“Fighting for Our Lives”: Environmental justice in the Nation’s Capital

Image via The Georgetown Voice.

From The Georgetown Voice:

Residents of Ivy City, a northeast D.C. neighborhood, have reported a foul odor coming from an inconspicuous brick building since the 1930s. Though it looks unsuspecting, the building—a chemical plant for National Engineering Products Inc. (NEP)—produces high levels of formaldehyde and is polluting the predominantly low-income neighborhood with the release of cancerous substances into the air. 

Advocates say this is just one example of a broader issue of environmental injustice in D.C.

 “Why are they here? Why are they in our backyards?” Sabrena Rhodes, a resident of Ivy City, asked. “I realized that this place is a danger to our community, to the residents here, to my neighbors, and to the District.”