Norfolk Southern, the company responsible for the environmental nightmare in East Palestine, Ohio had another train derailment over the weekend in Springfield, Ohio just 1,000 feet from nearby homes, forcing shelter-in-place orders. Luckily, there was no chemical or hazardous materials. Food & Water Watch is on the ground working with community members of Beaver and Lawrence Counties Pennsylvania and East Palestine, Ohio.Keep reading to learn what we are doing and help with our efforts.
John,
I am a lifelong resident of southwest Pennsylvania and have been on the ground organizing here for over 10 years. Never before have I witnessed such devastation and abuse of corporate power as what I am seeing in the aftermath of the Norfolk Southern train derailment on February 3.
The victims of this atrocity can’t afford to wait for answers any longer. Food & Water Watch’s Pennsylvania team is on the ground in Beaver and Lawrence Counties Pennsylvania and East Palestine, Ohio, building relationships and gathering information on what these communities need.
Here’s what’s really happening on the ground and what we are doing:
Pennsylvania residents are being denied the resources they need to recover from this disaster. We are ensuring they get it. The derailment has been painted as only an Ohio issue, and Pennsylvanians are being left behind. We need to make sure all people are protected. We are calling affected families to connect them with resources and testifying in the State Senate to demand more support for these victims.
A majority of the Environmental Protection Agency’s testing being done is in conjunction with Norfolk Southern contractors and representatives. We are ensuring that independent testing occurs for all who need it. Residents in the evacuation zone are being denied testing, so we have partnered with local universities and are currently conducting free water and soil testing for affected residents.
The Department of Transportation needs to prevent this from happening again. We are demanding Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to do so. The Trump administration rolled back rules on braking systems. We need those reinstated and we need to strengthen regulations on the transport of hazardous material by rail.
John, in the wake of this environmental catastrophe, the responsibility of providing emergency support shouldn't fall to nonprofit organizations such as ours, but right now that is what’s happening.
Food & Water Watch and its affiliated organization, Food & Water Action, are advocacy groups with a common mission to protect our food, water and climate.
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