Letter asks Governor Larry Hogan to address racial environmental inequity
MARYLAND – Several organizations are signing on to a letter being sent to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. They’re urging the governor to do more to do more to prevent racial environmental inequality. “You should be looking at the environmental impacts. Baseline environmental hazards, baseline health impacts, who are the vulnerable populations, and what are the alternatives?” said Dr. Sacoby Wilson with the Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health.
On the Eastern shore – they claim communities of color are disproportionately impacted by the effects of things like industrial agriculture. “There needs to be air quality monitoring near industrial chicken farms on the Eastern Shore so we can have actual data to inform policy,” said Dr. Wilson.
Monica Brooks with Concerned Citizens Against Industrial CAFOs says smaller, rural communities of color are often overlooked when it comes to protecting them from environmental hazards. “We want our governor to make environmental justice a priority for us. Not just in the cities, but throughout the Eastern Shore,” said Brooks.
Ultimately – environmental justice is what’s being asked for in a letter sent to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. Some examples of those environmental effects include impact on air and water quality from industrial poultry farming in rural areas. They also include pollutants from things like industrial sites in urban areas. “These are communities that have been under-served. They do not have the same benefits that others have here in the state,” said Executive Director of the Assateague Coastal Trust Kathy Phillips.
The letter is also asking the governor to restructure the Maryland Commission on Environmental Justice and Sustainable Communities. That way, the impact of pollutants can be minimized in communities of color. They also say rural communities like those on the Eastern Shore should have a say in how pollutants from industrial complexes impact them. “You’ve got to let communities speak with their own voice. You’ve got to go where the people are. They should be having meetings in other parts of the state. Lower east or eastern shore and southern Maryland,” said Dr. Wilson.
The activists say that systemic racism puts under-served communities at risk – and is deeply embedded in the health hazards that come with racial environmental inequality. “Systemic racism is a tool that is woven too much in our government, throughout our society, and environmental racism is something that’s been going on a long time,” said Brooks.
The letter also asks Governor Hogan to sign an executive order on environmental justice as it relates to COVID-19. They say that COVID-19 is impacting communities of color in a big way – because of the underlying health conditions pollutants can cause. “They were already at risk pre-viral pandemic because of those social determinants. Because of racism, because of poverty, because of lack of access to food,” said Dr. Wilson.
47ABC did reach out to Governor Hogan’s office for comment. In an email, the governor’s office wrote, “We appreciate the letter. At Tuesday’s meeting of the Chesapeake Executive Council, chaired by Governor Hogan, the council adopted a historic statement reaffirming the commitment of the partnership in embracing diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in all forms.”
