Chicago's Toxic Doughnut, USA

Last update:
2015-05-07

Chicago's Toxic Doughnut, USA

Description:

Altgeld Gardens was originally established as a federal housing project for World War II African American veterans on the South Side of Chicago. Labeled the 'toxic doughnut' Altgeld gardens had the highest concentration of hazardous waste sites in the nation. The community was surrounded by 50 landfills and 382 industrial facilities. It had 250 leaking underground storage tanks. Several toxicology studies conducted in Altgeld Gardens since the 1980s have revealed dangerous levels of mercury, lead, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), heavy metals, and xylene. (Wenzel, L. (1998).

Basic Data

Name of conflict:	Chicago's Toxic Doughnut, USA
Country:	United States of America
State or province:	Illinois
Location of conflict:	Altgeld Gardens
Accuracy of location	HIGH (Local level)

Source of Conflict

Type of conflict. 1st level:	Waste Management
Type of conflict. 2nd level:	Landfills, toxic waste treatment, uncontrolled dump sites Manufacturing activities
Specific commodities:	Industrial waste

Project Details and Actors

Project details	In 1998 an estimated 26,000 pounds of toxic pollutants were emitted annually contributing to extremely high rates of resperatory illness and asthma. A 1992 survey found that 51 percent pregnancies reported during the last year resulted in abnormalities.
Project area:	77
Type of population	Urban
Affected Population:	6,400 residents over the span of 68 years
Start of the conflict:	1945
Company names or state enterprises:	ACME Steel from United States of America
Relevant government actors:	Chicago Housing Authority, Chicago Department of Public Health, Illinois Department of Public Health, EPA
Environmental justice organizations (and other supporters) and their websites, if available:	People for Community Recovery, Greenpeace

Conflict & Mobilization

Intensity	MEDIUM (street protests, visible mobilization)
Reaction stage	Mobilization for reparations once impacts have been felt
Groups mobilizing:	Local ejos Neighbours/citizens/communities Women Ethnically/racially discriminated groups
Forms of mobilization:	Blockades Community-based participative research (popular epidemiology studies, etc..) Creation of alternative reports/knowledge Development of a network/collective action Involvement of national and international NGOs Lawsuits, court cases, judicial activism Media based activism/alternative media Official complaint letters and petitions Public campaigns Street protest/marches

Impacts

Environmental Impacts	Visible: Noise pollution, Soil contamination, Groundwater pollution or depletion, Air pollution, Loss of landscape/aesthetic degradation
Health Impacts	Visible: Other environmental related diseases, Exposure to unknown or uncertain complex risks (radiation, etc…)
Socio-economical Impacts	Visible: Displacement, Other socio-economic impacts

Outcome

Project Status	In operation
Conflict outcome / response:	Environmental improvements, rehabilitation/restoration of area Institutional changes Migration/displacement New legislation Application of existing regulations New Environmental Impact Assessment/Study
Do you consider this an environmental justice success? Was environmental justice served?:	Yes
Briefly explain:	Hazel Johnson and People for Community Recovery are widely recognized as founding leadership for the EJ movement. This case is also one of the early instances of successful community led research gather evidence of environmental racism. Succeded in convincing government to address several health issues including water contamination and asbestos.

Sources & Materials

Juridical relevant texts related to the conflict (laws, legislations, EIAs, etc)

Executive Order #12898 on Environmental Justice

[click to view]

"Final tribute sought for environmental activist", Chicago Tribune
[click to view]

Related media links to videos, campaigns, social network

Video Interview with Hazel Johnson
[click to view]

Other comments:

This is one of the top 40 influential environmental justice cases in the United States identified from a national survey of environmental activists, scholars and other leaders by graduate students at the University of Michigan.

Meta information

Contributor:	Katy Hintzen, [email protected], University of Michigan School of Natural Resources and Environment
Last update	18/08/2019
Conflict ID:	364

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