Category: Public Participation

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 19, 2026 Jim Powell

MEJO founder Dr. Maria C. Powell wrote three essays on Dr. King and his views on the “giant triplets of racism, materialism, and militarism,” each posted on previous MLK Jr…

Arrogance Burn pits Cancer City of Madison Dane County Denialism Doublespeak Environmental Justice Fish Fish Advisory Hypocrisy Inequality Madison Madison-Kipp Corp. Mercury Oscar Mayer Privilege Public Participation Racial disparities Racial Justice Risk Assessment Starkweather Creek Toxic Chemicals Truax Wastewater Treatment Water Pollution

Resistance Radio to feature “Poisoning Paradise: An Environmental History of Madison”

September 9, 2024 Jim Powell

Maria Powell’s book, “Poisoning Paradise: An Environmental History of Madison,” is the topic of an upcoming Resistance Radio interview with Derrick Jensen on Sunday, September 15 at 5 pm CDT.…

Cancer Denialism Environmental Justice EPA F-35 Fighter jets Fire fighting Fish Fish Advisory Hypocrisy Illicit discharge Madison Pesticides Plastics Privilege Public Participation Racial disparities Racial Justice Starkweather Creek Starkweather EJ Project Truax landfill University of Wisconsin-Madison

MARIA POWELL: A CELEBRATION OF HER LIFE – JULY 20, 2024

July 16, 2024 Jim Powell

Friends – please consider attending as I would love to see you there, and feel free to spread the word to others who knew Maria. MARIA POWELL: A CELEBRATION OF…

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

On October 26, the Midwest Environmental Advocates held a ceremony naming MEJO founder Maria Powell as one of its 2023 Bill Iwen Environmental Justice Awardees. MEJO Vice President Touyeng Xiong…

Dane Co Lakes & Watershed Commission Dane County PFAS Poisoned Yahara Lakes Public Participation Racial disparities

Lakes & Watershed Commissioners clueless about public engagement…or just don’t care?

August 4, 2022 Maria C. Powell, PhD

***** This is an addendum to my previous post… Last night (Aug. 3), the Lakes & Watershed Commission decided to increase the proposed budget amount for “engaging

Denialism Doublespeak Madison Water Utility Public Participation

Madison fouled its own nest, Part III: “The wicked witch is dead”

May 24, 2022 Maria C. Powell, PhD

This part of the “Madison fouled its own nest” series is based entirely on articles by Wisconsin State Journal reporter Ron Seely (all linked in the below article). There is…

City of Madison Community engagement Environmental Justice PFCs or PFAS Public Participation

Mayor responds to Sustainable Madison Committee’s PFAS Recommendations

May 26, 2021 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Eken Park Resistance leaders and community members put jars of local waters in front of the City-County Building at the Water is Life event, April 2021 On May 23, Chris…

Air National Guard City of Madison Dane County Environmental Justice PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Starkweather Creek Truax Wisconsin DNR Yahara Lakes

DNR repeatedly engages public in Marinette & Peshtigo on PFAS–but ignores Madison

May 19, 2021 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Heavily PFAS-contaminated Starkweather Creek water and sediments flood over a backyard garden in the Darbo-Worthington neighborhood in Madison, about a mile south of the Dane County Regional Airport and Truax…

Air National Guard City of Madison Environmental Justice F-35 PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Racial Justice Starkweather Creek Water Pollution

Sustainable Madison Committee to Mayor and Council on PFAS

April 29, 2021 Maria C. Powell, PhD

Above: Fishing at the mouth of Starkweather Creek as it flows into Lake Monona at Olbrich Park (Photo-Maria Powell) April 27, 2021 To: Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, Members of the Madison…

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…

Cancer City of Madison Community engagement Environmental health Environmental Justice Madison Metro Oscar Mayer Public Participation Racial disparities Risk Assessment Starkweather Creek TCE Toxic Chemicals Vapor intrusion Water Pollution

Madison Northsiders say NO to Metro Bus Barn!

November 22, 2020 Maria C. Powell, PhD

By Madison Northsiders No Bus Barn is the Northside community’s voice for better land use at the previous Oscar Mayer site. We are dedicated to place-making in this new era…

City of Madison Environmental health Environmental Justice Ho-Chunk Madison Water Utility Oscar Mayer Public Participation Racial disparities Racism Toxic Chemicals Toxins Vapor intrusion Water Pollution Water quality

Madison’s long history of racist planning and development

October 11, 2020 Jim Powell

Madison newspaper The Cap Times published this column on October 8. Column Madison’s long history of racist planning and development By Maria Powell | executive director, Midwest Environmental Justice Organization…

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…

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…

Cancer City of Madison Community engagement Environmental Justice Madison Water Utility PFCs or PFAS Public Participation Toxic Chemicals

Water Utility dismisses public concerns, puts public relations over public health

January 21, 2020 Maria C. Powell, PhD

On January 9, 2020, the Isthmus published a cover story on PFAS: “The fight for safe drinking water; Will Madison officials pay attention to the science on PFAS?” I commend…