EPA moves ahead with civil rights complaint over toxic chemicals inhaled from trash incinerator

BALTIMORE -- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says it will move forward with a civil rights complaint from a South Baltimore community related to the Baltimore Refuse Energy Systems Company's (BRESCO) trash incinerator on Russell Street.

The South Baltimore Community Land Trust says exhaust from that incinerator is full of toxic chemicals that impact the health and quality of life of residents in the area.

The complaint targets the city's Ten Year Solid Waste Management Plan, saying it doesn't do enough to divert trash from the incinerator. The group claims toxic chemicals produced by the plant are disproportionally impacting Black and Hispanic communities in South Baltimore.

The civil rights complaint was filed under Title VI, which states people cannot be discriminated against in any program or activity funded by the federal government.

The complaint says there are 279 sites within the immediate area in South Baltimore that report to the EPA with 70 industrial sources of air pollution regulated by the state in the impacted area.

Baltimore City recently renewed its contract with the operator of the incinerator despite Mayor Brandon Scott previously saying he planned to close the plant.

As part of its investigation, the EPA says it will investigate the complaint and the city's waste management plan.

"As a lifelong South Baltimore resident and someone who loves my community of Lakeland, I'm thankful for EPA's action to accept our complaint," said Carlos Sanchez, with the South Baltimore Community Land Trust. "Every day we live with the consequences of our city's ongoing missed opportunity to budget for a just transition to zero waste away from toxic trash incineration."

"The good news is this is a fixable problem and we are confident that our city leadership, who understand the importance of equity, will step up and do the right thing and begin to treat this environmental justice issue with the urgency it deserves."