Environmental Health Coalition
The Environmental Health Coalition is an organization focused on environmental and social justice in San Diego, California. It was founded in 1980 by Diane Takvorian and Tony Pettina, and includes a staff of 19 other individuals. Its work mainly concerns low income communities and communities of color in San Diego. It also works to affect public policy both locally and nationally. The coalition believes that by working closely with communities, it will be able to help mitigate the excessive amounts of pollution and other environmental hazards such as hazardous air pollution, toxic waste disposal facilities, or superfund sites. One of its main goals is to prevent environmental injustice in San Diego and use that work to influence national environmental justice issues. Its mission statement is as follows:
''“Environmental Health Coalition is dedicated to achieving environmental and social justice. We believe that justice is accomplished by empowered communities acting together to make social change. We organize and advocate to protect public health and the environment threatened by toxic pollution. EHC supports broad efforts that create a just society and fosters a healthy and sustainable quality of life.”''
History
The Environmental Health Coalition was founded in 1980 originally under the name Coalition Against Cancer. The initial focus of the EHC was to clean up toxic waste sites like the 38th and Alpha street dumps. In 1983, EHC launched the Household Toxics Project, which focuses on identifying and removing harmful toxins in houses in local San Diego residences. In 1986, the EHC co-sponsored the Tijuana Toxics Conference, and in the same year, launched the Toxic Free Neighborhoods and Clean Bay Campaigns. In 1994, the EHC launched SALTA, which aimed to train locals in environmental health and justice. In 1996, the EHC protested the housing of nuclear aircraft carriers in San Diego Bay. In 2000, the EHC worked to draft the Military Responsibilities Act, and in 2002, it formed the Tijuana affiliate. In 2005, it got polluting diesel trucks banned on Barrio Logan streets, and in 2006, it worked with the state to ban candies that had unhealthy traces of lead in them. In 2010, the EHC got the West Side National City Specific Plan approved, and oversaw energy stimulus money going towards San Diego residents on low income.Diane Takvorian is one of the founders of the EHC. She has been the Executive Director since 1982, and holds a master's degree in Social Work with a focus in public policy. She has served on advisory boards at the state, national, and international level and is part of the Joint Public Advisory Committee for the NAFTA Commission for Environmental Cooperation. Tony Pettina is the other founder of the EHC. From 1980 to 2006, he served as the treasurer of the board of directors. Joy Williams served as the Research Director from 1987 to 2020 and received the Haagen-Smit Award by the California Air Resource Board in 2019.
Beliefs and Goals
The Environmental Health Coalition works to promote social and environmental justice initiatives through community involvement. It places an emphasis on policies involving public health and sustainability.The EHC aims to prevent and eliminate disproportionate distribution and placement of sources of toxic pollution in underprivileged communities. The coalition works to inform the community members about the dangers and tangible effects of pollution on quality of life in order to encourage individual activism. The EHC believes that the general public has a right to be informed of and involved with local democratic decision making. In addition, the EHC advocates for government intervention to create change in policies which aim to serve the protection of human and environmental rights. These policies are used to place stricter limits on corporation activity in order to increase accountability. The coalition also intends to widen their scope of influence by building relationships with other organizations which share EHC's ideology. In this way, the EHC aims to work on a local, state, and national level in addressing social and environmental issues.
The EHC has established its Theory of Social Change, which states that its work must be focused towards creating a lasting change through a shared political ideology, active support, analyzing their actions, and strengthening their organization. The EHC hopes to implement its mission through the use of grassroots campaigns to eliminate consequences of toxic pollution, discriminatory land use, and unsustainable energy policies.
Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR)
The Environmental Health Coalition was part of a Community Based Participatory Research and was tasked with helping to determine the effects of industry in Old Town National City, CA, United States. The CBPR was a study that investigated linkages between community focused work and policy development. The EHC believes that its research has led the way for a media focused campaign to increase the awareness of the problems that the community faced. It was able to utilize quantitative and qualitative data to increase the community's awareness. In this way, the EHC tries to give the residents of Old Town a better understanding of the policy that affects them, as well as alternatives to these policies.Collaboration and Activism Initiatives
The National City Food Desert
For over 10 years, the EHC has worked with the Old Town National City Community in an effort to improve food security in the area. The area is established as a food desert, which is defined as "part of the country vapid of fresh fruit, vegetables, and other healthy whole foods"14. The residents of the city have voiced their feelings and opinions on the lack of readily available and healthy food. Because of their food desert status, residents are prone to disease and obesity15. In all of San Diego, National City has the highest rate of heart attacks16.Together with the EHC, the community has reached out to officials to establish a city garden to combat food insecurity found within the city. A community garden has been considered as option to combat the food insecurity13. The EHC intends to continue working with Old Town so that they longer have food desert status.Truck Ordinance for Barrio Logan
In 2018, the EHC achieved its goal of cleaner air and public health in Barrio Logan by reducing the frequent heavy duty truck activity on the nearby streets. Before the ordinance was unanimously passed, the residents of Barrio Logan had dealt with the ongoing air and noise pollution. The residents of Boston Avenue in Barrio Logan participated in a traffic survey, which showed that up to 59 heavy duty vehicles will drive down Boston Avenue in a given 2-hour period.The effort to reduce the effects the diesel-powered machines were causing was led by David Alvarez, chair of the San Diego Environment Committee. Though the policy has been in effect for some time, it currently does not prohibit the use of diesel trucks on all the streets. This still leaves structures such as, schools, retirement homes, and residential areas at risk of exposure to harmful contaminants like ultra-fine particulate matter. The EHC has advocated for the implementation of stricter penalties and enforcement for future reference. They recommend a truck route.