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Natural Assets Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice The Jurupa Valley lies at the gateway to Riverside County and Southern California's vast desert area. Nestled in a basin next to the Santa Ana River, surrounded by mountains, an hour drive from the beaches of the Pacific coast or the rich desert landscape, and just 60 miles from downtown Los Angeles, the Jurupa Valley is situated centrally, offering residents a variety of opportunities. The Jurupa Valley is comprised of five separate and distinct communities — Pedley, Glen Avon, Mira Loma, Sunnyslope, and Rubidoux. Each community has its own culture, flavor and lifestyle with Glen Avon, Pedley and Mira Loma favoring a rural, animal-oriented lifestyle, while Sunnyslope and Rubidoux lean toward a more suburban residential area. The major natural assets of the area are our land, air and water. Outsiders have viewed the value of these assets only as sinks — places to dump wastes from production and consumption from urban areas. These activities have lessened the ability of our natural assets to become sources — agricultural resources, tourism and positive quality of life resources. Community History Ours is one of the oldest settled communities in California and was established originally as an Indian camp called Agua Mansa. General John Fremont established an army headquarters operation in 1846 to protect the prosperous ranchers in the Santa Ana River area and allow unhampered operation of the Old Rubidoux Mill, one of the first flourmills established in Southern California. This important mill furnished much of the flour for troops operating in the Los Angeles area. Riverside County developed as an agrarian-based area — home to vineyards, orange tree orchards, potato fields, small ranches and dairies. In 1932, community leaders purchased land in Glen Avon and established Mission Park. Historical documents describe it as "located on Mission Boulevard four miles west of Riverside and consists of ninety-three acres of land .... Our Community Park is for the pleasure and recreation of all people of the community and for all community organizations to have an equal right to the use of this park". To honor our agrarian heritage, the community began a county fair called the Harvest Festival. Each year the Harvest Festival was held at Mission Park and featured livestock exhibits, displays of food, quilts and handwork, 4-H and FFA displays, and a carnival. The highlight of the festival was the pageant "In the Trail of Anza" depicting the history of the area. The Harvest Festival came to be known as the "Best Free Show in Southern California" and drew from 30-40,000 people each year, becoming a central social activity for the area. In 1942, because of World War II, the Harvest Festival was discontinued. Later the land was donated for a State Fire Station, Veterans of Foreign Wars clubhouse, Little League Baseball Park and the Jurupa Mountains Cultural Center. Sources and Sinks Over the years, as Los Angeles expanded, engulfing the surrounding communities in its path, the rural, desert and unincorporated areas of Riverside County lost their reputation for rich agricultural land and became viewed as mere wastelands of unused open space. This vacant land was seen by urban planners as a sink — the perfect location for remote disposal of waste products like sewer sludge, toxic waste and garbage. Close enough to truck wastes, but far enough to avoid harm to urban residents, the cry from the cities became "Not in our backyard — put it out there". The isolated rural communities of the working-class and people of color — viewed as having limited power, long lists of problems and economic deprivation — were considered easy targets for the powerful urban political machinery of Los Angeles. One of the first facilities to claim our land as a sink was the Stringfellow Acid Pits. In 1955, the “Acid Pits” — now California's worst toxic dump and most notorious Superfund site —was approved, permitted, and promoted to be placed in the community of Glen Avon, over the objections from local residents. Industries' desire to externalize costs through cheap disposal of its toxic waste, and the government's search for quick solutions, created the 17-acre open pit, liquid toxic chemical dump. The “remote” location hid the problems of toxic waste from the public's view, making it easy for decision-makers to avoid dealing with the problem in a comprehensive manner. The Stringfellow site is elevated in a box canyon of the Jurupa Mountains, directly above the community of Glen Avon and less than ¾ of a mile from the Glen Avon Elementary School, one of the oldest schools in the area. Over the life of the dumpsite, more than 34 million gallons of toxic chemicals were dumped into the pits, ponds and lagoons. More than 200 different chemicals from heavy metals (lead, cadmium, hexavalent chromium); volatile organics (TCE, PCE, chloroform); acids (sulfuric, hydrochloric); to pesticides (DDT, DDE) were dumped into the site over a 20-year period. The unlined dump allowed chemicals to seep into the ground, evaporate into the air, overflow into the community and contaminate the groundwater upon which the Glen Avon residents relied for drinking water. Hundreds of major corporations such as Rockwell International, General Electric, Weyerhaeuser, Boeing, Montrose Chemicals, Northrop, and BF Goodrich utilized the site. On several occasions, without notification to residents, liquid waste was pumped from the site by state and county agencies to flow through the community — flooding streets, invading homes, and inundating the school. During a five-day period, children splashed in the puddles, and played in the ponds, making beards and becoming “snowmen” with the toxic foam. As a result of the contamination, another valuable natural asset of the community —groundwater — has been destroyed. A plume of toxic chemicals now spreads through the aquifer of our community for more than 3 miles, claiming the use of private wells upon which residents once relied for drinking water. While the community was able to force the state to connect homes to a new water system at no expense to homeowners, the residents are now left with the expense of a water bill where none had existed previously. The contamination from the Stringfellow site has stolen a major natural asset from our community and altered the lifestyles of the community. Many people cannot afford to irrigate their land, raise animals, or grow food in gardens because they now must pay for water instead of using their own water wells. As cleanup of the site continues, the restoration of that asset is promising. Yet, once the groundwater is restored to drinking water levels, the state is poised to claim rights to its use outside the community. Residents believe this valuable natural asset is the community's — one that has been stolen from us through the action of industry and state government. While lacking confidence that the water is clean enough for drinking, residents believe the water should be used for beneficial purposes for the community, such as irrigation of park land. The Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ) emerges from the legacy established by this small poor community in its fight to stop pollution from Stringfellow and gain access to decisions directly affecting their lives. Through that battle, the community has overcome the threat caused by the Acid Pits and has regained its voice. We have stopped all exposures, established a new water system, changed public policy, established new legal precedents, created a more democratic process, and won the nation’s largest toxic tort lawsuit with a settlement for over $114 million. That 22-year-old battle by the friends and neighbors of this blue-collar community demonstrated that a small group of committed people can force changes that not only protect and improve their own lives, but result in major policy changes at the local, state, and federal level. Challenges Facing the Community While focused on the effort to protect our lives from chemical exposure, many changes occurring in the community went unnoticed. Land, cheapened by the looming shadow of a toxic dump in its midst, was purchased by outside land speculators. Lifetime investments in homes and businesses by local residents were wiped out because of redlining by financial institutions and overreaction from real estate brokers. Even residents not impacted by the contamination found it difficult to get loans, insurance, and to sell their homes. Industrial Development In response to the hard times of the community, county officials found a solution — designate the area as industrial/manufacturing. In closed-door meetings between developers and governmental officials, the community’s future was plotted without any input from residents who lived there. Almost overnight, major highways bisecting the rural area were built, along with an expansion of rail line and airports and the proposed extension of the Alameda Corridor (a major industrial transportation corridor for Southern California) set the stage for industrial and manufacturing development, especially massive warehouse/distribution centers with the thousands of diesel spewing trucks they draw. Enforcement of county ordinances and delivery of services were curtailed, spiraling the community into disarray and disrepair. As residents left in frustration, tired of fighting with absentee landowners to clean up their lots, manufacturing and heavy industry moved in. Land speculators jumped at the prospect of making a quick buck without regard to the impact upon neighboring properties. To ensure the implementation of this industrial strategic plan and to get a piece of the action, the county government declared much of the area a redevelopment zone. This designation proclaimed our community as blighted and allowed the county to claim any increased property taxes from the industrial use, a quick and easy fund-raising mechanism. Each parcel used for industry brings over $800,000 to the county. The new income is being used in other areas to augment services, to provide new landscaping, and for other such improvements. Many of these new projects are subsidies to private corporations for movie theaters, sports arenas, and big box stores such as
Wal-Mart. To expedite things, the county developed a planning process that continually permits facilities without examining the environmental impacts upon the community by issuing negative declarations and instituting a fast track process to ensure the community has little or no time to discover the proposals, thus not allowing them to react. As a result, we have found that the stage has been set for the massive industrial development. The lack of local control and governance has created a process with little regard for residents’ wants and desires or to the compatibility if these facilities to the existing homes, schools, and traditional land uses. Mega warehouse/distribution centers have begun appearing on the dairy lands surrounding the community. The Agricultural Preserve, previously so prized by government that it received governmental subsides and tax relief, is transforming into massive buildings. These draw in thousands of fume bearing diesel trucks each month. The diesel exhaust, known to contain over 450 different toxic and deadly compounds, threatens the area already notorious for having some of the worst air pollution. The inland area has long been the recipient of air pollution as it floats through the canyons and becomes trapped in our valley from the Los Angeles Basin. The addition of the diesel exhaust has compounded an area already out of compliance with the Federal Clean Air Act. Studies show that our area has the highest levels of particulate pollutants in the nation. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also ranked the area as having the fourth worst particulate air pollution in the world only after Jakarta, Indonesia; Calcutta, India; and Bangkok, Thailand. A recent 10-year longitudinal study by the University of Southern California (USC) demonstrates that our children have the weakest lung capacity of all children studies in Southern California due to particulate smog. The mixing of trucks on country roads and children on horses has created a scenario with tragic results. The once quiet streets are now filled with roaring trucks. Alarmed by the sudden change in their community, residents have come together to demand a voice. The social assets of the community have been reinforced as residents focus on what is important to them within the community and the future they envision for the area. As a result of their determination to preserve their rural, animal-oriented lifestyle was, the very active neighborhood organization called HOME (Help Our Mira Loma Environment) was formed. This vibrantly organized group of residents recently forced a committee to stop all industrial building until their concerns are addressed and resolved. County officials have reacted by forming a committee of local residents to explore appropriate use of land and create a blueprint for the future of the community. This new organizational effort has restored the belief that the residents can indeed have a say in the future of their community and has shocked local officials, developers, and other power blockers. Sewer Sludge Another target for utilizing our land as a sink rather than a source is the application of sewer sludge on agricultural lands. Throughout Riverside County, industry and the government have promoted the practice of using pathogen-infected human waste mixed with industrial wastes ladened with heavy metals and contaminants as a soil amendment on land surrounding our communities. As a result, residents have been forced to lie inside with windows and doors sealed shut to avoid the stench and the overwhelming illness that accompanies this practice. Communities are coming together to share information, support each other’s efforts and stop this practice. Another group of determined residents focused on the sewer sludge issue has formed Citizens Against Toxic Exposure (CATE) to demand a stop to the practice and closure of the Synagro facility, the main company handling sewer sludge in Riverside County. Recently this active group forced a unanimous vote by county officials to close Synagro down. The company has sued and court action is pending. Fuel was added to the battle when EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) recently fined the company for land applying sludge with illegal levels of pathogens. A resolution banning land applications on county property is being heard before the County Board of Supervisors and residents are demanding that all land application be stopped. Rebuilding the Community The Glen Avon community has become a community in transition. A new population of residents is moving in with little or no connection to the previous community. Most are immigrants, speaking only Spanish, with a different culture and lifestyle. This disconnect between residents has created two separate cultures within one small community. The diminished cohesiveness within the community has resulted in a weakened ability to build political clout and a stronger vulnerability to playing one side against another. Residents recognize that a true community is more than a group of buildings clumped together. A community is comprised of individuals and families working together, sharing a common vision for the future. To accomplish that, CCAEJ has brought the diverse segments of the town together and launched the Glen Avon Revitalization Project (GARP). The goal of the project is to augment and develop the assets of the community — institutional, financial, social, and natural. We began our efforts by identifying areas that posed a chronic problem for the community — abandoned, overgrown lots, trash filled yards, abandoned automobiles, and unsafe buildings. Since many of the areas are owned by outside speculators, it has been a challenge to address these lots. We began a program of reporting and monitoring the chronic offenders to the code enforcement office ensuring they respond with appropriate actions. Many of the sites posed a safety hazard to the children and residents of the area. We have been instrumental in improving the response of the various county agencies to problems in the area and have opened lines of communication for residents. Lack of services for the area has been a major problem for the community. While many areas have benefited from “redevelopment” funds from the county, Glen Avon has been overlooked. We have set out to change that. As a result, we have several new county projects underway: landscaping along the freeway offramps, underground utilities, resurfacing of streets, a new ordinance on crowning fowl and garage door fencing, and increased staffing on fire trucks in the area. While these efforts have begun to rejuvenate the community, the residents are still treated as onlookers rather than participants in what happens in their community. To bring more cohesion among residents, we have begun to look at what people want most for their community. A park! Glen Avon has no central gathering place for children, families, and neighbors. Children are forced to play in the streets since there are no sidewalks for them to run around on. We decided to build a park. Our goal was to create a place that belongs to the people, built by the people with our own hands, and under our own control. After two years of searching for land and raising funds, we bought 13 acres of land in the heart of Glen Avon to be used for the Glen Avon Heritage Park. Escrow closed on January 4, 2001, and a major celebration and kick off was held on April 21, 2001. We feel that the park will spark a new pride in the community, instill ownership for residents, and begin the process of rebuilding our community. Developing a park has also brought us in contact with several agencies as partners. We have an agreement with the local park district that once residents have designed and built the park as far as they can on their own, the district will receive the land to complete, maintain and operate on our behalf. The fact that we have been able to acquire the land and bring the project this far has added new respect for the residents of this community and instilled a new level of pride. An important goal for the project is using the park to bring the community together. We hope that by providing a central place where all segments of the community can congregate, recreate and share cultural events we will begin to rebuild the social interaction among residents. Working toward a common goal is a great way to focus on our commonalities and forget some of the differences. We plan to use the park to celebrate community events — reintroduce Glen Avon community days, Cinco de Mayo, etc.; create a central meeting place for bonding among the diverse segments of the community through recreation, socialization and interaction; and demonstrate that the community working together can make things happen for their community without outside support or interference. The park will also provide an opportunity to display and market home-based enterprises, so critical for low-income families. Plans include a farmers’ fair, swap meets, craft fairs, community gardens, etc. As the park becomes a reality, we have established a record of achievement and a connection with financial institutions and government entities. Many have stood on the sidelines betting we would not be able to even begin the park project. But here we are. The property also has four structures that will be used for community-based activities. The primary structure is a two-story building with over 5,000 square feet of space. This will be the office for CCAEJ and other community based organizations. In addition it will house a heritage museum, chronicling the history of the community and remembering its past. As part of the community’s history we will develop the Stringfellow Archive as a way of ensuring that the site, its impact upon the community, and the community legacy in changing public policy for the country are not forgotten. As we’ve delved into the history of the community, we were astounded to find that the land we bought for our Glen Avon Heritage Park is the same land our forbearers had for Mission Park and the Harvest Festival. We see this as a sign that we truly are revitalizing and rebuilding our community. |