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So Many Came to Support Environmental Justice for the Southernside Neighborhood of Greenville!
A Tale of Two Contaminated Sites
We had an amazing turnout for our environmental equity event last Tuesday evening at Mountain View Baptist Church. We'd like to extend our thanks to our sponsors: South Carolina Environmental Law Project (SCELP), Upstate Forever, and Conservation Voters of South Carolina (CVSV)—as well as to our friends at Mountain View Baptist and Southernside Neighborhoods in Action. Our moderator, CeCe Grant, plus our featured speakers, and all of our panelists did a fantastic job of highlighting a stunning example of environmental inequity right here in Greenville: the contaminated site of an old manufactured gas plant (MGP) along East Bramlett Road. 

During the event, we learned about a newly released study from Aquilogic—an independent consulting firm with extensive experience evaluating contamination at old MGP sites. A summary of Aquilogic's findings can be found here. To read Aquilogic's full report, click here. The bottom line is: Aquilogic has concluded that a significant cleanup of the contaminated site along East Bramlett Road in Southernside should proceed immediately.

To further our advocacy efforts, the experts at our event suggested we contact Duke Energy, DHEC, as well as our elected officials to let them know we want the site cleaned up. Several talking points include:

1. Duke Energy has been studying the Bramlett site for 25 years. Duke needs to take action now. No more studies—25 years is enough!

2. Remove the illegal dump on top of the wetlands that are adjacent to the Bramlett MGP site—and restore the wetlands.

3. Clean up the drainage ditch that originally transferred toxic coal tar from the MGP into the Reedy River; stop the current flow of toxins into the Reedy; determine if contaminants are flowing into the Reedy through the site's groundwater—and, if so, remediate ASAP.

You can call, email, or handwrite a letter. A list of names and contact information can be found here.

Let's join together to fight for justice for all our neighbors in Greenville! If you have questions regarding Aquilogic's testing, or about other ways you can help, please contact Michael Corley, attorney with SCELP: michael@scelp.org.
The Greenville Homeless Alliance recently released its 2019 report on homelessness in Greenville County. This report serves as an update, utilizes data, and includes priorities that were informed by more than 100+ members of our community and 70+ organizations committed to the idea that fair access to safe, affordable housing benefits everyone. To read this important information, click here.
On the Monday before Thanksgiving, Gratefull GVL will close the 400 block of South Main Street in Greenville so that strangers and friends can gather and share a potluck meal in the middle of the street, at one long table. There are no fees, no expectations, and no agenda—just an open invitation to all! For more information, please click here.
Extreme weather events with devastating consequences are not just predicted for the future—they are here now. Join the Upstate SC Chapter of the Climate Reality Project on Wednesday, November 20th at the Hughes Main Library in Downtown Greenville to learn how to avert worst-case climate scenarios. This important event starts at 7:00 PM. For more information, contact Tandy Taylor.
Copyright © 2019 Village Engage (MCM), All rights reserved.

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582 Perry Ave, Greenville, SC 29611

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Village Engage · 8 Lois Avenue · Greenville, SC 29611 · USA

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