User:Julienpleb/Cancer Alley


 * Article title
 * Cancer Alley


 * Article Evaluation
 * Cancer Alley is a topic that is geographically relevant with a fairly vacant page. Cancer Alley is utilized by environmentalist to display the harsh effects of industrialization without regulation. This topic would allow me to focus on the petrochemical industries effect on Southern Louisiana and its relationship with the vast environment of Bayous surrounding it. [ Stick to statistics of Parishes etc. Avoid straying away from the facts ] No inferences - May need to rely on investigative reporting and local newspapers... Industry reports, but sift facts - Focus on Historical side, how far back I will go.


 * Sources
 * (PDF) Down Cancer Alley: The Lived Experience of Health and Environmental Suffering in Louisiana's Chemical Corridor (researchgate.net)

Cancer Alley - Legal Environmental History

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed a multitude of laws such as the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), which all attempt to prevent and reconcile environmental damages. The EPA, starting in 2018 under Andrew Wheeler, has slowly stripped back its standards for environmental protection. Furthermore, the CAA's discretionary application has caused a varied application of the law within Louisiana. In 1970, Louisiana deployed the Comprehensive Toxic Air Pollutant Emission Control Program to satisfy the Federal Act. This program does not require monitoring that is equivalent to other states. These programs and their selective enforcement have proven to directly effect “Cancer Alley”.

- Self criticisms

- Possibly too pointed

- Scattered, possibly focus on one act and stay objective

Sources:

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) | FEDFacts: Information about the Federal Electronic Docket Facilities | US EPA

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) | Investigating for Possible Contamination in Norwood, Pennsylvania | US EPA

Wrong Way at EPA: Three Ways the Agency Is Failing Us | Climate Reality (climaterealityproject.org)

Victor B. Flatt, Gasping for Breath: Administrative Flaws of Federal Hazardous Air Pollution Regulation and What We Can Learn from the States, 34 ECGLQ 107 (2007)

Clean Air Act Text | Overview of the Clean Air Act and Air Pollution | US EPA

Clean Air Act (CAA) Compliance Monitoring | Compliance | US EPA

Clean Air Act (CAA) and Federal Facilities | Enforcement | US EPA

United States Environmental Protection Agency - Additions

Enforcement [Wikipedia Subheading]
In an EPA Enforcement report submitted by the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI) it compared EPA statistics over time. The number of civil cases have gradually decreased and, in 2018, the criminal and civil penalties from EPA claims dropped over four times their amounts in 2013, 2016, and 2017. In 2016, an amount of $6,307,833,117 of penalties were administered through EPA violations. In 2018, an amount of $184,768,000 of penalties were administered. Furthermore, federal inspection and evaluations conducted by the EPA have steadily decreased from 2015-2018. EPA Enforcement has decreased partially due to budget cuts within the Environmental Protection Agency.

Louisiana and Environmental Justice at a Federal Level, 2018-2021
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed a multitude of laws such as the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) , and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) , which all attempt to prevent and reconcile environmental damages. The EPA, starting in 2018 under Andrew Wheeler, has redeveloped pollution standards resulting in less overall regulation. Furthermore, the CAA's discretionary application has caused a varied application of the law within Louisiana. In 1970, Louisiana deployed the Comprehensive Toxic Air Pollutant Emission Control Program to satisfy the Federal Act. This program does not require monitoring that is equivalent to other states.

In 2021, President Joe Biden selected Michael Regan to serve as the EPA Chief. Michael Regan claimed that he looked to push aggressively on key environmental issues, which starkly contrasts Andrew Wheeler's official EPA policy from 2018. During Michael Regan's Senate Confirmation hearing, Senator Corey Booker specifically mentioned Cancer Alley in St. John's Parish as a place where there is harm being done to low income communities of color.

Cancer Alley - Additions

Different Perspectives on the Severity of Cancer Alley [New Heading]
On March 2, 2021, the United Nations (UN) on Human Rights discussed the continued industrial projects along the Mississippi River in Louisiana. The UN council on contemporary racism strongly condemned what they defined as environmental racism in their discussion with experts and other UN officials:"'This form of environmental racism poses serious and disproportionate threats to the enjoyment of several human rights of its largely African American residents, including the right to equality and non-discrimination, the right to life, the right to health, right to an adequate standard of living and cultural rights.'"The sentiments stated by environmental activists are echoed through this condemnation posted by the United Nation's Human Rights Commission.

On January 27, 2021, United States President Joe Biden signed an executive order regarding environmental justice and specifically cited Cancer Alley as a hard hit area. Louisiana Chemical Association President, Greg Bowser, responded to President Joe Biden's remarks on the region. Bowser refuted claims that residents of the industrial corridor have a higher risk of developing cancer in multiple articles. Furthermore, he cites the Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) data to support his claims. The LTR shows that there have not been an increase in cancer deaths connected to industrial pollution.

Activists and locals have combated the LTR. Activists claim the census tracts utilized for the LTR cover large areas and the data does not allow for specific locations next to chemical plants to be viewed individually. Moreover, the registry relies on medical records to distinguish if cancer was the cause of death. Locals are concerned that COVID-19 deaths will not attribute statistically to cancer if the victims were suffering from it. Another statistical concern for locals is that people will not seek medical help before they die because of monetary or social reasons. Louisiana health officials may not release the specific cases and data because of medical privacy laws.