FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
April 11, 2011
Contact: Angela Barranco, angela.barranco@sierraclub.org, 202-675-6272
Sierra Club Ally Hilton Kelley Wins Prestigious Goldman Environmental
Prize
Kelley recognized with $150,000 international award for his
environmental justice leadership on the Texas Gulf Coast
Washington, D.C.
– Sierra Club ally Hilton Kelley has been awarded this year's prestigious
Goldman Environmental Prize, considered the "Nobel prize for environmental
activism," for his landmark environmental justice work to improve air
quality in one of the most polluted areas in the nation. Kelley led the
movement to clean up his largely African-American west side neighborhood of
Port Arthur, TX after seeing his town sickened by industrial pollution, plagued
with crime and teetering near economic collapse. Over the last decade, Kelley
has worked to educate and empower residents of his community and reduce
emissions from the eight major petrochemical and hazardous waste facilities in
the area.
“Hilton Kelley is an inspiration for grassroots activists everywhere,” said
Michael Brune, Executive Director of the Sierra Club. “One person with
determination and commitment like Hilton can make an incredible difference,
even against what may seem like insurmountable odds. Faced with environmental
injustice, poverty and illness caused by dirty air, Hilton’s work has brought
his community back from the brink. This is an extraordinary day for the
Sierra Club family.”
Born and raised on the west side of Port Arthur, Hilton Kelley returned to his
hometown after a successful 21-year career in Hollywood to find his community
ravaged by air pollution, crime and poverty. To combat the air pollution at the
heart of their social and economic problems, Kelley established the Community
In-powerment Development Association (CIDA) and began training local residents
to monitor air quality.
"Hilton Kelley and CIDA have successfully elevated their local environmental justice issues nationally and internationally and leveraged their advocacy to benefit many other similar environmental justice communities," according to Leslie Fields, the Sierra Club's Environmental Justice and Community Partnership Director.
Kelley’s community outreach campaign and advocacy led to the installation of state-of-the-art equipment to reduce harmful emissions at Motiva, the largest petrochemical facility in the U.S. Kelley also negotiated a now-famous “good neighbor” agreement that provided health coverage for the residents of the west side for three years and established a $3.5 million fund to help entrepreneurs launch new businesses in the community. He recently led a successful campaign beginning in 2006 that stopped Veolia Corporation from importing more than 20,000 tons of toxic PCBs from Mexico for incineration at its Port Arthur plant.
”It has been a
pleasure to work with Hilton to fight air pollution in Port Arthur,” said Dr.
Neil Carman, PhD chemist and Clean Air Program Director for the Lone Star
Chapter of the Sierra Club, who assisted in the successful effort to stop
Veolia. “Hilton is a wonderful advocate for his community and for
everyone in the Golden Triangle region of Texas. His dedicated efforts
are making a big difference on air quality and on the lives of his neighbors.”
Kelley continues to advocate for stronger environmental protections on the
Texas Gulf Coast and serves on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National
Environmental Justice Advisory Council. Thanks to his leadership, Port
Arthur has recently been selected as an EPA national showcase city, breathing
new life into the community. Last year, Kelley and his wife opened Kelley’s
Kitchen, a soul food restaurant that employs West Side residents.
“It’s good to have someone like Hilton Kelley working in our community to help
make the conditions better,” said Port Arthur resident and CIDA activist
Tashiica Miles. “For too long our communities have been dumped on and there
needs to be more for our youth as well – like recreation centers. CIDA is
working on all of these issues and we’re glad that they’re here.”
The Goldman Environmental Prize, now in its 22nd year, is awarded annually to
grassroots environmental heroes from each of the world’s inhabited continental
regions and is the largest award of its kind. It has been awarded to 145 people
from 80 countries and winners are selected by an international jury from
confidential nominations submitted by a worldwide network of environmental
organizations and individuals. Previous Goldman Prize winners have been at the
center of some of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges, including
seeking justice for victims of environmental disasters at Love Canal and
Bhopal, India; leading the fight for dolphin-safe tuna and fighting oil
drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
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For more information, visit http://www.sierraclub.org/people/kelley