Louisiana Illuminator: From the Nile to the Mississippi, Petrochemicals are the Next Big Climate Fight Around the World
Dec 8, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 7, 2022Contact: Valerie Keys | vkeys@skdknick.com
ICYMI: Louisiana Illuminator: From the Nile to the Mississippi, Petrochemicals are the Next Big Climate Fight Around the World
Dr. Wright, Executive Director, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Talks The Dangerous Reality of Petrochemicals and The Fight to Stop Its Expansion
New Orleans, LA – Dr. Beverly Wright, Executive Director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) penned an op-ed in the Louisiana Illuminator bringing attention to the dangers petrochemicals pose to those who live near chemical plants.
In her piece, From the Nile to the Mississippi, Petrochemicals are the Next Big Climate Fight Around the World, Dr. Wright discussed how the fight against the expansion of petrochemical plants are the next big climate fight our country has to face. By 2050, petrochemical applications will account for nearly half of the growth in oil demand. If unchecked, this rapid expansion of petrochemical production will be devastating to climate progress and public health. The fight to combat the expansion of petrochemicals starts at home, which is why DSCEJ has joined forces to be part of the Beyond Petrochemicals Campaign, Bloomberg Philanthropies’ $85 million effort to stop the expansion of more than 120 petrochemical plants in Louisiana, Texas, and the Ohio River Valley. This partnership is working to foster a prosperous future full of climate progress.
See below for excerpts from the op-ed, or read it in the Louisiana Illuminator here.
From the Nile to the Mississippi, Petrochemicals are the Next Big Climate Fight Around the World
Recently I returned from COP27 in Sharm El Sheik, Egypt where I joined global leaders, advocates, and NGOs who are charting the global path forward on climate. As I met with people from around the world to highlight the importance of environmental justice on a global scale, my thoughts never left the climate fights back at home.
Born and raised in New Orleans, I have witnessed the polluting effects of Cancer Alley–an 85-mile stretch of land between Baton Rouge and New Orleans that is home to over 150 petrochemical plants and refineries. For decades, since the 1950’s, it’s been part of our landscape and our shared reality and the effects have been devastating–from corrosive air, and dead birds, to sick relatives and neighbors.
Click here to read the full op-ed.
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About the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice
Families in the Gulf Coast deserve to live in communities that are free from deadly air and are more resilient to climate change and extreme weather. The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) works to empower and engage communities to put environmental justice and equity at the center of all climate action. Led by environmental justice scholar and advocate, author, civic leader and professor of Sociology Dr. Beverly L. Wright, the DSCEJ uses research, education, and community and student engagement to advocate for policy change, lead health and safety training for environmental careers, develop social and emotional community wellness programs, and create new and environmentally healthy opportunities for the residents of communities disproportionately impacted by historic environmental injustice.