"In a stretch of Louisiana with about 170 fossil fuel and petrochemical plants, premature death is a fact of life for people living nearby. The air is so polluted and the cancer rates so high it is known as Cancer Alley."Most adults in the area are attending two to three funerals per month," said Gary C. Watson Jr., who was born and raised in St. John the Baptist Parish, a majority Black community in Cancer Alley about 30 miles outside of New Orleans."
"When the federal government in 2009 targeted carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as a public health danger because of climate change, it led to tighter regulation of pollution and cleaner air in some communities. But this month, the Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency overturned that "endangerment finding."Public health experts say the change will likely mean more illness and death for Americans, with communities like Watson's hit hardest."
Cancer Alley, a stretch of Louisiana with about 170 fossil fuel and petrochemical plants, suffers severe air pollution and high cancer rates among nearby residents. Many adults in St. John the Baptist Parish attend two to three funerals per month, and families have lost multiple relatives to cancer. Poor and minority communities face higher exposure to fine particulate pollution from fossil fuel facilities, linked to higher death rates. The EPA's prior finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health led to tighter pollution rules; the Trump administration's EPA revoked that finding. Public health experts warn the revocation will likely increase illness and deaths, disproportionately harming communities like Cancer Alley.
Read at Fast Company
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