housing concerns, education, information about the infrastructure of the city, health care issues, and will provide updated information about police and fire services.
The Houston Katrina Survivor’s Forum also took place in Houston, TX on August 10, 2006. The forum was well attended with approximately one hundred participants. The event was hosted by the DSCEJ in collaboration with Texas Southern University (TSU). Dr. Wright gave a presentation on the Safe Way Back Home project. Other invited guests included Miles Bruder, a representative from the Louisiana Recovery Authority’s Road Home program. Mr. Bruder addressed eligibility requirements, the start date of the program, the program’s time line, and described the housing assistance centers that are available to facilitate the process. Wynetca Fisher, deputy director of the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Affairs, provided forum participants with information regarding incentives to rebuild their homes with energy efficient materials. Results of an evaluation given to participants indicated that the forum helped them make informed decisions about their return home.