Community members have asked a central question: “Is it safe to live in Richmond?” Residents in Richmond have raised concerns that environmental exposures might have caused their health problems such as breast cancer, sore throats, asthma, rashes, other cancers, and children with developmental delays. NDCA seeks to build on the momentum of existing health studies to benefit the residents near industrial sites of environmental health concern in Richmond.

The National Disease Clusters Alliance was formed out of the urgent need to identify and address emerging disease clusters. We are made up of a unique cross-section of representatives ranging from advocates, academia, government agencies, scientists, researchers, and other non-profit organizations. We connect communities, academia, and government to obtain a faster and more effective response to disease clusters and exposure hotspots.

We seek to reduce health disparities suffered disproportionately by communities of color by reducing their higher burden of environmental exposures. We offer technical assistance to communities to increase their knowledge of the causes of disease, responses to disease cluster concerns, and their capacity to address them. When residents become engaged and educated they are able to act swiftly to protect themselves.

In March 2010 NDCA began a joint effort with three existing environmental justice organizations active in Richmond. West County Toxics Coalition lead by Dr. Henry Clark has been active in the area for decades. Communities for a Better Environment have already been active connecting researchers with community members in Richmond. The Asian Pacific Environmental Network brings environmental expertise to the table and knowledge of several Asian languages.

 

Brody JG, Morello-Frosch R, Zota A, Brown P, Pérez C, Rudel RA. Linking exposure assessment science with policy objectives for environmental justice and breast cancer advocacy: the northern California household exposure study. Am J Public Health. 2009 Nov;99 Suppl 3:S600-9.  http://ajph.aphapublications.org/cgi/reprint/99/S3/S600

 

Community Health Assessment, Planning and Evaluation Group (CHAPE), Public Health Division, Contra Costa Health Services Report: Community Health Indicators for Contra Costa County, 2007.  290 pages.  http://cchealth.org/health_data/hospital_council_2007/ Accessed 5/1/2010.

 

Pastor M, Morello-Frosch R, Sadd J (2007): Still Toxic After All These Years: Air Quality and Environmental Justice in the San Francisco Bay Area. Available at: http://cjtc.ucsc.edu/docs/bay_final.pdf .

 

Milet M, Tran S, Eatherton M, Flattery J, Kreutzer R.(2007) The Burden of Asthma in California: A Surveillance Report. Richmond, CA: California Department of Health Services, Environmental Health Investigations Branch. http://www.ehib.org/paper.jsp?paper_key=Asthma_Burden

 

Belliveau M, Kent M, Rosenblum G.  Richmond at Risk: Community Demographics and Toxic Hazards from Industrial Polluters.  San Francisco, CA: Citizens for a Better Environment, 1989.

 

Larson D.  Breathing Fire: In Their Own Words.  West County Toxic Coalition’s 20 Year Environmental Justice Struggle to Ban Toxic Flares. Global Community Monitor.  2005. http://gcmonitor.org/downloads/GCMFlareReport.pdf

 

Rolfes, A. Common Ground II: Why Cooperation to Reduce Accidents at Louisiana Refineries is Needed Now.  Louisiana Bucket Brigade, 2010. http://www.labucketbrigade.org/downloads/LABBcommongroundIImap.pdf

 

Rudel RA, Dodson RE, Perovich LJ, Morello-Frosch R, Camann DE, Zuniga MM, Yau AY, Just AC, Brody JG. Semivolatile endocrine-disrupting compounds in paired indoor and outdoor air in two northern California communities. Environ Sci Technol. 2010 Sep 1;44(17):6583-90. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2930400/pdf/es100159c.pdf

 

Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick? Episode 5 – Place Matters. Documentary, 4 hours. PBS http://www.unnaturalcauses.org/

 

 

Lopez, Andrea, Alison Cohen, Ami Zota, Rachel Morello-Frosch.  Richmond Health Survey.  Communities for a Better Environment, 2009. http://www.cbecal.org/pdf/Richmond_Health_Survey_final.pdf

 

Bullard, Robert D., Paul Mohai, Robin Saha, Beverly Wright. “Toxic Wastes and Race at Twenty, 1987-2007: Grassroots Struggle to Dismantle Environmental Racism.” United Church of Christ report. 2007. Accessed on: 23 Nov. 2008. Available online at: http://www.ejrc.cau.edu/TWART-light.pdf.

 

“The True Cost of Chevron: An Alternative Annual Report.” May 2009. Edited by Antonia Juhasz. http://www.TrueCostofChevron.com

 

Silent Spring Institute. “Household Exposure Study in Richmond and Bolinas, CA.” 2008. http://www.silentspring.org/our-research/everyday-chemical-exposures/household-exposure-study-richmond-and-bolinas-california