Ann Arbor's Bryant Neighborhood, Part One

Susan Baskett, a community organizer in Ann Arbor, lives in the Bryant neighborhood, one of the most affordable communities  in the Ann Arbor area. I interviewed her about her neighborhood on March 22, 2009.

First, I asked her what she thought environmental justice was. Click on the file below to hear her answer.

Download SusanBaskettWhatIsEJ

She's proud of her neighborhood, but also very concerned about it. I asked Susan to explain why she and her neighbors are worried about their community.

Download BaskettBryantNeighborhood

Over a number of years, those who have bought into the neighborhood because of its affordability have discovered that it was built both on a dump and on a former wetlands area. They have discovered this after struggling with their foundations, poor drainage, and other problems.

The neighborhood borders on I-94, sits near another city dump, and even has struggled in the past with neighboring pig farms. Residents are struggling with sound pollution, ground pollution, and air pollution.

Baskett notes that "there was no keeper of the information" for the neighborhood of 260 homes; no one passed on the knowledge of the dump and wetlands. She pointed out that there is specific local knowledge that would have helped neighborhood members best live in the area without worsening conditions, but because no one was there to inform them, this knowledge served no one.

High incidences of asthma in children and mold in houses have made neighbors wonder if these and other problems are connected to the waste that sits under the neighborhood, but they aren't sure. It's not unreasonable for them to wonder about the health effects of the trash beneath them; in fact, other people in other communities have asked the same types of questions. The organization People Investigating Toxic Sites is just one place where people have started to gather their suspicions, as well as scientific information, about the hazards of dumps. Here's just one of their studies that considers cancer rates at sites near waste dumps (click on the link to download).  Download Health and Waste Dumps

I talked to Susan for quite a while about her neighborhood, and there's more to share. But I wanted to stop here to ask readers: is this something you've seen near you-- a neighborhood or community where folks suspect that pollution or unwise environmental practices are causing widespread hardship, but they can't quite prove it?

Comments

[John]

There's an area here in Westminster that was overdeveloped, and the homeowners in phase one of the development found out too late that the land had drainage issues that caused almost instantaneous settling of their foundations. Because of this, the developer went bankrupt, and the homeowners are left with their severely devalued homes and no recourse. The city of Westminster had to buy the property in order to demolish the incomplete structures and foundations, because they were potential hazards, and the latest news I can find is that they have still not been able to sell the remaining property.