VICTORY: MDE Pulls Incinerator Permit

March 18, 2016

Collage of activists resisting construction of incinerator

FOLLOWING MONTHS OF PRESSURE MARYLAND PULLS PERMIT FOR NATION’S LARGEST TRASH BURNING INCINERATOR

The following is a message from Destiny Watford with United Workers, an organization working to bring environmental justice and fair development to Baltimore with support from a broad coalition including Sierra Club.

We did it!

After 6 months of tireless work from artists, lawyers, doctors, teachers, students, faith leaders and people from all walks of life - WE WON! After 6 months of being flooded with phone calls, letters and people showing up and making their voices heard - The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) enforced the law finding that the incinerator's permit has expired.

This marks a major victory in our ongoing fight to stop the nation's largest trash burning incinerator from being built less than a mile from schools in Curtis Bay - a front-line environmental justice community already overburdened with toxic air emissions. We will share more in the coming days on this big moment and what comes next in our work to follow through on our fight to stop the failed incinerator and replace it with community driven fair development alternatives. Lot's of ways to get involved! For now, let's hear immediate reactions from community leaders on the victory:

"This is awesome. Curtis Bay residents fought and we won and now our vision is finally coming into focus. Now we can roll up our sleeves and get to work on our plans for community driven alternatives for solar and recycling. The people stood up to a threat to our health and environment and this is a big victory. Energy Answers was shaking in their boots when they saw how opposed residents were to their incinerator!"-Rodette Jones, Curtis Bay resident, manager of the Filbert St. Community Garden and a member of the United Workers Leadership Council

"Today marks a crucial point in the communities of Brooklyn, Curtis Bay and Brooklyn Park. Community members have been working to bring truly green community driven positive alternatives like solar, recycling, and composting that provides good jobs for residents, and doesn't put our lives at risk. The incinerator was holding us back from that positive vision. Which is why, since August, doctors, environmentalists,  and community members that wanted to see the incinerator project come to an end, have been reaching out to MDE, stating why the incinerator project is not only a failure, but is also fundamentally wrong. We are incredibly proud of the MDE for making the right decision helping us move forward towards a future filled with truly green developments. Now, more than ever, is the time for our public officials to stand with residents as we work to make our positive vision an reality" -Destiny Watford, Curtis Bay resident, Free Your Voice student leader and member of the United Workers Leadership Council

"It's awesome that MDE, after all of the pressure we've been building, is finally taking a step in the right direction. I'm just happy that it's finally happening and see it as an opportunity for city and state officials to help support working towards the community's vision for positive fair development alternatives to the incinerator." -Charles Graham, Senior and Benjamin Franklin High School, Free Your Voice Leader and member of the United Workers Leadership Council ALSO on of the "incinerator 7" arrested for standing up and demanding that MDE enforce the law!
 
Initial Coverage of the big win

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Building Power

This victory was hard fought by a strong and growing team. The effort has brought great people together from the Environmental Integrity Project, Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility, The Arundel Neighborhood Association, The Institute for Local Self Reliance, Sierra Club, Clean Water Action, Chesapeake Center For Youth Development, The Ben Franklin Community Center, The Rediscovering Me Youth Clubhouse, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Blue Water Baltimore, Climate Howard, Interfaith Power and Light, Social Work Community Outreach Services, Energy Justice Network, and the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives - as well as many others! 

We are doing this together!

Learn more about United Workers:
http://www.unitedworkers.org/