"The Better Barrio" – A three-part blog series highlighting a time when Logan Heights flourished and enriched all of San Diego.

Looking at Barrio Logan today, one may not know it was once one of the most thriving and desirable destinations in all of San Diego. Long before industrial businesses stood between family homes and schools, Barrio Logan, once known as Logan Heights, had some of the highest housing stock in the area and was considered one of the best parts of San Diego. It has been noted that some of San Diego's most prominent families and politicians settled in Logan Heights in the early 1900s, around the time of major commercial railroad development.

The railroads connected San Diego as never before and brought industry, people and money to the thriving area. Soon after, the local businesses began to grow and diversify and more houses were built. The community flourished in the early years of the 20th century before automobile industrialization and the subsequent construction of the I-5 freeway, which very literally divided the community in half.

Since the 1950s, the community has longed to return to its happier and healthier days. We have a chance to put our neighborhood back on its path to a prosperous future by supporting Alternative 1 for the Barrio Logan Community Plan Update on September 17th.

Alternative 1 is the community-supported option for our neighborhood to make the positive changes Barrio Logan has needed for decades and become a desirable and toxic-free San Diego destination once again.

Please join us at City Council (202 C Street, San Diego, CA. 92101) on Tuesday, September 17th at 2 p.m. to restore an important piece of San Diego history.

"The Better Barrio" – A three-part blog series highlighting a time when Logan Heights flourished and enriched all of San Diego.

Prior to the toxic-air pollution and mixed land-use patterns, Barrio Logan, once known as Logan Heights, stood strong as a healthy and thriving neighborhood.

During World War II the Coronet Theater opened in the heart of the community at 1796 Logan Avenue, and became extremely popular- especially among children. The theater played a variety of child-friendly movies and was well known for supporting local clubs such as Los Gallos. Los Gallos often put on free cartoon shows at the theater for kids.

Eventually, Coronet Theater became a community landmark that grew to host more than just movies, but also popular Latino performers and movie stars when they traveled to San Diego.

Barrio Logan was once a primary destination for San Diego performers and fans alike, and we have the opportunity now to restore our rich community culture.

Please sign our letter and support Alternative 1 for the Barrio Logan Community Plan Update and join us on Tuesday at City Council, 2 p.m. at 202 C Street, San Diego, CA. 92101, to put our community on the right path to a promising and healthy future.

Barrio Logan is one of the oldest in San Diego and rich with history - we deserve a chance to become the thriving community we once were, and it starts with Alternative 1. 

Below is a powerful email we received from a community member, shedding new light on the two proposed updates for Barrio Logan's Community Plan. Please join us on Tuesday, September 17 at City Council: 202 C Street, San Diego, CA. 92101 in support of Alternative 1 to the Barrio Logan Community Plan Update.

"This is a plea for support. Barrio Logan is again under attack by greedy industrial leaders and their lobbyist. Please attend the San Diego City Council meeting on Tuesday, September 17 at 2pm and support the community's last effort in support of Barrio Logan as a residential area.

There are two different Community Plans—Alternative 1 is environmental and residential friendly and Alternative 2 is in support of more heavy industrial business and the elimination of homes and residents. The Barrio Logan Community Plan Alternative 1 calls for a more environmental and residentially friendly community. The Community Plan has been in discussion for more than five years. The City Planning department is in support of Alternative 1.

At the June San Diego City Council subcommittee for Land Use and Housing there was lobbying by the industrial community supporting more industrial land use and less residential in Barrio Logan. What was shocking to me was their total disrespect for the residents. One speaker was quoted as saying, "I just do not understand why they want to live there..." Another speaker was quoted as saying, "We want the land from Sicard all the way to Wabash for heavy industrial use."

After that meeting I drove through the area that is being targeted by Alternative 2. I was appalled to think that all of the old time Barrio Logan residents living in older historical homes are being targeted for elimination. What complicates this matter even more is the fact that the San Diego Historical Resources Board at its May meeting approved a haphazard incomplete historical survey of Barrio Logan—which I objected to. (Apparently there was an incident that occurred the day the survey was to begin which frightened those conducting the survey so they scaled there effort down to a cursory effort that was less than professional and called it a cultural resource survey.) A complete historical survey would have identified many of the homes in this area as cultural resources worthy of preservation.

At present there is another big push to invalidate the last five years of work. Besides the lobbyist for those in support of Alternative 2- they have hired Southwest Strategies as their clients to specifically stir the pot in favor of Alternative 2. There is also a new organization called "Que Viva Barrio Logan" to support Alternative 2. The flier that they are posting around the community says, "...support a healthier community by supporting Alternative 2."

In conversation with a Southwest Strategies employee today he informed me that he is advocating for Alternative 2 because it is best for the community. My response was, "No you are supporting it because they are paying you to do so. You do not live in my community. My family has lived in Logan Heights for more than 100 years and Scenario 2 is not the best plan for my community."

Please contact your City Council representative and ask them to support Barrio Logan Community Plan Alternative 1 for a livable environmental friendly plan for Barrio Logan. 

Sincerely,

Josie 

P.S. Now that Chicano Park and the Chicano Park Monumental Murals are listed on the National Register the surrounding community-Barrio Logan-should also maintain what's left of its integrity as a local historic community."

"The Better Barrio" – A three-part blog series highlighting a time when Logan Heights flourished and enriched all of San Diego.

The community of Barrio Logan, once known as Logan Heights, is one of San Diego's oldest neighborhoods, rich in history and stories to tell; stories of a time when Interstate 5 did not exist, the community was diverse, the small business economy thrived and legends left their mark.
While today we fight to relocate industrial businesses and repair poor air quality in Barrio Logan, it helps to remember all the good that exists in our community and what our neighborhood has done for San Diego.

A legend worth mentioning is Helen Marston, founder of San Diego's Neighborhood House which served as a settlement house for the Mexican community for nearly sixty years and continues to provide service to various San Diego communities today. This house served as a place families could go for help with common problems, engaging community programs, to meet their neighbors and gain a sense of family and community pride.

For six decades Helen turned the Neighborhood House into a prominent San Diego establishment focused on working with community members dealing with the pressing issues of the time, including public health, education, and Americanization. Helen devoted herself to her community and the Neighborhood House while capitalizing on her journalism skills to disprove Latino prejudices as well. In 1920 her article, "Mexican Traits", was published in a well-known publication. The article explained the work of the Neighborhood House and the Latino families she interacted with on a daily basis. Her writings and the Neighborhood House gave Barrio Logan and our surrounding communities an understanding and welcoming place where neighbors could meet and overcome obstacles of the time, together.

Barrio Logan has a chance to restore this togetherness and neighborhood unity once again. We support Alternative 1 for Barrio Logan's Community Plan Update; to give community members an opportunity to build healthy neighborhoods and make positive, long-lasting changes for the betterment of the community - like Helen did.

Please sign our letter to support Alternative 1 and a promising future for Barrio Logan.

You can read more about Helen's life of activism here. 

(Neighborhood House Association is an independent 501 (c) 3 organization and does not participate or endorse attempts for lobbying or political activities.)

EHC recently wrote a piece on why Barrio Logan needs Alternative 1 to restore the neighborhood to a safe, healthy and livable community. It was published in the UT San Diego on August 21, 2013. Please read the article below and sign our letter to support Alternative 1!

By Georgette Gomez, Rudolph Pimentel & Albert Dueñas.

What do you love about your neighborhood? Large parks. Local businesses. Well-maintained streets. Children playing outside. Clean air.

These seemingly obvious characteristics, which we expect in a livable community that we call home, aren't universal qualities shared by all San Diego communities. For instance, Barrio Logan's striking feature is land uses mixed together in a way not seen elsewhere in the city. Industries, homes, schools, auto body shops, recycling yards, stores, and parks share the same compact space, wedged between the I-5 freeway and the waterfront industries bordering San Diego Bay south of the Convention Center.

This raises concerns about air quality.

"I can never open the windows in the apartment, because my children are constantly sick. The little one, if we don't take care of her, she is going to develop asthma," Barrio Logan resident Estela Lopez told a reporter. "The doctor gave us a breathing machine for her. That's why the windows are shut, so she can breathe clean air."

Children in Barrio Logan have almost 2.5 times the asthma hospitalization rate as the county average. Unfortunately, that's striking. This year the state of California confirmed that Barrio Logan is a pollution hot spot and that the community ranks in the top 5 percent of the most vulnerable areas in the entire state.

Thankfully, community members, property owners and businesses have actively engaged in a five-year planning process to bring a new community plan to Barrio Logan, called Barrio Logan Community Plan Update Alternative 1. Heading to the City Council in September, this stakeholder-approved plan will end Barrio Logan's unhealthy mix of homes and schools next to polluting industries and begin properly zoned planning that will bring San Diego another livable community with a strong economy.

This is why the San Diego Planning Commission unanimously supported Alternative 1, which creates a necessary buffer between industrial uses and homes to allow our important maritime industry to thrive and also give mothers, fathers, sons, daughters and grandchildren a healthy place to call home.

Alternative 1's buffer zone puts an end to today's deadly mix of polluters and homes by preventing residential development in the buffer area but allowing maritime-supporting businesses and parking structures, another much-needed community amenity to support the shipyard industries along the bayfront. This has the dual benefit of protecting the residents by not allowing industrial uses near homes, parks and families. This key element also differentiates Alternative 1 from the other option, which would allow industrial uses within the buffer zone and also industrial development within 50 feet of homes.

The buffer zone between streets where young children play and spots where industries use toxic chemicals works in conjunction with the creation of a heavy industrial zone. Alternative 1 calls for this industrial park to centralize the maritime-industrial operations that support industries on the waterfront, such as welding shops, refinishers, ship repair support, and other port-related industries that will be grandfathered into the fabric of the neighborhood.

According to the environmental impact report for this project, the buffer zone and industrial park combination in Alternative 1 will contribute to a projected increase in employment from just over 10,000 jobs to nearly 15,000. This 47 percent increase will occur because more acreage is dedicated to industrial, commercial, retail and maritime support. And this industrial park is located away from schools and homes — a striking feature people expect in a healthy community.

Imagine the beauty of an economically secure Barrio Logan where the massive industries support the local community with a thoughtful buffer zone, a concentrated industrial park and a new parking structure for its thousands of employees.

Barrio Logan's daunting profile of pollution sources and vulnerability requires active, informed residents and comprehensive policy solutions, starting with reform of land use. The good news is that the stakeholder committee overwhelmingly supported Alternative 1 — which will finally address several of Barrio Logan's most pressing problems: separation of incompatible land uses; provision of more affordable housing; designation of parking areas for the large industrial workforce; and substantial conservation of industrial land uses to support the job-intensive waterfront.

That's something we can all love to see in Barrio Logan.

Gomez is associate director of Environmental Health Coalition; Pimental, a Barrio Logan business owner, and Dueñas, a Barrio Logan property owner, are members of the Barrio Logan Community Update Plan Stakeholder Group.

You have probably heard of Alternative 1, but what exactly is it? What does it mean for Barrio Logan, and why should the rest of San Diego care?

The community of Barrio Logan has one of the oldest existing community plans, last updated in 1979. This outdated plan has led to the development of a toxic environment; unhealthy and unsafe for the community. Neighborhood safety, health and quality of life are compromised by the massive polluting industries operating next door to houses, parks and schools. Barrio Logan has high rates of asthma hospitalization; a level three times the County's average. The intermingling of industries and neighborhoods is clearly not the safiest nor healthiest for children and families, and this is exactly why Alternative 1 was born.

Alternative 1 is the community proposed alternative to the Barrio Logan Community Plan Update to address the environmental injustice placed in our neighborhood. While toxic industries impact the community wellbeing, this plan does not propose to kick them out but to designate a heavy industrial zone away from homes and schools. 

Alternative 1 also recommends:

• Clear separation of industrial and residential zones
• Small scale development from residential to commercial
• Sustainable development
• Development of maritime supporting business
• An exclusive, heavy industrial area
• A parking structure that will serve the workers at the working waterfront
• Most importantly: A safe place to live, work and play

For five-years, the City of San Diego has facilitated a community-involved process to update to the Barrio Logan community plan, which the City Council will hear on September 17th. From that process came Alternative 1, and the future of Barrio Logan will be determined by a vote.

But we, the community, can make our voice heard before City Council votes. We strongly urge supporters to sign our letter in support of Alternative 1. This plan was supported by the majority of the stakeholders of the community plan update, as well as a unanimous support by the Planning Commission.

Why should the rest of San Diego care? 

Because these are mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, aunts, uncles and best friends just asking to live in a toxic-free neighborhood - something most communities never have to experience or fight for. Think about how much you love your clean air, nice parks and safe streets. What would you want for your mothers, fathers, daughters, sons and best friends?

You can watch Georgette Gomez, associate director of toxic-free neighborhoods, speak more about Alternative 1 here.

EHC has been working in Barrio Logan for decades to reduce toxic pollution and improve livability for its residents, but some recently released information quantifies just how serious the situation has become. Results from California's environmental justice screening model, CalEnviroScreen, rank Barrio Logan as the highest at-risk community in San Diego County and in the top 5 percent for the entire state. 

What is an environmental justice hostpot? It is any area with extraordinarily high levels of toxic pollution, making the neighborhood hazardous to residents.

The CalEnviroScreen also takes into consideration a wide variety of other indicators (education, poverty, demographics, medical care, to name a few) to determine which communities are at a higher risk of pollution-related illnesses. Sky-rocketing levels of toxins have given Barrio Logan communities three times the asthma rate of the rest of San Diego. Residents breathe in heavily polluted air as a result of manufacturing shops in their backyards and industrial trucks parked along their streets.

EHC's Research Director, Joy Williams, was recently published in the San Diego Free Press. She described it exceptionally well when she wrote, 

"A strikingly obvious feature of Barrio Logan is that land uses are mixed together in a way not seen in any other community in San Diego. Industries, homes, schools, auto body shops, recycling yards, stores, and parks all share the same compact space, wedged in between the I-5 freeway and the waterfront industries bordering San Diego Bay south of the Convention Center. Heavy diesel truck traffic moves around and through the community; cargo ships run their engines at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal; and the BNSF railyard hosts aging locomotives a short distance upwind of Perkins Elementary School. Smaller industries contribute their own hazards to the community profile – they may be directly next door to homes and may have traffic, odor, vibration, and noise impacts, as well as fire hazards. Pollution close to people is reflected in Barrio Logan's 'hot spot' identity."

But there is hope for change, and a healthy future. For almost forty years, EHC has been working on Barrio Logan's Community Plan Update, which goes to San Diego City Council in the middle of September. If approved, this community plan will relocate massive, industrial businesses from Barrio Logan's residential streets to a specifically designated industrial zone away from homes and schools. Not only will it address incompatible land-use, but incorporate affordable housing conservation of the San Diego Bay waterfront where a plethora of workers are located. 

The only concern lies in preserving the rich cultural history and unique art of Barrio Logan. Although the goal is to create a healthy, livable neighborhood, residents aim to do this while maintaining the unique characteristics that make Barrio Logan one-of-a-kind.

The community has rallied to support the Community Plan Update. It is an urgent necessity for health and quality of life in Barrio Logan, and EHC continues its unwaivering determination to make Barrio Logan toxic free. Hopefully, the CalEnviroScreen's official report will prove just how much help this community needs and they will finally make their voices heard for change in September. 

To find out how you can support Barrio Logan's long overdue basic environmental rights, sign up for our email newsletters and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.   

A Community Vision

When I walk through Paradise Creek, I feel a deep sense of excitement. I can see kids running freely through a brand new park, parents rushing to the trolley station to get to work on time, and community members continuing to convene to see their neighborhood transform into a healthy and affordable place to live.

This isn't the reality today, but it can be when the Westside Infill Transit Oriented Development, an affordable housing and open space project is complete. As long as the California Department of Finance does its part, which is to approve National City's use of bond proceeds issued in 2011. This community project has been in the making for almost 10 years now.

It's the vision of National City residents, who have worked hard to bring sustainable affordable homes to the community that will also protect Paradise Creek. What is now National City's Public Works maintenance area and a charter bus company will become 201 brand new affordable homes. (Skip to view the project plan.)

Even in its infancy, this project has received national recognition.

In 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency, Housing and Urban Development, and Department of Transportation selected the Westside Infill Development site as part of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities Brownfield's Pilot. This pilot project is one of only five in the U.S. and the only one on the west coast. It will protect an existing wetland, locate next to the 28th street trolley station and Kimball Elementary, and provide a brand new public park.

National City has worked diligently with the developers, Community Housing Works and Related Company of California, to finance the project. However, due to National City's Redevelopment Agency's dissolution, the state is questioning the legitimacy of the bond that the city issued to build the project. This means that National City already issued the bond to finance the Westside Infill Development project, but now a statewide agency might deny that use of that money on this community-driven housing complex.

Tell Department of Finance Why This Project Needs Its Funding

California's Department of Finance needs to hear from us. The Westside Infill Development project has been 10 years in the making, it is already financed, and the city just needs the Department of Finance's approval to use bond proceeds.

Please let the Department of Finance know how important this project is for you and our community. You can reach Mr. Justyn Howard & Mr. Steve Szalay Local Government Consultants at California's Department of Finance at Esta dirección de correo electrónico está siendo protegida contra los robots de spam. Necesita tener JavaScript habilitado para poder verlo. & Esta dirección de correo electrónico está siendo protegida contra los robots de spam. Necesita tener JavaScript habilitado para poder verlo. respectively.

Hundreds of environmental supporters joined A Clean Bay Victory celebration on May 22

In the 1900s, San Diego Bay supported great biodiversity in its shallow open water, salt marshes and mud flats. Currently, more than a third of San Diego County live within five miles of the bay. After years of neglect and poor planning, industries polluted the bay with more than 20 types of pollutants, endangered surrounding communities with 36 types of air contaminants and destroyed 90 percent of the bay's mud flats and 78 percent of its salt marshes. (Skip to the goods--I want to see the photos.)

In 2012, we honored three individuals and one organization that led efforts over the past 32 years to improve San Diego Bay. Each awardee played an integral role in the community-wide efforts that resulted in major environmental victories for San Diego Bay, and ultimately, can lead to a reversal of these trends. Key victories include the decommissioning of the South Bay Power Plant, the adaptation of the Chula Vista Bayfront Master Plan and the cleanup of toxic pollution at the bottom of San Diego Bay. We would like to extend a warm thanks to our proud sponsors: Pacifica Companies, Unified Port of San Diego, The Wild Thyme Company and Bruce and Betsy Gill.

The VIP reception opened the A Clean Bay Victory event at the Star of the Sea Event Center along the harbor in downtown San Diego. A Clean Bay Victory packed The Berkeley event space at the Maritime Museum as attendees from all over San Diego and Tijuana regions raised $38,000 to support EHC in honor of the environmental champions.

More than 320 individuals attended EHC's 2012 Awards Celebration. At the event, former Councilmember Donna Frye launched EHC's Sustainability Circle to secure monthly contributions from donors who support EHC's environmental justice work.

We're planning our next awards event. Please Esta dirección de correo electrónico está siendo protegida contra los robots de spam. Necesita tener JavaScript habilitado para poder verlo. for information.

Highlights of Tuesday's event include:

• Marco Gonzalez received an award from Ashok Israni, CEO of Pacifica Companies, for his tireless advocacy and legal leadership in the Clean Bay Campaign.
• San Diego Coastkeeper, a non-profit ally in the Clean Bay Campaign, received an award from City Councilmember David Alvarez for serving as a strong and critical partner with EHC in the fight to preserve San Diego Bay since 1995.
• Dan McKirnan, EHC boardmember, was honored by Congressman Bob Filner for his commitment to the environmental protection and service as a founding member of the Clean Bay Campaign.
• Laura Hunter, Clean Bay Campaign director, was commended with the Donna Frye Spirit of Justice Award for over two decades of dedicated work on the Clean Bay efforts for Environmental Health Coalition.

El gobierno electo del estado de Baja California, que entrará en funciones el próximo mes de noviembre, ha anunciado en diferentes medios de comunicación la intención de que la actual Secretaria de Protección al Ambiente, se convierta en una sub-secretaria, quedando subordinada a la Secretaría de Desarrollo.

Este es un asunto que nos tiene muy preocupados en Environmental Health Coalition y particularmente en nuestra campaña fronteriza para la justicia ambiental, porque creemos que significa debilitar una agencia ambiental muy importante y que al final va a poner en riesgo el seguimiento a temas ambientales que pueden poner en peligro la calidad de vida de personas.

En conferencia de prensa esta mañana, Magdalena Cerda, Policy Advocate de la campaña de la frontera, aseguró que:

“Esperamos que este posicionamiento en contra de este cambio de 'secretaría' a 'subsecretaría' sea escuchado por la nueva administración. Incluso estamos deseosos de ser parte de un equipo de trabajo donde desarrollemos una mejor legislación y aplicación de la ley.”

Por este motivo respaldamos la carta de posicionamiento en la que se expresa esta preocupación, entregada por nuestras organizaciones aliadas en Tijuana, al Gobernador Electo de Baja California en su oficina de transición la semana pasada.

• Carta al gobernador electo (español)
• Carta al gobernador electo (inglés)

Seguiremos trabajando para buscar puentes que mantengan el trabajo ambiental fuerte con la colaboración de las comunidades.

Neighbors are unaware of the origin of the waste, but like California activists, suspect that they are runoffs from the maquiladoras located along the Alamar creek.

In the vicinity of the Chilpancingo area, near the industrial zone of Otay and the Tijuana River, colored water is often seen running through the streets.

"There have been times when colored water comes, it looks like rainbows," says Luz Elena Félix, a resident of the area and community promoter of the Colectivo Chilpancingo Pro Justicia Ambiental.

Read the full article in Spanish on El Sol de Tijuana

On a sunny Saturday morning in July, we took 21 eager passengers on our BarrioLive! Tijuana Tour.

During the course of the day, we made numerous stops to highlight environmental justice in our cross-border communities.

• Alamar River channelization project: The binational Alamar River and the invaluable ecosystem it contains were being paved. Now, we’re working to preserve it. We showed our progress first-hand saving this precious natural resource.
• Metales y Derivados: Many years ago, we helped lead the cleanup of 45,000 tons of toxic waste and establish a structure for cross-border collaboration on toxic-site cleanups. We visited the site that symbolizes environmental justice achieved and a monumental neighborhood victory.
• Maquiladoras viewpoint: Maquiladora assembly plants in Colonia Chilpancingo have contaminated the neighborhood and its resources for many years. Our tour allowed guests to see and understand them from a new point of view.

For several hours, our guests learned about critical community victories that have come from a 20-year-old campaign that has helped relieve numerous communities of pollution and displacement. The tour included personal struggles shared first-hand by the local community members, as well as their motivation to form the Colonia Chilpancingo.

Our youth group (Grupo de Jovenes) joined us to share stories from their experiences. 22-year-old Fernando and his family have been EHC activists for close to eight years. He told the group he, “is motivated to know he has and will continue to make a difference.” His conviction and determination inspired and touched everyone.

To conclude the tour, we enjoyed a mixer with community members and had the opportunity to meet the people who have brought environmental justice to Tijuana for more than 25 years.

Here is some of the feedback we received:

• “I liked the Alamar River because we really got to see an area in use and its effects on the community.”
• “The tour had good detail on the history of the toxicity and remediation; good presentation of existing problems; excellent company; excellent lunch”
• “Can't thank EHC enough. It is an incredible organization that I wish everyone advocated for.”

We look forward to the next BarrioLive! Tour, in San Diego this fall – October 19^, 2017.

Mark your calendars and send an email to Esta dirección de correo electrónico está siendo protegida contra los robots de spam. Necesita tener JavaScript habilitado para poder verlo. to reserve your seat today.

Toxic pollution knows no borders. That’s why EHC works to build healthy communities in San Diego and Tijuana. Whether we are helping save a river or teaching women how to be leaders in their neighborhoods, we believe that we are stronger when our countries are united for environmental justice.

Watch the videos below to get a sneak peak of our border environmental justice work.

Alamar River

The Alamar is a binational river that originates in the United States, crosses into Mexico and then returns to the United States, where it discharges into the Tijuana River Estuary. In 2011, it began to be channelized with concrete, leaving the area without its natural ecosystem. EHC is working to preserve the last remaining section of the creek.

Colectivo Chilpancingo

Founded by women, this group has been working for more than 16 years to strengthen environmental justice in Mexico.

Metales y Derivados

In 1994, after years of complaints from the community, the Mexican government shut down a battery recycler called Metales y sus Derivados, leaving behind 20,000 tons of toxic waste on site. EHC worked for more than 10 years to clean up the site, eliminating a serious hazard for 10,000 families nearby.

Environmental justice matters because of people like Lourdes Lujan. For 18 years, Lourdes has helped inform her neighbors about local health and environmental hazards. At our 2016 award celebration, One People, Una Frontera, Lourdes shared stories of protecting Arroyo Alamar in Tijuana and organizing a cleanup of 45,000 tons of toxic waste. Now, she shares her story with you:

I was introduced to EHC in 1998, and have been a part of this movement ever since. Similar to many who work at EHC, I started out knocking on my neighbors’ doors to explain the health and environmental threats that Metales y Derivados represented for all of us. I would invite them to meetings – which were held in our homes back then – so that all of us could find a solution together.

I never imagined that from that work to organize our neighbors that we would achieve a clean-up of 45,000 tons of toxic waste and that we would now be successful in saving part of the Rio Alamar.

When I was invited to participate in the Maquilapolis documentary, I could not imagine how a video could explain the environmental, health, and work issues we were living through, much less that the documentary would make it around the world.

We, the community health workers, feel proud of having met Vicky Funary and Sergio de la Torre, the project’s producer and director. Maquilapolis gave me the opportunity to see many more cities and countries that I never thought I’d get to see in my lifetime.

I am very grateful to EHC for everything I have learned; I am grateful for all the support for our community; I am grateful for being able to work with all of you for a healthier community.

Conocí a EHC en 1998 y desde entonces soy parte de la organizavion. Al igual que varios de los que trabajan en EHC, yo comencé tocando las puertas de mis vecinos para explicarles los problemas ambientales y de salud que representaba Metales y Derivados para nosotros. Los invitaba a reuniones, que en ese entonces las hacíamos en nuestras casas, para encontrar la solución entre todos.

Nunca imaginé que de ese trabajo involucrando a mi comunidad, lograríamos una limpieza de 45,000 toneladas de residuos toxicos, y que ahora tendríamos el éxito en poder salvar parte del Arroyo Alamar.

Cuando me invitaron a participar en el documental Maquilápolis, no imaginaba cómo un video podría explicar los problemas ambientales, de salud y laborales que vivíamos, y además que daríamos la vuelta al mundo con este documental.

Nosotras las promotoras nos sentimos orgullosas de haber conocido a Vicky Funari y Sergio de la Torre, productores y directores de este proyecto. Con Maquilápolis tuve la oportunidad de conocer muchas ciudades y países que nunca en mi vida pensé que llegaría a visitar

Estoy muy agradecida con EHC por todo lo que he aprendido, estoy agradecida por todo el apoyo a nuestra comunidad, estoy agradecida por trabajar con ustedes por una comunidad más sana.

La escuela de Alejandro mide un poco más de 2000 metros cuadrados. De los cuales casi todo son salones, en los que toman clases grupos de cerca de 30 niños. Su escuela tiene una cancha de futbol que sirve también como cancha de básquetbol. Tienen dentro de su escuela dos árboles grandes y cuatro pequeños. Su clase favorita es la de Ciencias Naturales, en la que le enseñan sobre los ecosistemas, la biodiversidad y el medio ambiente. Estudian dentro del salón en libros con fotos y dibujos de otras partes del mundo.

Vive en un departamento de 60 metros cuadrados que renta su familia, sin patio, con dos habitaciones en la que se acomodan 7 personas. Casi frente a su casa hay un taller de reparación de traileres y a una cuadra de distancia hay una fábrica recicladora. Tiene que caminar dos cuadras para encontrar un árbol. Alejandro vive además justo debajo del parque industrial de Otay, el más grande y uno de los más dinámicos en Tijuana y en la región fronteriza.

Le gustan los animales y le gusta acampar. Le encanta correr y jugar en los parques. Pero lo más importante es que le gusta participar en actividades para preservar el medio ambiente… su medio ambiente. Actividades como los campamentos, recorridos y las jornadas de limpieza en el Arroyo Alamar.

Puede ser que los cuatro kilómetros que quedan de bosque ribereño en el Alamar no parezcan mucho comparados con otros ecosistemas en otras partes de México o Estados Unidos. Pero para Alejandro, y para cientos de familias que viven en las mismas condiciones, este bosque representa una gran oportunidad para aprender no de libros sino de la naturaleza directamente sobre el medio ambiente, pero mas importante, la oportunidad de mitigar la contaminación por el trafico tan dinámico y la contaminación industrial. El Alamar para él y su familia se trata de Calidad de Vida.

No hablamos sólo de árboles… hablamos de derechos humanos.

Finalmente Comisión Nacional del Agua (CONAGUA) aceptó las recomendaciones de la Mesa Técnica del Alamar para que el encauzamiento en la última parte del arroyo sea eco-hidrológicas, respetando el bosque ripario y los mantos acuíferos. En un acto encabezado por el Gobernador de BC, el jueves 16 de julio, se dio inicio a la construcción del proyecto que se espera esté terminado para principios del 2016.

Estamos de fiesta porque no se destruirá el bosque del Arroyo Alamar, pero esto significa mucho más…

1. El encausamiento eco-hidrológico permitirá filtrar agua al subsuelo. Esto es muy valioso en medio de una crisis de agua como la que estamos viviendo. Además, mantener los mantos acuíferos permitirá la conservación de los árboles y con ello el hábitat para la fauna nativa y migratoria de la zona.
2. Trabajamos juntos muchas organizaciones de la sociedad civil de Tijuana y SD, construyendo una red de apoyo y solidaridad entre nosotros.
3. Pero principalmente porque conservar la zona arbolada del Arroyo Alamar significa para la comunidad la oportunidad de mitigar los efectos a la salud producidos por la cercanía con la industria maquiladora y por la construcción de nuevas vialidades y el eventual aumento en el tráfico de tráileres, una vez que esté en operación la segunda garita de Otay. Es además la oportunidad de contar con áreas recreativas y de educación ambiental para las familias.

Gracias a todas y todos por apoyar esta causa directa o indirectamente. Gracias a todos los que dieron su tiempo y a quienes nos acompañaron en el camino.

¡Estamos de fiesta!

Nos levantamos temprano porque había que estar antes que todos en el lugar del evento. No alcanzamos a desayunar pero entre la prisa de recoger a la gente y la emoción por el recorrido que íbamos a hacer, ni nos acordamos del hambre.

En el camino al bosque ribereño donde haríamos el evento, nos detuvimos para tomar fotos de la parte canalizada. Encontramos a una familia cruzando el arroyo por unas tablas que improvisadamente servían como puente. La familia no tenia otra opción, más que dar una vuelta caminando que les costaría una hora mas de tiempo para llegar a su destino, o gastar en transporte público lo equivalente al salario mínimo que ofrecen las fábricas cercanas al arroyo.

Llegamos a las 9:00 am al lugar del evento. Primero platicamos con los medios de comunicación y les explicamos que el evento tenia dos intenciones, primero celebrar la disposición de CONAGUA (Comisión Nacional de Agua, organismo federal responsable por el encauzamiento del arroyo) de encontrar una alternativa sustentable para el encauzamiento, que permitiría conservar el bosque, y la segunda hacer la conexión entre naturaleza y comunidad, conocer las plantas y animales de la zona.

Al evento se sumaron más de ochenta personas. Caminamos alrededor de una hora y media. Encontramos encinos, álamos (que le dan el nombre al Alamar), toloache, hierba del manso, tules y muchas plantas más. Los animales se escondieron, como era de esperar. Pero vimos el árbol donde habita una familia de mapaches, el arroyo donde viven los langostinos y donde comen las garzas, vimos el tronco del árbol donde frecuentemente se ve un halcón y el hueco que dejó un pájaro carpintero.

Pero lo más importante es que entendimos la diferencia entre un parque y un ecosistema natural. Entendimos que estamos conectados y que no se trata de salvar árboles nada más, sino de salvarnos a nosotros. No podemos cambiar un recurso natural como este por más carreteras y camiones. El desarrollo de la ciudad no se puede pagar con la salud de la gente que vive y trabaja cerca de este arroyo. Todos somos habitantes del Alamar.

At a press conference on Thursday, February 12, Mexican government leaders recognized a joint government and community group as the official advisory committee for preserving an important part of the Tijuana River ecosystem known as Arroyo Alamar. This group, the Mesa Tecnica, watched the deterioration of their river when the same government paved nearly 75 percent of it between 2011 and 2014. The channelization displaced thousands of families, destroyed ecosystems and left only three kilometers untouched. This space currently houses a lush forest with wildlife and homes for industry workers in Tijuana.

Now, we are finally part of the solution.

With the Mesa Tecnica in charge of preserving the remaining three kilometers of Arroyo Alamar, the community can work to conserve its quality of life, wildlife and precious natural space along the river.

This is a milestone for a variety of reasons:

It took years of work to get here.

We have worked since 2011 for this type of agreement. With 70 percent of the Arroyo Alamar paved, we were able to protect the three kilometers with the densest vegetation and most biodiversity.

Now government leaders have acknowledged the importance of community involvement.

At the ceremony to announce the community and government partnership, Director General of the Cuenca Agency (CNA) acknowledged that this community involvement “is unprecedented,” meaning the government has never before had community members involved in government land-use decisions. He continued to say that he hopes the partnership offers "broad guarantees of sustainability and environmental stewardship." You can watch his statement in Spanish here. 

We’ve inspired a hopeful future for Arroyo Alamar.

Moving forward, we have built a rare opportunity for the people who treasure Arroyo Alamar, on both sides of the border, to work together with the local government for a solution that preserves natural space and quality of life along the river.

To learn more about Thursday’s victory, click here: English / Spanish 

To get involved, join EHC today and visit http://alamarsustentable.org.

El objetivo de la Mesa Técnica del Arroyo Alamar es mantener los servicios ambientales que presta el arroyo Alamar a la comunidad. Es un esfuerzo social dedicado a buscar una alternativa de encauzamiento sustentable y en equilibrio con la naturaleza que permita el desarrollo económico de la ciudad de Tijuana.

La Mesa Técnica del Arroyo Alamar inicia como una iniciativa del Colectivo Chilpancingo Pro Justicia Ambiental, afiliado a Environmental Health Coalition y vecinos del Arroyo Alamar a la que se unieron diversas organizaciones ambientalistas de Tijuana y San Diego entre las que destacan: Proyecto Fronterizo de Educación Ambiental, Tijuana Calidad de Vida, Red de Ciudadanos por el Mejoramiento de las Comunidades y  CICEA Papalotzin.

Esta propuesta fue llevada al Consejo Consultivo para el Desarrollo Sustentable de la SEMARNAT, quienes lo adoptaron y actualmente son coordinadores.

Por la parte gubernamental participan CONAGUA, SEMARNAT y otras entidades de gobierno federal, estatal y municipal que tienen responsabilidad en la canalización del Arroyo Alamar.

Una vez que esté firmando el acuerdo de instalación de la Mesa Técnica por todas las entidades de gobierno y ONG’s la mesa será el consejo que recomiende el proyecto ejecutivo a CONAGUA para el tramo que no se ha canalizado todavía del arroyo.

¿Qué es la Mesa Técnica del Arroyo Alamar?
Es el espacio en el que comunidad, organizaciones no gubernamentales y las dependencias de gobierno involucradas en el encauzamiento del Alamar, podremos buscar una alternativa sustentable a la canalización con concreto.

Avances Importantes
Después de varios meses de trabajar en el documento de instalación, finalmente, hace dos semanas nos reunimos en la oficina de Tijuana de la Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (Semarnat). En la reunión estuvimos presentes Environmental Health Coalition y el Colectivo Chilpancingo Pro Justicia Ambiental, Tijuana Calidad de Vida, Remexmar, Papalotzin, Pronatura, RECIMEC y Proyecto Fronterizo de Educación Ambiental. Por parte del gobierno mexicano, Semarnat, Profepa, CONAGUA, CCDS, IMPLAN, SPA, y la EPA como representante de la contraparte de Estados Unidos en calidad de observador, con miras a ofrecer asesoría técnica en el proyecto alternativo.

De la reunión salimos con el visto bueno de la CONAGUA y organizaciones de la sociedad civil del documento de instalación de la mesa de trabajo. Después de que los departamentos jurídicos de cada dependencia revisen su función estaremos listos para hacer la firma pública.

¿Qué quiere decir esto y qué sigue?
Una vez que todas las dependencias de gobierno y las organizaciones de la sociedad y los la comunidad firmemos este documento, los acuerdos y recomendaciones tomados en la mesa podrán integrarse oficialmente al proyecto que se decida hacer en la tercera etapa del Alamar. Pero muy importantemente, significa la oportunidad de tener transparencia en el trabajo que se haga y la gran oportunidad de integrar el tema de la justicia ambiental y calidad de vida de las comunidades en temas de desarrollo urbano.

Esperamos muy pronto tener fecha para el evento público de instalación de la mesa y comenzar con los trabajos.