Aerial photo of the nearby Chevron Pascagoula Refinery in Pascagoula, MS
The Cherokee Concerned Citizens (CCC) in Pascagoula, Mississippi, are battling severe environmental pollution from nearby industrial sites, including a Superfund location. Formed in 2013, the community has faced increased instances of sickness and cancer. The community is also located in a high-flood-risk area. Their goal is to produce strong scientific evidence to make a case to the city for relocation. Although they face skepticism from agencies and political resistance, the CCC remains committed to ensuring health safety and environmental justice for their community.
CCC seeks expertise in decision support for flood risk management to help design a study specific to this community and its situation. The goal is to produce estimates of benefits associated with turning their neighborhood into a green infrastructure zone. Potential benefits include reduced insurance costs and reduced damages from catastrophic flooding, and better valuation for neighborhood real estate. The project would attempt to produce estimates of all or some subset of potential benefits (including reduction of damage costs due to abatement) in order to support decision making for flood risk management for the city of Pascagoula.
TBD (~1 to 1.5 years)
The collaboration between the community and the scientist(s) should start as soon as possible. The duration of the project will be through approximately May 2025. Anticipated phases of the project include:
The Cherokee Concerned Citizens (CCC) in Pascagoula, Mississippi, are deeply engaged in a struggle to combat the environmental pollution besieging their neighborhood. Living perilously close to multiple polluting facilities, including Chevron Refinery, Gulf LNG, Bollinger, BP Enterprise, Destin Pipeline, Olex, and MS Phosphates Superfund, they are exposed to severe air and noise pollution.
Formed in 2013 after residents realized the extent of their shared concerns about noise, odors, and dust, the group found that these issues were causing significant health problems. In their quest for justice, the CCC has utilized PurpleAir monitors to measure particulate matter, capturing concrete data on the air pollution levels. Research indicates that the neighborhood is a cancer hotspot, with cancer risks 3.4 times higher than EPA acceptable levels. A health survey revealed an average of nine sick days per month per person, with at least 35 cancer cases and numerous other health issues reported. In the last five years, at least 23 residents have died from cancer or heart and lung diseases. Despite the CCC’s diligent efforts and involvement in a lawsuit with 50 households, responses from the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have been underwhelming. The ineffectiveness of engaging in the Title 5 permitting process has further compounded their frustrations.
CCC is exploring the possibility of convincing the city to relocate residents of the neighborhood and transform the area into an open space zone containing green infrastructure such as constructed wetlands. This green infrastructure zone could potentially bring benefits to a city which already has a complicated issue with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and their flood maps. Development of this green infrastructure solution presents a beneficial alternative to the City rather than relying on a private sector buyout.
Jennifer Crosslin is a lifelong resident of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and community organizer working to create a more equitable, safe, and sustainable Gulf Coast. She joined the Cherokee Concerned Citizens to provide organizing support to the residents of Cherokee subdivision in Pascagoula, MS in their efforts to protect their health and wellbeing against industrial pollution.
Jennifer Baka is an Associate Professor of Geography and an Associate at the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute at Penn State. She conducts interdisciplinary research on how energy systems impact human-environment relationships and environmental governance. Since 2020, she has been a Member of the Environmental Justice Advisory Board for the PA Department of Environmental Protection. Prior to joining Penn State, she was an Assistant Professor of Geography and Environment at the London School of Economics from 2013-16. She earned a PhD in Environmental Studies from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a Master’s in Public Policy from UC Berkeley. Prior to graduate school, Dr. Baka worked in the energy industry for numerous years first as an economic consultant in Washington, DC and second as a consultant for the United Nations Environment Programme in Paris, France.
Carl Fredrick Guico Aquino (he/him/his) is a Field Organizer for Climate Action PA, a climate action project of the League of Conservation Voters and former Legislative Intern for Senator Andrew Zwicker (New Jersey’s 16th Legislative District). He completed his Master of Science in Geosciences at Penn State specializing in geophysical climate risk assessment to support decision making under deep uncertainty (DMDU). He also spent two years as a Graduate Fellow for Science Advocacy and Diversity (GFSAD) where he led over 14 programs in science advocacy and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging for science. As an undergrad, Carl double majored in Earth Sciences and Finance, and minored in Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences at Penn State. Carl is passionate about justice and equity considerations for climate change and decarbonization. Prior to becoming a scientist, Carl wrote music for film and television in Los Angeles, California.
This project seeks a scientist to support community leaders in their effort to identify how a green infrastructure zone can be an effective and economically viable long term solution to increase resilience in a critical coastal industrial area and offset the cost of buying out current residents of the Cherokee neighborhood. The community welcomes scientists at any stage of their career who can help make the case that property values must take into account a rapidly changing climate and how nature-based methods for climate mitigation offset expensive remediation efforts.
Competencias y cualificaciones deseadas:
Thriving Earth Exchange pide a todos los socios científicos que trabajen con la comunidad para ayudar a definir un proyecto con impacto local concreto al que puedan contribuir como voluntarios y colaboradores pro-bono. Este trabajo también puede posicionar a los científicos y las comunidades para buscar financiación adicional, juntos, para la siguiente fase.
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