This pattern is overwhelmingly apparent in the community of Barrio Logan, where people live in close proximity to chemical intensive industries which produce, store, and emit toxic chemicals and wastes into the neighborhood. Although the industries in Barrio Logan produce some of the largest quantities of hazardous waste in the City of San Diego, the residents have only learned in the last twenty-some years about all the health risks involved in living there. It is no coincidence that this community, living in one of the most polluted areas of the city, is composed of over 90% minority residents.
In an effort to address the myriad of environmental health risks facing their community, the residents of Barrio Logan have organized under the name, Environmental Health Coalition (EHC). This group is "dedicated to the prevention and clean up of toxic pollution threatening our health, our community, and our environment."
Back to Table of ContentsThe primary health threat to the residents of Barrio Logan is toxic air emissions. These emissions come from a variety of sources, including small, often unregulated industries, the Port Authoritys use of toxic fumigants in their shipping yards near Barrio Logan, and from noxious fumes emanating from the San Diego sewage system. In order to realize the goal of the EHC, "the prevention and clean up of toxic pollution," we much analyze each of the individual problems contributing to the health hazards of the Barrio Logan environment.
The problem of toxic emissions from small businesses is directly linked to the layout of the city. Since the area was developed, Barrio Logan has had very few zoning regulations, resulting in the construction of homes adjacent to chrome plating and chemical supply businesses, among others. Until there are sufficient zoning regulations to separate chemical-intensive business from neighborhoods, the health of Barrio Logan residents is in jeopardy.
Additional sources of toxic emissions affect this community. Until recently, the Port Authority, charges with the responsibility to operate the San Diego shipping yards, routinely fumigated cargo with the deadly chemical methyl bromide. This policy of spraying this toxic pesticide was recently halted after a long court battle with the EHC, but not until the Barrio Logan residents were exposed to the chemical for five years.
Toxic pollution is not the only air quality issue Barrio Logan residents face. Intense odors often emanate from the sewage pumping station owned by the Kelco Corporation located adjacent to Perkins Elementary School in Barrio Logan. These smells are not only unpleasant, they are distracting to teachers and students alike. For five years, the community has battled both the city and Kelco Corporation, an industrial company with a history of dumping violations. Although the City has made modest efforts to find and fix problems with the pumping station, the violations continue. Many residents in the community rightfully believe that the Kelco Corporation is illegally dumping chemicals into the pumping station, causing malfunctions and leaks. So far, the modest attempts to solve the problem have failed, resulting in the contamination of Perkins Elementary School and in the community at large.
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Barrio Logan ( in Logan Heights on the above map ) is located southeast of downtown San Diego and just north of National City, California. The population of Barrio Logan and the surrounding communities, according to 1990 U.S. Census data, are composed primarily of people of Hispanic origin. The following Census Tracts represent Barrio Logan and the surrounding area.
Ethnic Composition of Barrio Logan
CATEGORY |
TRACT #36 |
TRACT #38 |
TRACT #39 | TRACT #49 | TRACT #50 | TRACT #51 | AVERAGE PER TRACT | |
% Hispanic |
80.0 |
68.3 |
75.6 | 88.0 | 91.5 | 49.7 | 77.8% | |
% Black |
13.8 |
17.8 |
21.7 | 10.2 | 24.1 | 23.9 | 17.1% | |
% White |
3.8 |
3.1 |
2.7 | 1.5 | 5.6 | 26.6 | 5.0% | |
MEDIAN INCOME |
18,801 |
- |
13,662 | 17,561 | 15,208 | 13,056 | $16,270 | |
% BELOW POVERTY |
34.7 |
- |
48.1 | 36.8 | 48.3 | 50.2 | 41.4% |
Source: 1990 U.S. Census data
The Census data illustrates more than just Barrio Logan's racial or cultural make-up. The data indicate that this neighborhood has a larger proportion of minority residents when compared to San Diego County. This fact, coupled with the uncharacteristically high levels of toxic chemical storage, production, and emissions in Barrio Logan, provides evidence for an inequitable distribution of environmental health hazards among San Diego County residents
Barrio Logan compared with the County of San Diego
AREA |
MEDIAN INCOME |
% BELOW THE POVERTY LINE |
PERCENT MINORITY |
Barrio Logan |
$15,657 |
43.6% |
92.8% |
San Diego County |
$35,022 |
11.3% |
34.6% |
Source: 1990 U.S. Census data
The connection between toxic emissions in Barrio Logan and the minority status of the community is just one of two connected issues. The first, as mentioned above, is a distribution of environmental burden weighing inequitably on minority communities. However, the Census data also suggests a link between environmental health risks and income. Compared to the rest of San Diego County, Barrio Logan residents have a lower median income that the rest of San Diego County. In fact, residents in this neighborhood are almost four times more likely to live below the poverty line than those living in the surrounding area.
The EHC, Environmental Health Coalition, is divided into four different campaigns in order to address the multiple issues facing local Latino communities, such as Barrio Logan.
TOXIC-FREE NIGHBORHOOD CAMPAIGN CLEAN BAY CAMPAIGN BORDER ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE CAMPAIGN COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
The EHC is a successful grassroots organization primarily due to its effective use of the Alinsky Model for resource mobilization. This model includes:
The Environmental Health Coalition
The goal of this campaign is to separate residents from the toxic chemicals and pollution produced by local industries. To achieve this, the EHC actively works to organize communities of color throughout the San Diego area. Once these communities are organized, they can work within the political structure of the City to rezone residential areas and reduce the toxic emissions in minority neighborhoods.
The EHC advocated for pollution prevention and clean-up of the San Diego Bay in accordance with the Federal Clean Water Act. This campaign encompasses both the Military Toxics Project and the San Diego Watershed Protection Project.
In conjunction with groups in Tijuana, Mexico and other organizations in San Diego, the EHC works to resolve and prevent pollution problems.
In addition, the EHC works in the community. They listen to concerns of the people and explore means to which equity can be served, unity can be attained, and support groups and meetings can be organized. The San Diego Unified Port District
The San Diego Unified Port District fought the EHC for years to retain the "right" to fumigate fruit shipments in the shipping yards near Barrio Logan. The Port District's rationale for maintaining their fumigation program was purely economic: without fumigation, the Port District could not accept shipments of foreign fruit and thus sacrifice profits. The Port District was under constant pressure from the EHC in the form of legal suits and community protests. This pressure forced the Port District to respond with a SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation ) suit in November of 1996. This suit effectively silenced the EHC from publicly opposing the fumigation, thus securing the Port District's legal right to continue its methyl bromide fumigation program. The SLAPP suit was appealed but upheld on June 6, 1997, bolstering the Port District's position. After five years of struggling with the community, however, the Port District announced an end to its use of methyl bromide. According to Port commissioners, the decision was not made out of health concerns, but out of the community fears. "Sometimes, it does not matter if there are actual impacts (to people's health), if it's a fear and a concern," said Mike McDade, the Port Commission Chairman (from San Diego Union-Tribune, 7.30.97).
The City is also responsible for maintaining the sewage system throughout the City. Although Barrio Logan residents, including the children at Perkins Elementary School, have complained of sickness due to the nearby sewage pumping station, the City has not acted to correct the problem. This is a common reaction of government agencies, as they often require "proof" that the pumping station is responsible for the complaints. The EHC is currently working to find "proof" of the suspicions that waste from nearby Kelco Corporation is responsible for damaging the pumping station.
"Barrio Bogeyman", July 31, 1997. San Diego Union-Tribune.
Communites At Risk , April 1993. Environmental Health Coalition.
"Give the EHC credit for finding the gas," August 9, 1997. San Diego Union-Tribune.
"Neighbors elated by victory over Port fumigation", July 30, 1997. San Diego Union-Tribune.
Toxinformer, July, 1997. Environmental Health Coalition.
United States Census bureau, 1990 Report.
Contact the Environmental Health Coalition to find out how you can help.
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