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Click here to donate to our May Day Fundraiser!

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May Day Fundraiser: Help Us Raise $30,000 by May 1st

We have an urgent crisis on our hands. A federal attack on environmental justice is threatening the Clean Air Coalition’s ability to continue its critical work—and we need your help today.

For years, Clean Air has fought alongside our community to hold polluters accountable and protect our neighbors from toxic air and environmental harm. When traditional funders moved away from supporting environmental justice, we turned to federal funding, following advice from major institutions. Alongside our local partners, we secured a $20 million grant from the EPA—funding meant to help communities like ours prepare for the worsening effects of climate change.

But now, that funding is being blocked and withheld by the federal administration.

Our portion of these funds made up over half of our budget for 2025, and we had planned to draw from them by the end of March. Without immediate support, we face a serious cash flow crisis that threatens our ability to continue fighting for environmental justice.

That’s why we’re launching an emergency May Day Fundraiser—to raise $30,000 by May 1st.

Our work has never been more critical. Right now, we are fighting to stop cancer-causing chemicals from being released into our community by the Goodyear plant in Niagara Falls. We are defending our right to breathe clean air, even as institutions like the EPA are being defunded and gutted of experienced, nonpartisan scientists. These attacks are designed to make us feel powerless. But together, we are strong.

Will you stand with us today?

Your donation—whether it’s $25, $50, or more—will ensure that the Clean Air Coalition can continue protecting our community, holding polluters accountable, and fighting for a healthier future. 

Thank you for standing with us in this critical moment.         

In solidarity,
Chris, Bridge, Cindy, Gia, and Kiera
Clean Air Coalition

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has publicly released the Consent Order for Goodyear in Niagara Falls, and with this announcement also shared that they will be holding a Virtual Meeting this Thursday January 23 from 6-8pm.

Read the press release here, the Consent Order here, and register for the virtual meeting here.

Also be sure to join us at the community-led meeting on the following Thursday January 30 at 7pm at New Hope Baptist Church, 1122 Buffalo Ave in Niagara Falls.

Register by clicking here – registration is NOT required, but will help us better plan the event and ensure we have enough food for everyone.

Niagara Falls Community Meeting on Goodyear Toxic Air Pollution & Environmental Justice – click here to register!

Thursday, January 30, 2025
Doors Open 6:30 PM
Meeting 7:00 PM
New Hope Baptist Church
1122 Buffalo Avenue,
Niagara Falls, NY 14303 US

Niagara Falls residents and concerned community members are invited to attend a meeting on January 30 at 7pm (doors 6:30pm) at New Hope Baptist Church, 1122 Buffalo Avenue in Niagara Falls, to learn more about exposure to Ortho-toluidine, the potential health consequences, and the results of recent actions to push for action by the Environmental Protection Agency and NYS Department of Environmental Conservation.

This meeting is being hosted by New Hope Baptist Church, Rev. Harvey L. Kelley, and a coalition of community organizations, including the NAACP Niagara Falls Branch, Clean Air Coalition of WNY, Don’t Waste NY, Sierra Club Niagara Group, and the Interfaith Community Climate Center of WNY.

Dinner provided; babysitting, translation, or other accessibility services available with pre-registration.

Related, we are still collecting signatures for the petition to the EPA – sign here today!

Click here to subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter, and view this month’s edition by clicking the “Read More” link below.

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I have some exciting news to share – we are proud to announce that we are a partner along with PUSH Buffalo, C.O.N.N.E.C.T. and others that have collectively received a $20 Million Community Change Grant from the USEPA. This project will better prepare our community to thrive while dealing with the worsening effects of climate change through emergency preparedness, pollution reduction, workforce development, and resiliency projects.

Clean Air will receive a sub award of this grant to continue our organizing and community air monitoring work. These much needed funds will be a game changer for our community. Right now we are challenging you to invest in Clean Air by donating so we can leverage these funds to effectively to build power.

This announcement caps off a year of great organizational growth and marks 3 years since I have had the privilege of taking on this role at Clean Air. What keeps me going when the work is difficult is the clarity of our organizational values. Leadership development, democratic decision making, resident knowledge, race and class equity and inclusion, and recognition and joyful celebration.. They stand as the north star through which we filter all of our decisions, especially when considering a new partnership or the pursuit of funding. It is with the utmost pride and responsibility that the leadership team here adheres to these values as we forge forward.

We do not do this work on behalf of those suffering from injustice, we do this work in solidarity and collective interest as we all suffer under the forces that sacrifice human health for the profits for the few at the top. The most powerful action you can take this year is to join an organization that shares your values and is fighting against the root causes of injustice. 

In Solidarity,

Chris

Executive Director

In anticipation of the likely need in 2025 and beyond for rapid response to attempts to roll back environmental regulatory protections and other attacks upon our peer communities, Clean Air is launching a Rapid Response Team.

Please fill out this form if you are interested in joining.

All Rapid Response Team members must be current members or supporters of Clean Air – click here to make a donation.
Whether it’s $5, $50, or $500, your donation is greatly appreciated and will allow us the flexibility to take bold actions!

Clean Air is working in coalition with Niagara Falls organizations, residents, and workers to support organizing efforts to force Goodyear Corporation to stop emitting ortho-toluidine, a bladder cancer causing chemical.

Click here to sign the petition to the EPA to ask for a 303 Emergency Order to bring emissions down to safe levels!

A community meeting in Niagara Falls related to the emissions from Goodyear will be held the first full week of January 2025 – stay tuned for details.

There is a LOT to this story – for specifics related to the Goodyear facility in particular, we highly recommend reading Jim Morris’ “The Cancer Factory” as well as the following recent articles.

• WBFO/Public Health Watch: “A dangerous carcinogen is in Niagara Falls’ air. The state hasn’t put a stop to it“
• Inside Climate News: “Computer Modeling Shows Carcinogen From Goodyear Plant Is Invading Niagara Falls Neighborhoods“

In summary, though, these are the key points to understand, via Don’t Waste New York, a statewide environmental justice organization we are working in coalition with:

• THE PROBLEM: In September 2024, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) made  a map of the community around the Goodyear plant on 56th Street in Niagara Falls showing a cloud of toxic chemical emissions.
  The chemical – Ortho toluidine or OT – causes bladder cancer. Since 1989, studies have found a significant number of cases of bladder cancer among the workers at Goodyear.
  DEC and DOH have violated the public’s trust. They have not informed the community of the illegal toxic pollution. They have not enforced the law. They have not protected the health of community residents.
• THE SOLUTION: The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has the legal power to issue a Clean Air Act Emergency Order (Section 303 of CAA) to immediately require Goodyear to reduce its toxic emissions.
  Don’t Waste New York, a statewide community support group, sent EPA a request to issue an Emergency Order on November 27, 2024. Emergency Orders can be issued when a pollution problem poses an “imminent and substantial endangerment to the public health.

We also feel that the emissions from this facility are a key example of the overarching issues in Western New York related to environmental permits for industrial facilities – from expired Title Vs to State Air Facility permits without any expiration date to facilities operating on unissued draft permits, we have seen example after example of health and safety issues arising in environmental justice communities that would be addressed with sufficient oversight and enforcement actions. Just in this past couple of weeks, The Buffalo News featured further coverage related to this problem, honing in on how stack testing (ie, testing of filters in the air stacks at facilities) is tied to permit reviews, and how delayed permit renewals mean these tests are not conducted in regular frequency.

Stay tuned for further related actions!