Bridge, our Tonawanda-area Environmental Justice Organizer, attended the National LGBTQ Task Force’s 2024 Creating Change Conference in New Orleans from January 16-20. Here’s a few of their reflections on the experience.

Organizing can be hard and at times disheartening – and, I should say, I have been feeling that more than usual lately. It’s easy to get depressed this time of year when the outdoor conditions are unpleasant and the sun only visits us for a few hours. Add to that a rather oppressive feeling of dread I have as we enter 2024, and it’s no wonder I have felt so grumpy lately.

Thankfully, returning from the Creating Change Conference, I feel much lighter and more hopeful – given that much of the conference centered on combatting the legislative attacks on the LGBTQIA+ community and the larger overarching issue of resurgent fascism and authoritarianism, you might be scratching your head wondering how.

For one, it’s just nice to be able to share space with others with very similar experiences and worldviews as you – I am an introvert, so I do not gain as much from this as others do, but I still found it extremely refreshing to not only see others doing organizing work for various movements but also be able to talk freely without pausing for explanations.

Second, to know that there are others all across the United States and around the world fighting in parallel is also not only reassuring, but also a reality check – as rough as life may be in WNY, there are folks in far more dire straits fighting back, and they need us to be doing our part to make their work easier.

Third, the Queer Climate Justice caucus session was immensely encouraging –

• To hear others sharing concerns that I have had about what is going on in their communities, and to hear ideas and projects people are proposing and actively working is assuring.
• As part of this caucus, we took a break to join NOLA-area climate and environmental justice activists, who were protesting nearby against the Americas Energy Summit, a national conference of fossil fuel interests. An earlier demonstration local activists held led to the early end of the conference, and in the says since, we’ve learned that the Biden Administration is putting a pause on pending decisions on exports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to non-free trade agreement countries until the Department of Energy can update the underlying analyses for authorizations – a huge win for environmental and climate justice communities in Louisiana as well as across the nation and world. This issue has local connections as well – we’ve started to see gulf coast drilling companies begin to push to again bring back methane gas fracking to NY, this time as a false “carbon sequestration” method. By putting this pause in place, NY lawmakers may have more time to develop regulations for this dodge of the existing moratorium – but pressure will need to continue to be exerted to make this happen, as while the demand will be lessened in the short term, these fossil fuel companies will attempt to forge forward on a bet that the LNG terminals will eventually be approved.

Finally, bigger picture, it is clear that we are one organization in a much larger fight for democracy and against fascism, and it’s all ultimately tied into our need for a Just Transition. In one session I attended, I heard from organizers with BlueprintNC about how they’ve organized in the wake of a terrorist attack on electric substations in early December 2022. Although the investigation is still ongoing, all signs at this time point to a concerted and planned attack by white supremacists in response to a Drag Queen Story Hour.

I was struck by some of the parallels to what we’ve experienced in Buffalo recently – the Christmas Blizzard, which struck only a couple weeks after the attack, led to massive power outages throughout the region, particularly in the environmental justice areas we organize within, which are predominantly black and brown communities, and in most part the outages happened due to systemic underinvestment in protective housing for our substations. While overt attacks by white supremacists aimed at bringing down electrical systems is certainly an escalation, I also think that it’s worth noting that the constant acts by extractive capitalists also serve as attacks on the same communities those terrorists target – and is no less deadly.

We need to continue to forge ahead for a Just Transition despite what will be thrown our way this year and beyond.

Did you miss our pop-ed training and discussion on how to combat authoritarianism and fascism through local environmental justice organizing that we held as part of our January 2024 General Meeting? No worries! Here’s the recording, as well as links to a few of the resources referenced throughout.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/varieties-of-democracy-institute-2023

https://www.whitesupremacyculture.info/what-is-it.html

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/what-is-ecofascism-explainer

https://www.gq.com/story/donald-trump-shady-scheme-to-buy-nfl-buffalo-bills

https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2021/12/09/how-cryptocurrency-revolutionized-white-supremacist-movement

https://grist.org/extreme-weather/boots-on-the-ground-fema-oath-keepers-natural-disaster/

Ladder of Citizen Participation

We want to give thanks to our Just Transition Organizer Phil Gambini who has moved on to a new chapter after giving us 2 incredible years of his passion, energy and care to our movement. We are proud of what Phil has accomplished and wish him well on his journey of full time education in the health care field! Please see Phil’s message below.

Dear Clean Air members and supporters,

I’m writing to you because my time at Clean Air is coming to an end. I am stepping away from my role as the organization’s just transition organizer in January. It’s a bittersweet announcement. I’m excited to be moving on to my next chapter in my life, but will be sad to leave the coworkers, supporters and members I’ve grown close to since joining the team at Clean Air.

There’s a lot to be grateful for. My tenure at Clean Air has been a deep learning experience. It has tested me, taught me and humbled me. I remain in awe of the dedication and energy of members who fight day in and day out for themselves, their people and their community. Each of them, in their own way, have their own struggles and hardships. Despite them, their drive and desire to change the world they live in for the better does not diminish. It should be a lesson to us all. It certainly is for me.

Though I am leaving Clean Air, I am not leaving the movement. My role and responsibilities will change, but my admiration for the work and the people who do it will not.

In solidarity,

Phil

Join us on Wednesday January 24 from 5:30-7pm on Zoom for our first General Meeting of the year!

2024 will be a tumultuous year, with all eyes on the November election, and everyone is already feeling the related stress – join us as we discuss how organizing for environmental justice is a means to combat the rise in fascism and authoritarianism, and talk with peers about how you would like to take action. We will also review news from our current campaigns and how you can become a member or join a team.

This meeting will be online only due to weather concerns and the recent spike in respiratory illnesses. Please register to receive the link to the Zoom – https://actionnetwork.org/events/clean-air-january-2024-general-meeting

Our friends at Heated, an online newsletter for “people pissed off about the climate crisis,” have some staggering news. They found that a chemical disaster occurred nearly every day last year in the U.S.

There were at least 322 hazardous chemical incidents in the U.S. in 2023, Heated found after consulting data from the Coalition to Prevent Chemical Disasters. The incident rate is up 70 percent over 2022. Of the total, 138 of the incidents caused injuries, evacuations, a shelter-in-place order or death. 

“Put another way,” Heated reported, “a chemical incident caused serious consequences in the U.S. about once every two-and-a-half days in 2023.”

According to Heated, the incidents break down like this:

• Most involved fossil fuels, or products derived from them. Some 47 happened onsite at oil and gas extraction sites, while 83 happened at manufacturing locations.
• Another 48 chemical incidents occurred in transport. The most infamous among them was the East Palestine train derailment.
• At least 39 chemical incidents occurred at food and beverage storage facilities, largely due to ammonia leakage, a petrochemical responsible for approximately 1 to 2 percent of global carbon emissions.

Lives were lost, too. At least 18 people died in chemical incidents last year, Heated found.

“Lives claimed by petrochemical disasters in 2023 include a 25-year-old Illinois wrestling coach who was killed by an asphalt tank explosion; an Illinois father and his two young children who were killed by ammonia exposure after a semitruck derailed; and a 55-year-old father who was ‘burned alive’ after a ‘petrochemical event’ at the Marathon Petroleum refinery he worked at, according to a lawsuit filed by his family,” the newsletter reported.

As heartbreaking as it is to review, it’s important we have this data. The oil, gas and chemical industries routinely minimize the harm caused by toxics and the damage they do to communities.

Deidre Helms, the communications manager at environmental justice nonprofit Coming Clean, which helps manage the database where Heated sourced its information, said the chemical industry usually claims “incidents at hazardous facilities are isolated events.”

“But our data show that fires, explosions and releases involving hazardous chemicals are happening on a near daily basis,” she told Heated.

The scarier part of the data is it’s likely an underestimate. The database Heated used only tallies disasters that were reported by the media. According to Helms, that’s because government data on incidents is “very delayed, limited, and hard to find.”

Meanwhile, there are efforts to address the issues. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to finalize the Safer Communities by Chemical Accident Prevention rule this year, which would bolster safety and prevention requirements for the chemical industry. In fact, a group of Democratic lawmakers have called for the rule to be strengthened, particularly to include considerations for workers and climate disaster risk. Republicans, on the other hand, are calling for the weakening of the rule, citing “economic challenges and operational burdens” for the private sector. 

According to Heated, “That rule is expected to be finalized in August—by which time the U.S. will have experienced another 200 hazardous chemical incidents; at least if the 2023 rate continues apace.”

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

Over the break, New York’s Court of Appeals, the highest court in New York, declined to hear an appeal from NRG, the owner of the former Huntley generating station, in their push to overturn a lower court ruling in favor of the Town of Tonawanda’s Eminent Domain claim for the property.

This is a big win – what this means is that, barring NRG appealing to the US Supreme Court, the Town of Tonawanda can finally move forward to directly claim the property and open it up for development!

The Buffalo News Editorial Board concurs, writing this week that “NRG offers little to no justification for sitting on waterfront property that could be reused to substantial community benefit” and that “With seven years elapsed and a long road of cleanup and development ahead, it’s time for NRG to step aside, and if that takes place through successful eminent domain proceedings so be it. The residents of the Town of Tonawanda have waited too long.”

Our Tonawanda Tomorrow Team has been somewhat neutral on this eminent domain claim, but is generally in favor – our biggest concern is, regardless of whoever is the owner, that all redevelopment must be done with resident leadership and a Community Benefits Agreement or other legally binding framework that prioritizes residents as well as waterfront access with the new site use.

We applaud this news, and look forward to working with the Town to ensure that these protections are included as the redevelopment process moves forward.

If you are interested in joining our Tonawanda Tomorrow Team, please contact Bridge for more information.

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

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

The preliminary draft of the proposed Alternatives Analysis for 3875 River Road, which constitutes the bulk of the acreage of the former Tonawanda Coke site, is now available for public review!

An “Alternatives Analysis” is essentially a document that lays out the different pathways for contamination clean up under consideration, with considerations for pros and cons for each pathway.

This document includes 8 potential pathways, from a baseline of no action to a full site remediation with full removal of all contaminants, and the alternatives can be found on pages 52 – 78. At this time, the site owner is recommending Alternative 5.

This is not the official draft – NYS Department of Environmental Conservation is still reviewing this version, and will likely submit needed adjustments. However, we are grateful that this preliminary draft has been made available for early public review, as this will allow everyone a chance to look over the proposals before the official comment period.

Click here to review the preliminary draft, or click here to see all the documents posted on the Riverview Innovation & Technology Campus website. You can also click here to see documents posted by NYS DEC, and here, here and here to see documents for adjacent parcels also contaminated by Tonawanda Coke.

NYS DEC is planning a public meeting to review the Alternatives after they complete their review, and Clean Air will also be hosting a meeting on November 27 from 5:30-8:30pm at the Brounshidle American Legion Post 205/VFW Post 2472 at 3354 Delaware Ave in Tonawanda to discuss the progress at all the sites along the River Road Corridor, including the findings of this preliminary draft. Click here to register for our meeting!

The Clean Air Coalition builds power by developing grassroots leaders who organize their communities to run and win environmental justice and public health campaigns in Western New York. Campaigns are created at Clean Air when they are brought forward by residents that are directly affected by a public health or environmental justice issue in their neighborhood. Campaigns are approved by our Board of Directors who are themselves voted in by dues paying members in accordance with our bylaws. A campaign consists of a campaign team and a lead staff organizer working together to build enough power to make a decision maker or target to act in a way that will positively impact resident’s health and quality of life. Clean Air does not speak for those who are affected by issues but instead works in partnership with our members to organize and center working class voices to make positive change while developing leaders. These strategies are directly informed by our core values of leadership development, resident knowledge, democratic decision making and race and class equity. 

For the last two decades members of the Restore Our Community Coalition (ROCC)  have been organizing for the restoration of the Humboldt Parkway. The Parkway was destroyed  in the 1970s by the construction of the NY Route 33 Kensington Expressway, a racist urban highway which served neighborhoods and helped facilitate increasing “white flight” to the suburbs while cementing segregation and destabilization of Buffalo’s East Side.  The group has been organizing for so long that some of the original members have passed away over the years unfortunately before their ultimate goal was realized. Clean Air deeply respects and honors  the longevity and persistence of this organizing by individuals who are directly affected by the issue. We also respect the decisions that were reached under the leadership of this group. This project is not an official Clean Air campaign and since we do not speak on behalf of residents without deep organizing with them we will not be making statements on the merits of one alternative or another when it comes to this project. However we will comment on issues that we have concerns with from the project that is being put forward as we do have members that reside in the project area.  Below is the comments we will be submitting:

A. The comment period should be extended. The comment period of 45 days is not sufficient for the highly technical information to be processed, discussed, and disseminated to the community and for the residents to make informed comments. We have a lot of experience in engaging the community in public comments for toxic cleanups such as Tonawanda Coke. The standard comment periods are not sufficient time for meaningful input. Particularly since there was only 30 days since the public hearing on 9/27/23 when many residents found out about the Environmental Assessment. We request the comment period be extended to 90 days. 

B. The NYS DOT should conduct a Full Environmental Impact Statement. A project of this scale within a Disadvantaged Community under the NYS Climate and Community Protection Act needs to have an in-depth environmental review beyond the scope of the Environmental Assessment currently presented. This review should include Air Quality monitoring and analysis (see detail below) as well as modeling and assurances of air quality safety during construction. The presence of asbestos in the retaining walls is of concern and the public safety from this hazardous substance should be further evaluated and more details given to the public. Concentrations of lead in the soil of the highway corridor should be investigated prior to construction. 

C. Air Quality at Tunnel Ends: Clean Air is extremely concerned about the possibility of increased concentrated vehicular emissions at the tunnel ends. We would like to see further air monitoring conducted to better understand the current air quality conditions. NYSDEC is currently conducting mobile air monitoring in NY Disadvantaged Communities which covers that project boundaries. With a full environmental review this data could be used to access current conditions as well for PM 2.5, Black Carbon, NO2, NO, CO, VOC’s and Ozone. 

We acknowledge that the modeling conducted as part of the air quality study shows that the estimated levels of PM 2.5 for Annual and 24 hour average are predicted to be within the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Erie County as a whole is in attainment of these standards. However when examining data on health disparities and pollution through  USEPAs EJ Screen we find that residents within the project corridor are in the 90th percentile and above for Low Life Expectancy, Asthma, and Heart Disease nationally. Clearly attainment of the 2.5 PM NAAQS standard does not take into account the cumulative effect of many overlapping pollutants on residents’ health. Many public health scientists such as the American Lung Association are calling for USEPA to enact stronger standards more protective of public health.1. According to a study by the Harvard School of Public Health2, Black and low income Americans would benefit the most from stronger policies on air pollution. This is an overburdened community when it comes to pollution and absolute care must be taken that this project does not increase these burdens. We must go above and beyond the minimum standard in this case based on systemic issues which have caused 

1. Lung Association Responds to Proposed Updates to National Particle Pollution Standards: EPA’s Proposal Falls Far Short and Must Be Strengthened https://www.lung.org/media/press-releases/2023-pm-naaqs-proposal-statement
2. Black Americans, low-income Americans may benefit most from stronger policies on air pollution https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/black-americans-low-income-americans-may-benefit-most-from-stronger-policies-on-air-pollution/