“We are completely surrounded right here - from the north side to the west side and to the southside - completely surrounded by asphalt plants.” “A lot of asphalt plants exist on the Southwest Side as well as their storage facilities,” Boda explained. Currently, 60% of Chicago’s asphalt plants are concentrated on Chicago’s Southwest Side, leading to what they say is an overburdened community. Phillip Boda, a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, focuses on environmental justice, specifically on educating Black and Brown communities.īoda, along with a team of scientists, recently released a “dashboard” that tracks pollution emitters across Chicago. “We went above and beyond when we were making the purchase knowing we were in the city of Chicago, so we went that extra mile … we paved every single road way and we went electric.” “When it comes to pollution control, you can’t do better than this asphalt,” Haughey said. MAT Asphalt’s Haughey said the plant has lower emissions than other asphalt plants in the area, and that they closely follow health protocols. of MAT Limited Partnership shared in part: “Just as we have done with all our businesses over the years, MAT is committed to building a state-of-the-art headquarters on the Damen Silos site."Įnvironmental groups strongly oppose the sale and are asking the state to give McKinley Park residents an opportunity to express their concerns.Įnvironmental activists like Romo believe the sale is yet another example of the city “choosing money over people.” “It’s a pretty unsightly area with graffiti and problems with the soil and that is going to be first and foremost.” “The very first focus is to remediate it,” Haughey explained. Joseph Haughey runs the daily operations at MAT Asphalt and said the first step is to remediate the site. The 23-acre property located along the Chicago River has been vacant for years. The state announced it will enter into exclusive negotiations with MAT Limited Partnership to take over the Damen Silos property. Now, the plant’s owner, Micheal Tadin Jr., is set to purchase another property just about a mile away. Interactive map: More from our community reporting series The developers know that and that’s why we are targeted.” So, the system knows that the operators know that. “There’s also low disinvestment, and less education, so it makes it hard for these valuable people to once again organize and fight back. “These people are low income,” Romo said. In the long run, Romo said asphalt plants put people’s health at risk, and at this point, they are pushing the city to do a better job overseeing these facilities. The organization has gone as far as monitoring the air quality. Romo said there have also been complaints about the odors coming out of the facility. So, it’s very hard for us to walk away from this issue … these toxic elements that we are being impacted by.” We have seven schools, five daycares in the community. “We’re in this beautiful park that becomes a community center. “This company cannot coexist with our environment,” Romo said. MAT Asphalt moved into the neighborhood in 2017 and since its opening, environmentalists have been pushing for its removal.Īlfredo Romo, organizer and executive director of Neighbors for Environmental Justice, said one of their main concerns has been the pollution caused by the making of asphalt and the impact it has on the air quality in the community.
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