Chester residents unhappy with taking Philly’s trash, speak out at City Council hearing The hearing centered on Philadelphia’s use of a Chester incinerator to convert a portion of Philly’s trash to energy. Chester residents opposed to Philadelphia’s process of sending trash to Chester voiced their concerns at a City Council hearing Wednesday afternoon. Zulene Mayfield of Chester Residents Concerned for […]
Swarthmore’s Connection to Environmental (In)Justice in Chester (9/21/23)
By Chris Folk, C-4 Student https://swarthmorephoenix.com/2023/09/21/swarthmores-connection-to-environmental-injustice-in-chester/ Located in the fourth richest county in Pennsylvania, Swarthmore is a utopian suburb for wealthy, liberal whites, where people regularly live into their eighties. Swarthmore, the town and college, can easily feel like a bubble – physically and psychologically isolated from the rest of the world. When one wants to get out and go […]
ENERGY COMPANY PLOTTED GAS PLANT IN SMALL PENNSYLVANIA TOWN — BUT NO ONE TOLD RESIDENTS – The Intercept, July 2023
READ FULL ARTICLE HERE: https://theintercept.com/2023/07/17/chester-pennsylvania-liquefied-natural-gas/ “WHEN ZULENE MAYFIELD received a call from a reporter last summer, she was surprised. A journalist working at Philadelphia’s public radio station had contacted her for a story about a plan to develop a liquefied natural gas facility in her hometown of Chester, Pennsylvania, a city that sits along the Delaware River just southwest of the […]
Never Vanguard at Covanta Incinerator
This past Saturday, June 10th, a rally was held outside the Covanta incinerator’ employee entrance to protest and inform people about Vanguard’s investment in Covanta and other polluting, destructive industry. Organized by Earth Quaker Action Team (EQAT), supported by CRCQL, this demonstration was part of EQAT’s Never Vanguard campaign – Vanguard being one of Covanta’s principle financiers. The demonstration began […]
Hundreds gather for 3rd Annual Environmental Justice March in Chester, PA
April 22, 2023 – Chester, PA. – Over 200 people marched and caravanned from Chester City Hall to the front of Covanta’s trash incinerator, calling for an end to acts of environmental racism. Hosted by Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living (CRCQL, pronounced “circle”), the march demonstrated the need for clean air and justice for Chester City residents. Unfortunately, the […]
YES Center Chester’s Women Change Makers: Zulene Mayfield
http://chesterdigital.sunycreate.cloud/rlbennett/zulene-mayfield/ Chester’s Zulene Mayfield fondly recalls a quiet life three-plus decades ago, as a new homeowner on the city’s west end, a short driving distance from family members. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary — until word spread among neighbors of a massive trash incinerator under construction behind a fence, just feet away from her block. The Westinghouse (now known […]
March 16, 2022 – CRCQL Press Conference at County Council
Chester Residents & Allies host Press Conference at Delco Council Meeting to demand NO Incineration of County trash! March 17, 2022 – Media, PA. – Yesterday, almost 70 residents from Chester, PA and across Delaware County held a press conference and staged a die-in/sit-in before the Delaware County Council Meeting. Their point was clear: under no circumstances should the County […]
March 9: Chester residents and CRCQL allies attend the Solid Waste Authority Board Meeting
Chester residents and CRCQL allies attend the Solid Waste Authority Board Meeting March 9, 2022 – Media, PA – Residents from across Delaware County joined the Delco Solid Waste Authority (DCSWA) Board meeting on Wednesday, March 9th to hear more about the Board’s review of a new Covanta contract for Delaware County waste. Objections were made by CRCQL for the […]
“United Shades of America” docuseries sheds light on lead pollution and Covanta incinerator
Check out the “Toxic America” episode of CNN’s docuseries “United Shades of America” hosted by Kamau Bell. The final episode of Season 4 aired in 2019 examines the effects of industrial waste pollution in Chester, Delaware County, and lead poisoning in neighboring Philadelphia. Featuring our own Zulene Mayfield. https://www.phillyvoice.com/cnn-united-shades-america-lead-poisoning-pollution-philly-chester-kamau-bell/ https://www.cnn.com/shows/united-shades-of-america
75% of largest U.S. incinerators located in marginalized communities
The trash incineration industry in the U.S., as a whole, does not have a disproportionate impact by economic class, but has a strong environmental racism trend. While 67% of the nation’s 68 remaining trash incinerators are located in majority white communities, the industry has a strong and disproportionate impact on people of color because the largest and dirtiest are located […]
