Environmental justice from the ground(water) up: coping with contamination in Tallevast, Florida

How do communities living with chronic environmental contamination cope with the social, political, and economic impacts of the contamination? This research employs a community-engaged oral history approach with participant observation and archival research to address this question. We focus on the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Local environment 2024-06, Vol.29 (6), p.722-735
Main Authors: Caballero, Grey W., Wells, E. Christian, Echols, Serena A., Peaslee, Emerson H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Archival research
Bleaching agents
Chronic environmental contamination
Churches
Community
Community property
community-engaged oral history
Contamination
Coping
Coping strategies
Decision making
Disruption
Economic impact
Economic stress
Environmental justice
Fairness
Governance
Groundwater
Health care expenditures
Housing authorities
Litigation
Local knowledge
Mental health
Oral history
Participant observation
Property values
Public finance
Real estate
Redevelopment
Regeneration
Restorative justice
Social interactions
Social networks
Social organization
Solvents
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Summary:How do communities living with chronic environmental contamination cope with the social, political, and economic impacts of the contamination? This research employs a community-engaged oral history approach with participant observation and archival research to address this question. We focus on the case of Tallevast, Florida, where the local groundwater has been contaminated with chlorinated solvents for over 60 years and where cleanup is estimated to take another 100 years. In addition to concerns about health and wellness, we find that residents are also concerned about household displacement and the disruption of social networks, failed governance at the local and state levels, and financial stress from rising healthcare costs and declining property values. Coping strategies used by the community to address these issues include reliance on churches as community hubs, environmental justice organising to contest authority and advocate for local knowledge and equity in decision making, and civil legal action to seek financial relief. These strategies support efforts toward restorative justice that seeks to repair relationships and trust between stakeholders needed for community redevelopment and revitalisation by promoting equity in being able to contribute meaningfully to decisions that affect resident's health and the environment.
ISSN:1354-9839
1469-6711
DOI:10.1080/13549839.2024.2325080