Florida Residents Fight New Trash Incinerator Over Health and Justice Concerns

In September, Florida residents crowded a government meeting to oppose plans for a massive trash incinerator in Miami-Dade County. Protesters wearing green shirts that read “MIRAMAR SAYS NO TO INCINERATOR! NOT IN OUR BACKYARD,” feared the proposed facility could harm their health, lower property values and damage the environment.

The incinerator which would burn 4,000 tons of garbage a day has drawn fire from civil rights and environmental groups. All four possible locations for the $1.5 billion facility are near diverse communities, drawing accusations of environmental and racial injustice. Longtime Miramar resident Elisha Moultrie called the plan a continuation of systemic harm to communities of color.

Miami-Dade officials must grapple with how to handle trash in a county that produces nearly twice the national average per person in part because of tourism. But delays persist as officials squabble over where to put the facility and a vote now isn’t expected until February. Mayor Daniella Levine Cava conceded it is hard to find a good location.

The debate is part of a larger national struggle for environmental justice. Communities of color tend to be the hardest hit as pollution from incinerators, chemical plants and refineries is often sited in or near residential areas. Mike Ewall, director of Energy Justice Network pointed out that such facilities frequently are located where residents hold less power to resist.

Florida burns more trash than any other state. While more than 60% of incinerators nationwide are in majority white communities, those in communities of color burn more waste and emit more pollutants. Six of the nine incinerators in Miami Dade are located in areas with higher than average populations of people of color, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

The impact was evident for those living near the old Miami Dade incinerator which burned down in February 2023. Cheryl Holder who lived nearby for years remembers ash coating her car and a constant chemical smell.  The concerns lingered while pollution controls were later added. Holder finally moved after her son developed asthma which she believes was caused by the facility.

Environmental experts argue that the incinerators besides day to day operations give rise to a number of risks including fires and other incidents even in some cases cancer. Some say that the long term solution lies in waste reduction. Others suggest that practices like recycling, composting and consumption reduction could actually make incinerators and landfills redundant.

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Miami Dade officials insist that modern incinerators are safer but skepticism is still around the residents. The fight mirrors the ongoing struggle for clean and equitable waste management where communities demand fair treatment and sustainable solutions.