Nov 9, 2024 Story by: Editor
RESERVE, La. (AP) — The St. John the Baptist Parish School Board voted on Thursday to shut down a predominantly Black elementary school near a petrochemical facility that has faced multiple lawsuits due to its high toxic emissions.
Denka Performance Elastomer LLC, located near the school, produces neoprene, a synthetic rubber used in products like wetsuits and laptop sleeves. The facility emits chloroprene, a substance that is considered a likely carcinogen. According to a 2023 complaint filed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the emissions expose the surrounding Black community to cancer risks deemed unacceptable.
The EPA has highlighted the significant cancer risk faced by the students at 5th Ward Elementary, which is located roughly a quarter mile (0.40 km) from the Denka facility. Monitoring data shows that chloroprene concentrations in the air near Denka are up to 15 times higher than the recommended limits for long-term exposure, according to the federal complaint. The EPA further asserts that the emissions from Denka contribute to the highest estimated cancer risks in St. John the Baptist Parish, one of the most industrialized areas in the U.S., often referred to as “Cancer Alley.”
In response to concerns over environmental justice, the Biden administration has allocated billions to the EPA to address such pollution issues, focusing on holding companies like Denka accountable. Many of these communities are located along the 85-mile stretch of the Mississippi River, known for its industrial facilities and high levels of pollution.
Denka’s parent company, based in Tokyo, has challenged an EPA order requiring it to reduce chloroprene emissions within 90 days, with support from Louisiana’s Republican Governor Jeff Landry. The case is currently being contested in federal court. Denka has claimed that it has significantly reduced its emissions, but the company’s June air monitoring report shows levels four times higher than the EPA’s standards. A spokesperson for Denka argued that the EPA’s risk assessment was based on “distorted” science and an overly conservative approach.
In a related legal development, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund filed a motion urging the school board to shut down the elementary school, citing the clear evidence of health risks to students. The school board, which remains under a decades-old desegregation order, was accused of disproportionately exposing Black children to toxic emissions when alternative schools are available. Alvarez Hertzock III, the district’s Director of Risk Management, assured that the school board was taking the lawsuit seriously.
During public hearings earlier this year, some parents and educators expressed their deep concerns about closing the school. 5th Ward Elementary Principal Rajean Butler, who also has a child enrolled at the school, said, “We want to stay together… knowing they will be torn apart, it just breaks my heart.” She added, “I created a space where every child is beloved like my own… Please don’t do this for our babies, our families. I just can’t imagine the thought of them being in a place where they are not loved.”
Despite the emotional pleas, the school board voted 7-4 to close the school by the 2025-2026 school year. The students currently enrolled will be reassigned to two other nearby schools.
School Board President Shawn Wallace stated that the decision to close 5th Ward Elementary was based on financial reasons, citing low enrollment across the district. However, board member Nia Mitchell-Williams pointed to the ongoing desegregation lawsuit, calling it “the real elephant in the room,” suggesting that the board acted to close the school before facing federal intervention.
Raydel Morris, a board member representing the neighborhood around 5th Ward Elementary, opposed the closure, arguing that relocating the students would simply lead to another abandoned building in a Black community. He also expressed concerns that the move would not effectively reduce the students’ exposure to Denka’s pollution, as East St. John Preparatory, the proposed school for many of the relocated students, is located less than a mile (1.61 km) from the facility. “We’re taking them from the front door and putting them in the backyard,” Morris said.
Victor Jones, an attorney with the Legal Defense Fund, criticized the board for delaying action and called for an immediate transfer of students out of 5th Ward Elementary. “The board has an ongoing and continued obligation to operate healthy and safe facilities for children,” Jones said. “Every day that that school remains open those children remain in danger.”
Jones further emphasized that moving students to a school near Denka would not eliminate their exposure to the facility’s toxic emissions.
Superintendent Cleo Perry stated that he was not concerned about the health risks for students who would be relocated to East St. John Preparatory. He acknowledged the difficulty of school consolidations but assured that the district would focus on making the transition as smooth as possible for students, families, and staff. “Our goal right now is to work with our community to make the best transition possible,” he said. Source: Access WDUN
