Local Eco-Revolution
By DeVonte Roberts, St. Paul Field Crew Leader
When I first moved to Minnesota I knew I wanted to get involved with fighting for social causes (outside of my time serving with AmeriCorps). Little did I know that there was a battle in my own neighborhood that represents one of the many environmental injustices that the often ignored “Twin” of the Twin Cities has put up with. A local iron foundry has been getting away with polluting the air for decades. Yes, that is plural decades with an ‘s’. Located in Dayton’s Bluff and Payne-Phalen, the warehouse has been emitting unhealthy levels of fine metals, causing homes nearby to have blankets of soot, causing people to develop chronic respiratory problems, and for brain development of children to be affected drastically. Since joining the Dayton’s Bluff Community Council and the East Side Environmental Justice coalition, I’ve been educated on the disputes that residents have had with how the legal enforcement toward the company’s emission level has been handled. And just like everywhere else in the world, the many people living near these hazardous conditions are part of the lowest income groups in the city and struggle to make change mainly from the lack of reporting and major delaying of change on this issue. Not long ago I personally went doorknocking to inform folks that live nearby about the health effects and ways to protect themselves. I was fortunate to speak to beautiful immigrant families, only to find out weeks later that because of the circumstances, especially for the children, they were forced to move, again, in order to improve their health. For anyone reading this and want to help, there are multiple ways: DIY filters to improve indoor air quality, get free lead blood testing to monitor yourself, and share public comments to the city and state leaders for quicker action and larger support. To learn more about everything mentioned, please check out the links below. Thank you for reading.
Websites
Info about the iron foundry situation
Info about health effects of lead/metals
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