BioLab will not resume manufacturing at its Conyers facility, the company announced Thursday, following a massive chemical fire last September that sent toxic smoke across metro Atlanta. “After taking steps to meet customer needs through alternative production, and in considering our future business needs carefully, we have made the difficult decision to not restart manufacturing […]
Environmental Justice
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
How Illegal Tire Dumps Are Harming Atlanta’s Black Neighborhoods
Chad Livsey has spent the past seven years removing improperly discarded furniture and other hard-to-recycle litter from Atlanta neighborhoods, but he says he has yet to encounter a dumping site as daunting as this one in southeast Atlanta. The Snellville native commemorated Earth Day by responding to a tip he received one year ago about […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
Meet the Black Women Fighting for Clean Air and Water in Atlanta
Gwen Smith thinks lovingly of the three decades she spent living in Collier Heights, reflecting on a close-knit community filled with neighbors who knew one another’s names and were always eager to lend a helping hand when necessary. But she can’t help but to remember the stench. Smith recalls foul odors surrounding her community on […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
How to Safely Dispose of Tires, Furniture, and Waste in Atlanta
Parks, vacant lots, and abandoned properties in West Atlanta are turning into dumping grounds, littered with busted furniture, worn tires, and other bulk trash — and community members say their complaints are going unresolved. “They’re dumping into the streams, dumping in ditches, roads, any place they can do a quick drop-off,” said Khalifa Lee, chair of […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Politics & Policy
BioLab Fined $61,000 After Georgia Lawmakers Fail to Pass Regulatory Legislation
This story was originally published on February 4, 2025, and has been updated. Kiya Stanford remembers clearly the fallout from the BioLab chemical fire that wrapped Conyers and surrounding areas in a cloud of toxic smoke in September. She recalls the pungent odor that lingered in the air for several days; the fear of exposure […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Politics & Policy, Unsafe Water
Proposed Rollback of Lead Pipe Regulations Threatens Health of Atlanta Communities
Republican lawmakers are seeking to end a Biden administration mandate that local governments and water utilities identify and replace lead pipes nationwide, potentially obstructing efforts being made in metro Atlanta. The Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) aim to eliminate toxic pipes in the U.S. within the next 10 years. Following this mandate, areas like […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Public Services
How to Find Out if You Have Lead Pipes — and What You Can Do About It
After a federal law change, counties across Georgia are making it easier for residents to know if lead pipes are contaminating the water in their communities. In 2021, a landmark revision was made to federal laws regarding lead and copper in pipes to create safer conditions for drinking water. Due to this change, public water […]
Posted inCommunity Spotlight, Environmental Justice
West Atlanta Alliance Fights Pollution, Promotes Nature Access
Na’Taki Osborne Jelks spent much of her childhood in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in one of the many Black communities along an 85-mile stretch between the city and New Orleans known as “Cancer Alley.” She said growing up in an area wracked by industrial pollution and the health problems that come with it put her on […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
Black Neighborhoods Burdened by Industrial Air Pollution Will Finally Get Answers
In a pocket of neighborhoods in Northwest Atlanta, Black residents live among a cluster of industrial and transportation facilities that researchers fear are silently deteriorating the communities’ health. Scattered amid the tree-lined streets of Collier Heights and nearby residential communities, there are wastewater treatment plants, a train yard, a power plant, a concrete facility, and […]
Posted inClimate Change, Environmental Justice
A Flash Flood Submerged Parts of Atlanta. Here’s Why Black Neighborhoods Were the Hardest Hit.
Hunter Hills residents are all too familiar with floodwater creeping into their homes. But even longtime resident Michele McCord was taken aback when a severe thunderstorm brought a torrential downpour on Sept. 14, turning streets into streams that quickly flooded her basement. McCord was sitting at home that afternoon when water began rushing in. Within […]
