Another Way is Possible

Environmental and Climate Justice Region VIIThe Path to Transformation for Our Communities

OVERVIEWWhat Were Up Against

What Are Our Assets

How Do We Eliminate Threats and Optimize Our Strengths

Re-envisioning Community

Our Current Course

Our natural resources are being sold at top dollar with no regard for impact on people or the environment3

Waste and Communities

Picture of one of the landfills that received the oil waste. This is what our communities are living with disproportionately5

Landfills in the DMVDistrict of Columbia--0Maryland27Virginia152 (In 2010, out of a total of 19 million tons of waste in landfills, Virginia received nearly 6million tons of waste from MD, NY, and other states)

Waste Being Dumped in Our Communities

Every community that received waste from the BP oil spill had a POC population that was higher than the national average. The one white county that was going to receive the waste put up such a protest that they ended up not sending the waste there.7

Incinerators

Picture of biomass facility, also disproportionately located in our communities and emitting toxins such as benzene, cadmium, lead, tricholorethylene, mercury, etc. toxins tied to respiratory illnesses, cancers, birth defects, etc. 8

Waste

Just bit of grim humor9

You can point out that this is a picture of a mother feeding her three headed bird, a grim reference to the birth defects that result from exposure to toxic waste.10

Energy Production

Cesar Chavez High School in Houston Texas. African American and Latino school. That oil refinery is one of 5 within a 10 mile radius of that school which concentrates the level of pollution to which these kids are being exposed. There are no zoning laws in Houston, which is why facilities like these can be on top of our communities. 12

Deepwater Horizon Incident

BP Oil Drilling Disaster which impacted the culture, livelihood, and health of communities across the gulf13

For some their only voice was through expressing their frustration through lawn signs14

Or wall murals15

Nuclear

Nuclear facilities are disproportionately located in our communities.16

Uranium Mining in Pittsylvania

Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Facility-MD

Maryland Failing Coal PlantsCityPlant Name3-mile Average IncomeState Income Percentage3-Mile P.O.C. PopulationGradeCurtis BayBrandon Shores$23,05090.0%7.8%FCumberlandAES Warrior Run$12,98250.7%10.7%D-BaltimoreCP Crane$22,69388.6%14.9%DCurtis BayHerbert A Wagner$23,40391.4%6.5%DNewburgMorgantown$19,04774.4%26.2%D+

Cogentrix Plant--Portsmouth, VA

Failing Coal Plants in VirginiaPlantOwner-Parent CompanyCity and StateChesapeakeVirginia Electric /DominionChesapeake, VAPotomac RiverMirant Potomac River/MirantAlexandria, VASpruance GencoSpruance Operating Services/Spruance Operating ServicesRichmond, VACogentrix PortsmouthCogentrixVirginia Leasing Corp/Energy Investors Funds GroupPortsmouth, VAJames River CogenerationJames River Cogeneration/Energy Investors Funds (Cogentrix)Hopewell, VACloverVirginia Electric/DominionClover, VABremo BluffVirginia Electric/DominionBremo Bluff, VAChesterfieldVirginia Electric/DominionChester, VA

What makes coal fired power plants in our communities all the scarier is that these facilities are built next to water ways because they use the water to generate steam which is part of the electricity generation process. Whats unfortunate, is that while it takes from the water, it also pollutes the water. Our communities are disproportionately subsistence fisherfolks. So we fish to put food on the table, just like this fellow fishing out of the greenish-brown muck that is polluted by a neighboring plant. One NAACP executive tells the story of fishing out of the Hudson river when rent time was coming up and money was low. He said he stopped when he pulled a fish out of the water and all of the scales fell off. 23

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate Change

Impacts---Extreme Weather

Increase in Extreme Weather

As we know, there are three impacts of climate change. Superstorms like Katrina and Sandy are going to become commonplace. 27

Extreme Weather

Devastation wrought by katrina28

Weve also seen a surge in damaging torndados29

Obliteration of Communities and Erosion of Cultures

A community that no longer exists in Pratt City Alabama after the tornados of 201130

Who is Recovering/Returning?

A dream home destroyednow the Clark Family has to move back to the city because the insurance and FEMA money was insufficient to cover the damage31

Port GibsonGrand Gulf

A flooded home in Mississippi in Port Gibson, a majority black community, in frightening proximity to the Grand Gulf Nuclear station. With only one escape route for the town, disasters are a double-threat.32

Shifts in Agricultural Yields

This is what once fertile ground looks like now..34

Food Insecurity in the USCorner Store

Supermarket

Our communities are disproportionately food deserts which means we are less likely to have a supermarkets offering nutritious foods within 3 miles of our homes. So the picture on the left is more our reality than the one on the right.35

Feast and Famine in Urban AmericaCorner Store

Supermarket

The result is that, coupled with the fact that we are also less mobile so not even as able to drive to a supermarket, we have more access to life sapping foods than life lengthening foods. Our supply includes foods high in additives, preservatives, sugar, and sodium rather than the rich anti-oxidant, immune boosting fresh fruits and vegetables.36

Sea Level Rise

Cabinet Meeting held underwater in the Maldives Islands because the President wanted to send a clear message, both to his own country and the world that the Maldives is facing imminent displacement within 20 years, due to rising sea level. 38

The imminent displacement isnt limited to the Maldives. Kivalina Island in Alaska and Thibodaux in Louisiana are also preparing to have to move whole communities as they are losing large degrees of land mass daily!

39

Profits Over People

Anti-Regulatory InvestmentsCompanyTotal Spent on Lobbying in 2010Southern Company$13,220,000Edison International$13,080,000American Electric Power$10,313,196Duke Energy$4,800,000Dominion$2,050,000First Energy$1,865,000Xcel Energy$1,720,000DTE Energy$1,500,000

The companies that run the industries that are polluting our communities and advancing climate change are fighting hard to hold on to their profits. They are investing millions of dollars in lobbying against regulations that protect public health and the environment. They are also investing heavily in keeping officials in office that support their industries while fighting against the re-election of President Obama and others who want to preserve communities and the environment. 41

Fighting Renewable EnergySouthern Company successfully opposed a plan to create a national electricity market in 2004 and has dedicated significant money and effort to fighting the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), which would require utilities to purchase 15% of their power from renewable sources by 2020.

They fight against regulations that safeguard public health AND they fight against any attempt to shift to policies supporting clean energy and energy efficiency that dont harm people. 42

CNN NEWSROOM-Hurricane IssacMALVEAUX: And Senator, finally, why is it that Plaquemines Parish did not get that support for a levee?

LANDRIEU: Because the Corps of Engineers has a formula that they use to determine where they are going to build or reinforce the levees, based on economic impact .you get less points if there is less of an economic impact

I was in Louisiana following Hurricane Isaac and saw a CNN commercial which featured the above dialogue which demonstrates the policy making that prioritize preserving investments over protecting people. 43

CEO Compensation for 2010 at Companies Owning the Top EJ OffendersCompanyCEO NameCEO CompensationEdison InternationalTheodore F. Craver Jr.$9,536,038DominionThomas F. Farrell II$16,924,385DTE EnergyGerald M. Anderson$5,601,383Duke EnergyJames E. Rogers$8,815,181Xcel EnergyRichard C. Kelly$9,956,433Southern CompanyThomas A. Fanning$6,019,151First EnergyAnthony J. Alexander$11,627,657

[i] AFL-CIO CEO Pay Database, Accessed November 2011 http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/paywatch/ceou/industry_2011.cfm

Companies are driven by protecting profits and they pay top dollar to their executives for decision making that protects the bottom line44

Deepening DisparityThe average CEO compensation for these companies in 2010 was $9,782,889 while the average worker in these companies made $33,840.

On average the CEOs at these companies were compensated at 289 times the rate of compensation for the average worker.

Self explanatory.45

African Americans and Energy$40 Billion

1.1%

.01%

40b---amount African Americans spent on energy in 20091.1%--percentage of energy jobs held by African Americans (compared to our 12% proportion of the population).01%--revenue African Americans reaped from the multibillion dollar energy sector which takes so much of our spending.46

Our Overall Economic PlightWhile the national rate of unemployment during February 2012, was 8.3% that rate is nearly double of African Americans at 14.1%. A report by the Pew Research Center revealed that the wealth divide between whites and people of color hit a record high in 2009, with the median wealth of white households 20 times higher than black households

While we continue to suffer from double-digit unemployment and extreme wealth disaparity47

ANOTHER WAY

It doesnt have to be this way..there are many things we can do to seize the new energy economy and build financial stability while protecting the health and wellbeing of our communities and our environment!!48

Diverting Waste

Achieving 75% waste diversion in 2030 would:Create 1.5 million new jobs Lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 515 million tons (~72 coal plants or 50 million cars)Significantly reduce pollution impacting human & ecological health

What is the potential?

50We dont have to have communities wallowing in waste. We can recycle almost all waste while creating millions of jobs through waste diversion projects.

Slide courtesy Brenda Platt, ILSR

51Two Waste Management Inc. facilities in Maryland:cost of a proposed mass burn incinerator (photo of an existing mass burn incinerator in MD) vs. cost of a recently constructed recycling sorting facility

RecyclingRecology, San Franciscos primary recycling, composting and waste company, employs more than 1,000 workers who are represented by the Teamsters. Some 118 new employees have been hired in recent years to sort recyclables and monitor the collection routes in order to meet San Franciscos aggressive recycling goals.

Case study--Self explanatory52

Diversion from Landfills=JOBSIn Seattle 2009, nearly 100,000 tons of organic waste was diverted from landfills by the city of Seattles program. The city of Seattles waste diversion efforts not only benefit the environment, but also sustain family-supporting jobs for the more than 1,000 solid waste and recycling drivers and transfer station employees in Seattle and King County who are represented by the Teamsters Union.

Another Self explanatory case study53

Current JobsCalifornia115,000 jobs in recycling Illinois 40,000 jobs in recyclingNew York 32,200 jobs in recyclingMinnesota 18,000 jobs in reuse North Carolina 15,000 jobs in recyclingMassachusetts 13,900 jobs in recyclingSan Francisco 1,000 union jobs

What is the potential?

We can do the same thing in Region VI!!!54

Promoting Local OwnershipLocal ownership programs can create two to three times as many jobs per megawatt produced. And these local jobs keep over three times as much money and wealth in a community compared to big companies.

Zero waste initiatives, by definition, are local which keeps jobs in the community and cuts down on monopolies that concentrate wealth at the top with CEOs and other executives. 55

Promoting Energy Efficiency and Clean Energy

Why Progressive Energy Policies?ENERGY EFFICIENCY: The less energy we use, the less we are polluting, the less our communities are exposed to pollution ,and the less we are advancing climate change, which also disproportionately harms our communities.

CLEAN ENERGY: The more clean energy we use, the less harmful energy we are using saving our community health, property values, and the sustainability of our environment.

Energy Efficiency

Cooperative/Low Fuel Transportation

59

Wind Energy

Solar Powered Homes/Businesses/Communities

A friend who is completely self-sustaining on clean energy. He gets all of his electricity through solar energy and he generates so much that he can sell the excess back to the grid for the same rate that he would have purchased it. He also heats his house through geothermal system.61

A church in Alabama gets its energy from solar panels and stores the energy when they arent using it, in these batteries in the church utility closet!62

Defining Progressive Energy PoliciesRenewable Portfolio Standards States commit to a minimum amount of their energy mix that will come from renewable sourcesShould be mandatoryShould be at least 25% by 2025

Energy Efficiency Standards States commit to reducing their energy consumptionShould be mandatoryShould be at least 1% annual reduction of previous year retail electricity sales.

Net Metering Utility customers who generate their energy through renewable sources are able to sell excess energy generated back to the grid for the same purchasing price utility companies charge for electricity.

Self Explanatory63

Progressive Energy Policies in Region VIISTATEENERGY EFFICIENCYSTANDARDRENEWABLE ENERGYSTANDARDNET METERINGDistrict of ColumbiaNOYESYESMarylandYESYESYESVirginiaYESYESYES

Which states have which policies in Region VII64

Taking Action

Educating Ourselves in Chicago

We are hosting education sessions in local communities66

Engaging with the EPA

We are organizing NAACP member delegations to testify at EPA67

We are hosting strategy sessions like this one with HBCUs and government agencies in Louisiana to connect our institutions with the resources we need to advance justice for our communities. 68

We are uplifting African American entrepreneurs like Robert Wallace who owns BithEnergy, a clean energy company that operates throughout the US and globally!69

We are joining with allies like this group in South Africa who is taking it to the streets to call for corporate social responsibility!70

In South Africa, calling out the ending profits over people. 71

Curtailing Financing

We are linking with partners who are targeting cutting off financing of industries that are harming our communities. 72

Advancing Just Policy

In Chicago, community activism was successful in shutting down two polluting coal plants that were in the ids of African American and Latino communities, providing no jobs to those communities but providing pollution at the expense to especially the children and aging populations of those communities.73

Civic Engagement

Civic engagement is critical to make sure we have folks in office who represent our interests. 74

Legal Action--MATS Intervention

The NAACP has entered into a legal intervention against the coal industry which is suing EPA as they fight for their right to continue polluting communities with mercury, arsenic, lead and other toxins as they fight for the repeal of the Mercury and Air Toxics Regulation that limits the amount of toxins coal plants can spew into the air.75

Youth leadership is key to mobilization and to bring new ideas and new energy to the movement. 76

Local, Cooperative Communities

In Berkeley, this community grows its own food including a garden and chicken coop. They also have a tool library and transportation collective. 77

Local Cooperative Communities

Its not just the hippy Californians. In Pittsburgh, the Landslide community grows their own food, has a chicken coop and feeds indigent persons on Wednesdays from the bounty of their community garden. 78

Together We CAN!

Linking with partners like the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization has been the key to success. Pictured here is Reverend Theresa Dear, NAACP National Board Member, who led a prayer vigil in front of the now-closed Crawford Coal Plant in Chicago.79

!! JOIN US !!Start an Environmental and Climate Justice CommitteeConduct a Community Assessment and Develop an Action PlanStart a Coal Blooded CampaignStart a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard CampaignStart an Energy Efficiency Standard CampaignStart a Net Metering CampaignInitiate a Clean Energy or Energy Efficiency Demonstration ProjectDevelop a Disaster PlanStart an Eco-District in Your MunicipalityLaunch a Youth and College 10,000 Steps Campaign

What do you want to do? Will you commit today to launching a campaign/project in your community? If you commit, we will commit to support you!!!80

Our Resources2010 Climate Justice ToolkitCoal Blooded: Putting Profits Before PeopleNational ReportCoal Blooded Action Toolkit10,000 Steps Youth and College ToolkitBeasts of the Southern Wild Discussion Guide

Coming SoonJust Energy Policies State By State CompendiumECJ Comprehensive Toolkit Black Church ECJ Toolkit

Thank You

Jacqui Patterson

Director, Environmental and Climate Justice Program

443-465-9809

jpatterson@naacpnet.org