Madison Environmental Justice

Everyone deserves a healthy environment

Category: Wisconsin DNR

City of Madison Environmental health Environmental Justice Fish Fish Advisory PCBs Pesticides PFCs or PFAS Pharmaceuticals Plastics Racial disparities Racism stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Water Pollution Wisconsin DNR Yahara Lakes

Monona Bay, Downtown Madison’s Toxic Cesspool

February 15, 2021 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Fish art on Monona Bay created by Eric Anang. Photo by Amber Arnold, Wisconsin State Journal. Graphic additions by a MEJO collaborator. PFAS was found at significant levels in Monona…

City of Madison Community engagement Environmental health Environmental Justice Madison Metro NEPA Oscar Mayer Public Participation Racial disparities Risk Assessment Toxic Chemicals Vapor intrusion Wisconsin DNR

Victory!! No Metro Bus Barn at the Poisoned Oscar Mayer site

February 3, 2021 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Oscar Mayer site in 1947 (photo from Wisconsin State Journal) Victory for Madison’s Northside! Madison’s Metro Transit authority has abandoned plans to buy the northern part of the highly-contaminated former…

City of Madison Community engagement Dane County East Madison Community Center Environmental health Environmental Justice Fish PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Racial disparities Racism Starkweather Creek Starkweather EJ Project stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Water quality Wisconsin DNR

Northside teens push for creek clean-up after new sediment tests find high levels of PFAS — again

May 28, 2020 Maria C. Powell, PhD

By Oona Mackesey-Green, Northside News (photo by Garth Olmanson) When the test results came back in February showing high levels of PFAS in the sediment at Starkweather Creek, a foot…

City of Madison Community engagement Dane County Earth Day Environmental health Environmental Justice Fish PFCs or PFAS Racial disparities Racism Risk Assessment Starkweather Creek Starkweather EJ Project stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Water Pollution Water quality Wisconsin DNR

MEJO and East Madison Community Center teens find significantly elevated PFAS levels in Starkweather Creek sediments

April 21, 2020 Jim Powell

Earth Day 2020: Fifty years after first Earth Day, toxic environmental pollution still pervasive (Madison, Wis.)–New PFAS results, released before the COVID 19 lockdown, show significantly elevated levels of PFOS…

Air National Guard City of Madison Dane County Dane County Regional Airport Environmental Justice EPA F-35 Fighter jets Fish PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Risk Assessment Soil contamination Starkweather Creek stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Truax Trump Water Pollution Water quality Wisconsin DNR

Superfund will not protect our waterways — or us — from the military’s toxic pollution

March 11, 2020 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Maria Powell, Cap Times op-ed Photo above: Starkweather Creek going through Truax Field The final environmental impact statement (EIS) on basing F-35 fighter jets at Madison’s Truax Field states that…

Air National Guard City of Madison Dane County Department of Defense Environmental Justice EPA F-35 Fighter jets PFCs or PFAS Risk Assessment Starkweather Creek stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Truax Water Pollution Wisconsin DNR

The Final F-35 EIS is a total sham

February 23, 2020 Maria C. Powell, PhD

The public comment process for the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for basing F-35s at Madison’s Truax Air National Guard base was not only token—it was a total sham. According…

City of Madison City of Madison Parks Department Community engagement Environmental Justice Fish Fish Advisory PFCs or PFAS Public Health Madison Dane County Public Participation Starkweather Creek stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Toxins Truax Water Pollution Water quality Wisconsin DHS Wisconsin DNR

PFAS Task Force RIP

December 21, 2019 Jim Powell

As we’ve experienced for twenty years in Madison, local government prefers to keep the public out of actions it takes–or does not take–regarding locally-occurring toxic pollution problems. The proposed Madison-Dane…

Air National Guard City of Madison City of Madison Parks Department Dane County Regional Airport Environmental Justice Fish Fish Advisory Madison Gas & Electric PFCs or PFAS Public Health Madison Dane County Starkweather Creek Toxic Chemicals Toxins Truax Water Pollution Water quality Wisconsin DHS Wisconsin DNR

PFAS levels in creek are more than “concerning”

December 21, 2019 Jim Powell

The PFOS amount in foam found in Starkweather Creek was 92,000 parts per trillion, far exceeding the laughable EPA advisory threshold level of 70 ppt. The mayor should be more…

Air National Guard Cancer City of Madison Dane County Environmental Justice Fish Advisory Madison Water Utility PFCs or PFAS Public Health Madison Dane County Risk Assessment Starkweather Creek stormwater runoff Toxic Chemicals Truax Water Pollution Wisconsin DNR

Madison residents increasingly alarmed by PFAS levels in local waterways

December 11, 2019 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Photo: Starkweather Creek in the Darbo-Worthington neighborhood (Maria Powell). By Steve Elbow, Cap Times Lance Green has been collecting water samples from Starkweather Creek for years. As a volunteer for…

You missed

Air Pollution Arrogance Cancer City of Madison Community engagement Dane County Denialism Development Doublespeak Ecology Environmental destruction Environmental health Environmental Justice F-35 Fighter jets Fish Advisory Futility Hypocrisy Madison Martin Luther King Jr. Obfuscation Peace?? Privilege Public Participation Public Relations Racial disparities Racial Justice Racism

Reflections on Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 15, 2024 Jim Powell
Air National Guard Air Pollution Arrogance Cancer Dane County Parks Deception Denialism Doublespeak Ecology Environmental health Environmental Justice F-35 Fish Hypocrisy Illicit discharge Inequality Landfills Madison Madison-Kipp Corp. Mercury PCBs PCE Pesticides PFAS Poisoned Yahara Lakes PFCs or PFAS Privilege Racial disparities Racial Justice Racism Starkweather Creek Stupidity Toxic Chemicals Toxins Trash Trees Truax Water Pollution Water quality

“Maria Powell wasn’t just an activist. In Madison, she was the premier environmental activist.”

November 18, 2023 Jim Powell
City of Madison Environmental Justice Madison-Kipp Corp. PFCs or PFAS Starkweather Creek Toxic Chemicals Toxins Truax Water Pollution

MEJO founder Dr. Maria C. Powell has passed away

November 14, 2023 Jim Powell
Environmental health Environmental Justice Fish Fish Advisory Illicit discharge Madison-Kipp Corp. Mercury PCBs Pesticides PFAS Poisoned Yahara Lakes PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Racial disparities Soil contamination Starkweather Creek Starkweather EJ Project TCE Toxic Chemicals Toxins Vapor intrusion Water Pollution

MEJO founder Dr. Maria Powell wins Bill Iwen Environmental Justice Award

October 28, 2023 Jim Powell