Dear friends, advocates and neighbors,

My office is hosting the first-ever Environmental Justice Forum in Southwest Detroit lead by local residents on Monday, August 10th at Latino Family Services, located at 3815 W. Fort St. Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. and program begins at 9:30 a.m. Lunch will be served.

Our community has endured great hardship over the number of environmental injustices near our homes, schools and parks. Many agencies, community members and others have been advocating on our behalf. However, this forum is allowing elected officials, health officials and social justice advocates to hear directly from residents on how on how large-scale industry and transportation projects impact human health, environment, and the quality of life of our families.

Topics to include:
• Detroit Salt Mine blasting
• Marathon Oil Refinery expansion
• Truck traffic and rail industry
• Detroit River International Crossing and Community Benefits
• Ambassador Bridge Second Span

Participants will develop community action events and concrete solutions to address the impacts. Please make an effort to come out support local residents and their effort to be heard.

I hope to see you all on August 10th. If you have any questions please call my office at 517-373-0823.

Attached please find a flyer for the invite (in English and Spanish) to forward to your networks and friends.

Best,


Rashida Tlaib
State Representative
12th District, Southwest Detroit

Twinned Ambassador Bridge 'makes no sense'

Twinned Ambassador Bridge 'makes no sense'
Liberal Sen. Colin Kenny and Conservative Sen. Pamela Wallin tour plaza
By Chris Thompson, The Windsor StarJuly 16, 2009
The Windsor Star

WINDSOR, Ont. -- The twinning of the Ambassador Bridge isn’t needed, the chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on National Security and Defence said during a whirlwind tour of the bridge’s Canadian security operation Thursday.

“I don’t think it should be at this location,” said Liberal Senator Colin Kenny, who toured the bridge plaza along with committee deputy chairwoman, Conservative Senator Pamela Wallin.

“The idea of twinning this facility makes no sense because if this facility went down, you’d lose both of them,” he said.

So, let’s have it at another location.”

Kenny and Wallin toured the passenger and commercial processing facilities, including the VACIS truck examination unit, and held a working lunch with representatives of the Canada Border Services Agency and other agencies.

“Essentially, we’re going (from) Halifax to Vancouver looking at different border crossings.” said Kenny.

“We’re very concerned that we have as effective a system as we can have. We see it as jobs in Canada and we think it is very important that our border is robust and effective.”

Kenny said security will have to be a major consideration at the new border crossing.

“We think another bridge, not necessarily an Ambassador Bridge, we think another bridge is very important,” said Kenny.

“I’m very concerned that it’s been delayed past 2013 but if it’s coming it’s very good news for people in southern Ontario and Windsor in particular.

“We need to make sure that we do have capacity as trade grows. Secondly, if you’re relying on a single crossing and something goes wrong with it, things shut down, and that could have a devastating effect on the economy of Ontario.”

Kenny would not identify his preferred location for the new crossing, citing the ongoing DRIC process.

Wallin, who previously served as the Canadian consul general in New York City, said she understands the U.S. concerns about security precluding those of trade.

“You’re asking somebody who lived in the United States in the weeks and months and years after 9-11 so I’m very sensitive to their mindset about that,” said Wallin, a former television journalist and host.

“They do see the world through the security lens. We tend to see the world through the trade and sovereignty lens so we need to go a long way to ensure that each understands what is crucial to that other person.”

Kenny said he was impressed with the changes he saw at the bridge since his last visit in 2007.

“They have it where they are able to clear a lot more trucks through right at the primary inspection line than they could before, so that’s a different thing than before,” said Kenny.

“Prior to that, far more trucks were sent to a secondary location that is up the road and here the trucks are being cleared more rapidly, which is an encouraging sign. It’s a very positive thing.”

© Copyright (c) The Windsor Star

http://www.windsorstar.com/news/Twinned+Ambassador+Bridge+makes+sense/1798170/story.html

Southwest Solutions takes a stand on the bridge issue

Southwest Solutions is a nonprofit organization providing mental health, affordable housing, services to the homeless, literacy programs, and community organizing in southwest Detroit. The organization’s annual budget is $23 million and its real estate portfolio $70 million in real estate assets in southwest Detroit.

Since 1999 and in collaboration with other organizations, Southwest Solutions has worked intently to maintain a knowledgeable and educated position regarding international bridge-related issues.

By way of background, the Ambassador Bridge, is owned and operated by the Detroit International Bridge Company (DIBC), a privately-held corporation. DIBC will strongly benefit from a $200 million investment by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) in a complete rebuilding of the infrastructure connecting the existing bridge to the interstate highway system. DIBC’s intention is to build a six lane “replacement” span adjacent to the existing bridge.

In addition to DIBC’s plans is the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC), a bi-nationally sponsored public endeavor to erect and maintain a publicly-owned bridge situated downriver from the Ambassador Bridge. This new bridge would connect the Delray community in southwest Detroit with Brighton Beach, Ontario.

In partnership with the Gateway Collaborative and others, Southwest Solutions has sought to protect the interests of the Southwest Detroit community with respect to bridge-related issues. We believe that the best way to protect the community is to promote vigorous and continuous dialogue between both DIBC and the promoters of DRIC and community residents. This dialogue should include:
o public hearings
o study and analysis of community impacts
o continuous dialogue between the community and the United States Coast Guard, the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office, the Michigan Department of Transportation, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and the U.S. Federal Highway Administration.

In light of recent developments regarding bridge-related issues, Southwest Solutions:

1. Affirms our position that Southwest Solutions seeks to protect the best interests of residents and the small businesses that serve them in connection with both the current Gateway Project and any new international bridge project originating in our community;

2. Stresses that community protections in connection with such projects must be codified through legally enforceable agreements, such as Community Benefits Agreements, before any bridge plan is approved and before any bridge construction can begin;

3. Opposes any plan that fails to reduce bridge-related traffic volumes on surface streets in our community;

4. Will help ensure that community concerns are presented to appropriate governmental and regulatory bodies;

5. Seeks completion of full environmental impact studies and the sharing of results of those studies with the local community.

CALL Cong Hoekstra on Tues. July 14th!

Help make our voices heard!
CALL CONGRESSMAN HOEKSTRA on TUESDAY, JULY 14th !

If you read down to the bottom of this email, you'll see some political grandstanding from U.S. Representative Peter Hoekstra, a Republican from Holland.
He issued a press release and sent a letter to Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) standing up for -- you guessed it -- the Ambassador Bridge Company and the illegal changes they made to the Gateway Project.
Hoekstra, who's running for Governor, apparently feels the need to pander to the business interests trying to run roughshod over our community. We need to make it known that these changes endanger our health by allowing bridge traffic into our neighborhoods.
By making this Tuesday, July 14th between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CALL HOEKSTRA DAY we can ensure our voices are heard!
(202) 225-4401 (Washington D.C.)
And follow it up with an email at:
http://hoekstra.house.gov/Contact/ContactForm.htm
Phone Script:
Hello my name is _________ and I am calling to ask that Congressman Hoekstra help protect our human health and environment by advocating that the Ambassador Bridge Company comply with the original contractual agreement with MDOT. Congressman Hoekstra should support keeping trucks out of our neighborhoods as promised by the Gateway Project instead of questioning MDOT’s obligation and supporting the Ambassador Bridge Company’s illegal actions.

Hoekstra Raises Questions about Piles of Dirt on a Recently Constructed Section of I-75
Congressman Sends Letter to MDOT Requesting Answers to Several Questions


Washington, Jul 7 - U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Holland, today sent a letter to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) questioning why it placed thousands of tons of dirt on a newly constructed service drive designed to provide a new I-75 freeway link leading to the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit.
"In light of the federal taxpayer dollars spent toward funding MDOT, and particularly considering the pending $80 billion transportation budget shortfalls, more information on this matter is necessary," Hoekstra wrote after visiting Detroit to examine border and transportation issues when the situation was brought to his attention.
"If the freeway link is ready, just open it," Hoekstra said. "It will save truckers and Detroit motorists time, money and fuel."
Hoekstra posed several questions to MDOT, including why the dirt was dumped on the site, how much it cost to dump it there and then move it, how much money will be spent on preparing or repairing the service drive for traffic and why a less intrusive barrier such as traffic barrels weren’t used.
"Michigan continues to struggle through a nearly decade-long recession," Hoekstra said. "Yet the state has now built a fence to protect turtles from oncoming traffic in Muskegon, remodeled a rest area along I-196 between Holland and Grand Rapids and is now piling and removing dirt on the I-75 freeway link to the Ambassador Bridge. We need to better allocate state resources and reform how Lansing prioritizes projects."

U-M, EPA to study Detroit air pollution

WASHINGTON – The University of Michigan and the federal Environmental Protection Agency will study the effects of air pollution from traffic on children in Detroit.

The agency made the announcement this morning, committing $1.4 million to the joint study with U-M.

Researchers plan to look into the effects of pollutants common near roadways, studying how people are exposed to them, the extent of exposure and the types and severity of health effects. Specifically, the EPA and U-M will study traffic-associated pollution in Detroit and whether it could lead to more severe asthma attacks in children ages 6 to 14 and whether traffic exposure increases the likelihood of respiratory infections.

According to the EPA, more than 45 million people in the U.S. live within 300 feet of a four-lane road, airport or railroad.

“The knowledge gained from this study will arm local governments with the best available science when planning some of their most important projects, such as road and school design,” said Lek Kadeli, acting assistant administrator for the EPA’s Office of Research and Development. “This information will help build safer communities for our children.”

In a recently released report on fitness by the American College of Sports Medicine, Detroit was found to have an asthma rate of 10.2% — higher than the national average.

The EPA says it plans to work with a group of 105 Detroit children suffering from persistent asthma and recruited on the basis of the proximity of their residence to different types of roadways.

http://www.freep.com/article/20090707/NEWS15/90707033/1008/NEWS06

Letter: Matty Moroun must act in public interest

http://detnews.com/article/20090702/OPINION01/907020337/1008/OPINION01/Letter--Matty-Moroun-must-act-in-public-interest