PHILADELPHIA, PA (Friday, April 11) – Yesterday, Clean Air Council filed a Dispute of the termination of a Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant which would have enabled the Council to respond to health concerns of Delaware City, DE communities by providing concrete services. The $490,912 Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) Cooperative Agreement grant was meant to establish air quality monitoring and help organize communities to study and protect themselves from air pollution emissions from the Delaware City Refinery. 

On March 12, 2025, EPA notified the Council in a form letter that EPA had terminated the CPS grant without specifying which of several factors allegedly applied. The letter stated only that the grant allegedly:

“provides funding for programs that promote or take part in DEI initiatives or environmental justice initiatives or other initiatives that conflict with the Agency’s policy of prioritizing merit, fairness, and excellence in performing our statutory functions; that are not free from fraud, abuse, waste, or duplication; or that otherwise fail to serve the best interests of the United States. The grant is therefore inconsistent with, and no longer effectuates, Agency priorities.”

Approximately 400 federal grants around the country were similarly terminated.

“We are disputing this unlawful decision because we remain committed to fighting for the Delaware City communities served through this grant,” said Alex Bomstein, Clean Air Council Executive Director. “The communities around the Refinery have long endured health, economic, and social harms from the Refinery’s air pollution emissions, and we will do everything in our power to continue to advocate for their rights to clean air, pure water, and a livable climate despite our grant being wrongly terminated.”

The grant, welcomed by the community, promised to provide the following: (1) setting up air quality monitors; (2) analyzing the data with community members; (3) assisting in community organizing; and (4) helping residents and community organizations to develop emergency response plans in case of an emergency caused by the Refinery, such as an accident causing a sudden large release of toxic air pollution.

HARRISBURG, PA (April 25, 2025) – This week, Pennsylvania legislators introduced six bills as part of Governor Shapiro’s “Lightning Plan,” which was announced in January. These bills include policies for enhancing the siting, production, and usage of renewable and fossil fuel energy sources alike and updating an outdated energy efficiency program. 

Despite growing energy demand from data centers leading to an increased need for clean, reliable energy, only 3% of Pennsylvania’s energy currently comes from renewable sources. Legislation in the Lightning Plan, namely the Pennsylvania Renewable Energy Standards and Sustainability (PRESS), the Reliable Energy Siting and Electric Transition Board (RESET), and the Community Energy bills have the potential to greatly promote the deployment of affordable, renewable energy in Pennsylvania while creating good-paying jobs.

Alex Bomstein, Clean Air Council Executive Director, issued the following statement:

“Our Commonwealth is experiencing an ever-increasing demand for energy that is clean and affordable, especially as more extreme weather events threaten the reliability of gas-fired power plants and as we fail to take aggressive action against polluting industries that increase energy demand while contributing to climate change. These bills that are part of Governor Shapiro’s Lightning Plan are overall an important step in tackling this issue. However, it is critical that Pennsylvania prioritize renewable energy over adding more unreliable fossil fuels to our grid. We look forward to working with the Governor’s office and the Legislature to ensure this plan helps realize new, clean energy projects that keep our air clean, our communities healthy, and our energy affordable.” 

What is one way that you can improve air quality while getting a physical and mental health boost? Biking! The Clean Air Council is committed to advocating for sustainable modes of transportation like accessible and affordable public transit, walking, and biking. In May, we are partnering with Love to Ride, a global organization championing the health and fitness benefits of biking, and Indego Bike Share, Philadelphia’s local bike share program, to bring you the May Bike Month Challenge. 

The May Bike Month Challenge is an exciting opportunity to get outside, try something new, or if you are already a seasoned cyclist, go the extra mile! The sign-up is free and easy. Log 5 miles or more over the course of the month, and you are automatically entered into drawings for cash prizes and local gifts like the grand prize, a $4000 vacation or $500 to a restaurant of your choice. While wellness and a chance at prizes are major incentives for hopping on your bike this Spring, you will also be doing your part to help reduce air pollution in Philadelphia. Almost a quarter of total emissions come from transportation. Around 70% of the amount of emissions from passenger vehicles come from trips of 10 miles or less. Last May, Philadelphians biked 43,000 miles and saved 3 tons of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere. Join us to reduce even more greenhouse gas emissions this year. 

Don’t have a bike of your own? Indego Bike Share has you covered. Follow our social media because we will be announcing a promo code before May 1st, offering a 30-day pass to new users for just $5! Take advantage of the over 250 bike stations throughout the city and explore Philadelphia. 

Looking for places to go? GoPhillyGo can help. Visit GoPhillyGo to get routes to destinations and events on Philadelphia’s vast trail park system and at nature centers in the Alliance for Watershed Education. Connecting with community and nature is easy using the GoPhillyGo Trip Planner as your guide.

• Take a ride along the river on the Schuylkill River Trail and stop by Fairmount Waterworks to view the falls. Take a break at the Cosmic Café and Cider House or continue riding up scenic Kelly Drive. 
• Bike the Wissahickon Trail using the GoPhillyGo Wissahickon Valley Self-Guided Tour. 
• Forfeit the rush hour traffic and find Indego bike stations near home and the office, then use the GoPhillyGo Trip Planner to find a route to get some fresh air while commuting to work. Don’t do it alone, become a Workplace Champion, enter your job, and create a team with your coworkers.

Follow Clean Air Council on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn for announcements, progress stats, and prize offerings. Let’s #Ride5 this May for a cleaner and healthier Philadelphia.

PHILADELPHIA, PA (Thursday, April 10, 2025) SEPTA is bleeding, and we need to stop the damage. In the last decade, the funding formula for public transportation has remained stagnant, even as costs for transit agencies have continued to rise. Now we are fully at a crisis point: SEPTA has announced fixed route service cuts up to 45% and fare increases of 21.5%. The impacts on disabled riders would be even more profound, with 40,000 paratransit trips per year no longer served by SEPTA ACCESS, and fares increased by 35%. This would effectively kill public transit in our region, and the ensuing damage to our riders, our economy, our healthcare system, our road congestion, and air quality is incalculable.

This is not just a Philadelphia issue. In all 67 counties of the Commonwealth, public transportation provides critical access for our elders, youth, disabled community members, and households without access to a personal vehicle. Transit systems statewide are hitting a funding “cliff,” which would devastate communities already suffering under similar cuts enacted over the past several years due to funding austerity. For instance, without new funding from the state, Pittsburgh Regional Transit will cut fixed route service by up to 40% with an additional 9% increase in fares. This is on top of 20% service cuts over just the last 5 years in Allegheny County. The lack of dedicated, expanded transit funding affects people riding to work in Allentown on LANTA, elders moving around their community safely in Erie, and disabled community members using paratransit in Harrisburg. The funding for all our transit agencies is tied to the same source, so the solution must be statewide, with input and support from communities all across the Commonwealth. 

Transit riders and workers are ready with a response that meets the scale of the crisis. Over the last several years, our statewide coalition Transit for All PA! has been organizing for a new, dedicated state funding source to fund the transit services riders across the Commonwealth need. We are a coalition of thousands, hailing from Philadelphia to Pottstown, Bellefonte to Bellevue. And together, we have a shared demand: for state legislators to pass a new, dedicated funding package for public transit, sufficient to restore transit service across the state to 2019 levels– and to expand transit service in communities outside Pittsburgh and Philadelphia by an additional 10%. In the last three weeks, more than 10,000 Transit for All PA! supporters have contacted their state legislators and leadership in the House and Senate with this demand. This Transit for All PA funding package would go beyond austerity, and ensure transit funding stability and service restoration for all 67 counties statewide. 

Better transit- not worse- is possible, is necessary, and is transformative. We’re ready to bring this challenge to our state elected leaders: will you meet this moment with us?

“It’s not enough to say that Philadelphians depend on SEPTA. SEPTA is part of the fabric of this city, and these cuts will have disastrous impacts on the quality of life in the Southeast, not to mention the larger state’s economy. It’s time for Harrisburg to stand up and say no budget without transit funding.” – Transit Forward Philadelphia

“Dependable public transit is the backbone of our region, connecting all neighborhoods to each other. With these proposed cuts and fare increases, our residents, environment, and economy would be devastated,” said Titania Markland, Clean Air Council’s Sustainable Transportation Program Manager. “We need a reliable funding source for public transit so we can get to where we need to go in a sustainable and equitable way.”

Clean Air Advocates Express Disappointment but Pledge to Continue Fight to Protect Communities from Pollution

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Harrisburg – A Pennsylvania government board voted today to delay a decision on whether to expand setbacks for fracking and drilling sites from local homes and schools to better protect local residents from air and water pollution.

The Environmental Quality Board, a majority of whose members serve in the administration of Governor Josh Shapiro, voted 16-3 to table a motion to consider an expansion of setbacks, even though the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection had recommended moving forward. The board reviews and approves state environmental regulations.

“We are incredibly disappointed that the Environmental Quality Board voted not to consider our petition,” said Jen Duggan, Executive Director of the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP). “We will continue to make the legal and factual case to the board about the need for protective buffers and fight for these commonsense protections for Pennsylvanians.”

She added that the board made its decision to table the petition even though the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection admitted that EIP and Clean Air Council had raised important legal arguments and provided the board with new health studies documenting harm to Pennsylvania communities from oil and gas operations.

“While our petition hangs in limbo, more gas wells will be drilled by peoples’ homes and schools, more undisclosed chemicals will sully our air and water, and more children will be sickened and hospitalized,” said Alex Bomstein, Clean Air Council Executive Director. “We need protective setbacks now to stop this public health emergency and we will do everything in our power to move them forward.”

On October 22, 2024, EIP and CAC filed a petition with the Environmental Quality Board, which reviews all regulations of the Department of Environmental Protection, asking the state to update and strengthen its setback requirements for fracking wells, which currently include a waivable 500-foot setback distance from buildings.

The allied organizations suggested a setback of at least 3,281 feet from any building and from any drinking water wells, among other proposals. During a presentation to the board that that was cut short by the motion to table, the organizations also provided documented evidence, in the form of dozens of peer-reviewed scientific studies, showing that a person’s proximity to fracking wells is associated with severe human health risks, including increased rates of cancer, hospitalization, and respiratory and neurological symptoms.

[March 19, 2025 Philadelphia, PA] – Today, Clean Air Council and Feet First Philly, in partnership with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, announced the recipients of the fifth Public Space Enhancement Mini-Grant awards. These projects seek to improve walkability in 10 different neighborhoods in the Greater Philadelphia area.

More than 70 community-based organizations, businesses, and individuals submitted applications to this program, all with worthy project ideas to support walkability. A committee made up of past recipients, pedestrian advocates, professionals in public space improvements, and city officials, planners, and designers from multiple departments selected the 10 highest-scoring projects. 

Our Public Space Enhancement Mini-grant program has grown over the past 5 years. During this round, the program received over 70 applications. “These projects help to bring communities together to create safer and healthier spaces,” said Titania Markland, Clean Air Council, Sustainable Transportation Program Manager. “Through the mini-grants, we can give Philadelphians the ability to build their communities in ways that benefit their neighbors.” 

“It is a privilege to fund these community-identified projects to enhance our public space,” said Dr. Kinnari Chandriani, Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention Director at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. “We are excited to see each of them come to life and make their sidewalks, gardens, lots, and parks healthier, safer, cleaner, greener, and more welcoming.”

The projects selected for funding are:

1. ACHIEVEability – This organization will implement a project called Impact Day 2025. It will mobilize volunteers to engage in revitalization efforts in West Philadelphia. These efforts include porch painting, litter removal, storefront improvements, tree planting, community gardening, and more.
2. Nicetown-Tioga Improvement Team RCO (NTIT) – This group will engage in phase three of the repair and revitalization process for their Healing and Unity Gardens. This project will include workshops on garden maintenance and stormwater management. It will also add raised planter beds to the gardens.
3. Norris Square Tabletop Project – This project will create a regular community gathering for tabletop games at Norris Square Park. This project aims to help residents gather and build community with each other.
4. LA21 – This project is called the Container Village Lighting Enhancement. It will add outdoor lighting to an outdoor retail, recreational, and community hub that was once a vacant and blighted lot in Parkside West Philadelphia.
5. Face to Face – This project is called the Price Street Improvement project. It will improve a portion of the sidewalk by replacing broken sidewalk blocks and removing weeds and other debris.
6. SEAMAAC –  This project is called the Heat Reduction Project on S. 7^th St. Commercial Corridor. The group will install trees along the entry of the commercial corridor and planter boxes to continue the beautification efforts along the corridor.
7. Urban Creators – This project is called the UC Beautification and Safety Project. It aims to enhance the safety, accessibility, and overall experience of their urban farm. These improvements include signage, outdoor lighting, and additional irrigation equipment.
8. Empowered CDC – This group aims to maintain their Cecil Street Garden by adding new planters along the sidewalk and fixing broken sidewalks along the garden.
9. Mantua Civic Association – This is the third phase of their Pollinator and Tulip Planter Tribute Project. This project aims to add planters on Mantua Ave with the mantra “Bulbs Not Bullets” to add beauty to the area along with spreading an anti-violence message.
10. Little Memorial Temple Church – This is another sidewalk repair project that aims to replace broken sidewalks on West Norris Street to improve safety.

Quotes from funding recipients:

“With the assistance of the Clean Air Council and the Feet First Philly Program, SEAMAAC aims to tackle the issues of heat and violence on the S. 7^th St. Commercial Corridor. We plan to use the mini-grant funding to install 2 trees and 10 planters along the corridor” said Dominic Brennan, SEAMAAC’s Community Building Coordinator. “This, in addition to the 18 planters we have previously installed, will have both short- and long-term benefits for the neighborhood. This project will both beautify the corridor and help with stormwater management. It will also add much-needed shade to the corridor, which has been proven to reduce violence, and traffic injuries, and increase foot traffic to local businesses.” 

“Face to Face is thrilled to be a recipient of a Feet First Philly grant through the Clean Air Council,” said Craig Heim, Face to Face. “As a community center providing daily meals and social services in Germantown for over forty years, we work to be a resource and respite for those in need. Support from Feet First Philly allows us to make much-needed sidewalk repairs at our Price Street building in East Germantown. This project will serve pedestrians and neighbors by providing safer walking surfaces and steps along with the installation of new public-facing planters, with brightly colored 3-season flower displays that send the message of beauty and hope. We are grateful to the Council for this partnership and invite members of the public to visit us at Face to Face.” 

“I’m excited to bring tabletop games like chess and dominoes to the local park, creating a space for more connections and outdoor fun,” said Giovannie Vilomar, Norris Square Tabletop Project. “Thanks to the Norris Square Neighborhood Project, Kensington Library, and the local Senior Community Center for their support. Lastly, I’m grateful to the Citizens Planning Institute for empowering me to help shape the neighborhood and to the park’s friends for their dedication to its care and improvement.” 

“The Healing Garden (est. 2007) and The Unity Garden (est. 2013) are the only public green spaces in our neighborhood,” said GVGK Tang, Nicetown-Tioga Improvement Team RCO (NTIT). “They help keep residents of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds safe. This grant supports the revitalization of these Gardens as the sites of walkability, wheelability, and respite they were always meant to be. Restoring these sacred places of rest and gathering allows us to reclaim and maintain communal space; care for the environment and promote sustainable practices; and foster spiritual, mental, and physical well-being. Our free, family-friendly programming allows neighbors to connect with one another and work towards a shared goal of neighborhood renewal.” 

Written by Caroline Junker, Communications Intern

You may not have heard of “climate justice,” but chances are that you’ll support it when you know a bit more about it—that is, if you’re like most Americans surveyed in a recent study from Environmental Science & Policy.

To understand climate justice, let’s take a step back and remember the origins of the environmental justice movement. Environmental justice recognizes that everyone deserves equal access to the benefits of a safe, clean environment and a say in decisions about environmental policies that impact their communities. This notion might seem obvious, but before the 1970s, Americans didn’t have a clear vision of how deeply racism shaped access to basic environmental rights for many minority groups. Environmental justice emerged as a new faction of activism when researchers, spurred by the Warren County protests, uncovered a vicious pattern across American cities: garbage disposal sites and pollution-causing facilities are consistently located in low-income communities and communities of color, overburdening those communities with pollution. 

In this context, we can understand climate justice as a natural extension of environmental justice that focuses specifically on the impacts of climate change. Climate justice is founded on the idea of addressing climate inequality, the proven idea that the brunt of ill effects caused by climate change is often disproportionately borne by minority groups. This pattern can be seen across the globe, but also on a smaller scale within the U.S., as the researchers of “Americans’ support for climate justice” pointed out. 

A clear example is redlining, the collection of racist neighborhood grading policies that compelled mortgage lenders to refuse loans to Black Americans, making it effectively impossible for Black Americans to buy houses in desirable neighborhoods or accumulate wealth from home ownership. As a result of this, many more non-White populations currently live in areas that have historically lacked funding than White populations. Walking down the streets in these neighborhoods, you may notice few green spaces but many paved surfaces, factors that make warm summer air even hotter and increase hazardous exposure to heat. Residents of these disinvested neighborhoods are more likely to be exposed to air, water, and noise pollution, and statistically live by nearly twice the density of oil and gas wells compared to neighborhoods that were ranked highly in the redlining system. Essentially, entrenched systemic racism has resulted in many non-White populations living in underserved neighborhoods that are deprived of the infrastructure and support necessary to combat the effects of climate change. 

Another example that might be on your mind is the recent wildfires that devastated Los Angeles. While people from a wide variety of economic walks of life all suffered tragic losses and property damage, only a slim minority of the ultrawealthy had the deep pockets necessary to hire private firefighters. Residents of Altadena, a diverse community, might not have the financial ability to rebuild their houses. Many fear the encroachment of private equity firms, and research has shown that Black Americans are less likely than White Americans to receive relief funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). 

So how does climate justice intend to remedy these inequalities? The aim of climate justice is, as defined by the investigators of the study, three-pronged: to decrease the unequal negative impacts of climate change, to create solutions that include benefits for disproportionately harmed communities, and to give a voice to these communities when making decisions. If that sounds reasonable to you, then you’re on the same page as 53% of study participants, who decided they supported climate justice after reading a definition.

In this study, a sample of generally representative Americans were surveyed to learn about how their knowledge of climate justice correlated with other variables. Researchers used their responses to questions about race, climate change, politics, and culture to build a statistical picture of how these factors interact with support of climate justice.

Overall, only 19% of respondents opposed climate justice. Researchers found that people concerned about climate change in general were likely to support climate justice if they knew about it, but only 34% of Americans had heard of the term. In terms of race, people aware of racial injustice were also more likely to support climate justice, although they might not be willing to actually take political action about it. A better predictor for desire to take action was race: non-White groups are more likely to act on climate justice than White groups. To fuel further work, researchers suggested a focus on outreach and education, with the goal of incentivizing the public to pressure policymakers and institutions to enact large-scale change.

You might ask what’s been done so far to mitigate these disproportionate effects of climate change. Funding has been diverted to impacted communities through initiatives such as the Justice40 initiative under the Biden administration and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Clean Air Council has worked directly with residents of overburdened communities, such as Southern Delaware County, to understand the impacts of local polluters like refineries and incinerators and work to lessen those harms. The Council aims to protect communities’ rights by collecting and spreading information, collaborating on and supporting local initiatives, and developing legal strategies to safeguard public health.

The Council also supports work to bolster communities’ climate resilience. Climate resilience is all about planning for the future. It can look like investments in infrastructure, such as planting trees to reduce heat, or forward-thinking policies, like developing disaster recovery strategies that rely on community input. These frameworks can help lighten climate-induced inequalities, and can boost every kind of community in their long-term ability to cope with climate change.

It’s clear how communities harmed by climate change would tangibly benefit from the goals of climate justice, but researchers suggest that even people who may not support climate justice could stand to benefit from its accomplishments, such as pollution reduction and job generation. In this way, climate justice can end up uplifting a broad array of people. Climate inequality is an unfortunate reality– but climate justice can present solutions.

“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.

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Written by: Hilary Flint

It’s been over two years since the East Palestine train derailment, and yet, every time another chemical disaster happens, I feel like I’m reliving it all over again. In the past few weeks alone, two major chemical incidents have struck Pennsylvania—an explosion at Parker Lord Corporation in Saegertown, near Erie, and a fire at SPS Technologies in Jenkintown, near Philadelphia. Each of these incidents, like East Palestine, serves as another devastating reminder of the risks posed by disaster-causing chemicals, not only to the environment, but to our health and safety.

I used to live in Enon Valley, Pennsylvania, a small town just over the Pennsylvania-Ohio border. When the Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine on February 3, 2023, my family wasn’t in the official evacuation zone. But, toxins don’t stop at an imaginary line on a map. Norfolk Southern made the catastrophic decision to burn five tankers of vinyl chloride in a so-called “controlled release” which the NTSB questioned as even necessary, and which many would later see as the railroads profit-driven rush to get the train back up and running. At any rate, that decision changed everything for us.

We initially evacuated, then after being assured our home was safe, we returned. But within minutes of stepping inside, my eyes burned, my head pounded, and a strange, sweet chemical odor filled the air. Within days, my fingers and toes started turning purple. A few months later, my severe endometriosis, which had been suppressed for years with medication, suddenly flared up. My rheumatoid arthritis pain became unbearable. I had to increase my migraine medication twice.

I know now that vinyl chloride exposure can trigger Raynaud’s syndrome, the condition causing my fingers and toes to discolor. But back then, no one had guidance. No one told us how to protect ourselves from a chemical disaster of this magnitude. And still, to this day, residents in East Palestine, Beaver County, and beyond are left struggling to make sense of the long-term impacts.

Earlier this month, an explosion rocked the Parker Lord Plant in Saegertown, just outside Erie, injuring five Saegertown firefighters, one Edinboro firefighter, and seven LORD staff and forcing residents to shelter in place. The plant makes adhesives, coatings, and specialty materials used in the automotive, aerospace, industrial, and oil and gas industries. 

Less than a week later, a massive fire broke out at SPS Technologies, an aerospace manufacturing facility, in Jenkintown, near Philadelphia, causing 60 employees to evacuate and prompting shelter-in-place orders. The fire luckily didn’t reach many of the hazardous chemicals stored on site. Pennsylvania DEP is continuing to monitor the area. 

The full extent of chemical exposure from these two incidents remains unclear, but the immediate response from the government and Norfolk Southern has followed the same pattern as East Palestine: vague statements, insufficient testing, and the leaving in the dark of entire communities. The only certainty is that no one is safe as long as petrochemical infrastructure continues to operate. 

According to the Oil and Gas Watch database, there are 233 petrochemical facilities operating in the United States. These facilities include infrastructure to transport, store, process, and refine petrochemicals from its raw oil and gas into more than 6000 products. Spilltracker, which tracks chemical disasters across the U.S., and reports that the U.S. averages one petrochemical incident every 3 days. 

Each time a chemical disaster happens, the same questions emerge: What chemicals were released? Are residents safe? Do we need to evacuate? What are the long-term health risks? Too often, we don’t get real answers. Instead, we’re told, “Everything is fine.” But if there’s anything I’ve learned from my experience, it’s that “fine” is a lie.

So how do we protect ourselves when the systems meant to keep us safe keep failing?

How to Protect Yourself in a Chemical Disaster

If you find yourself in the midst of a chemical spill, fire, or explosion, it’s critical to act quickly. Here’s what you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones:

1. Stay Informed

• Keep your phone and backup batteries charged.
• Download emergency alert apps like FEMA’s and sign up for local emergency notifications.
• Follow reputable news sources and your county’s emergency management page for real-time updates.
• Keep numbers of who to call to report accidents or get answers from: local, state and national emergency management services.

2. Shelter in Place When Advised

• Close all windows, doors, and chimney vents tightly.
• Turn off HVAC systems and any outside air intakes.
• Use damp towels to seal door gaps if the air smells “off” or irritates your lungs.
• Do NOT rely on N95 masks alone—most chemical exposures require more protective respirators, like organic vapor cartridges.
• Follow boil water and do-not-drink water advisories.

3. Be Prepared for Evacuation

• Keep a “go bag” with essentials, including medications, masks, bottled water, and important documents.
• If you have a personal or family emergency preparedness plan, especially for sheltering in place, be sure you have enough drinking water, non-perishable food, and any necessary medical supplies for each member of your household, including service animals and pets.
• Know your evacuation routes ahead of time—many disasters happen in areas with limited road access.
• If you evacuate, document everything: take pictures, save air quality reports, and track symptoms in case you need to file claims later.

4. Monitor Your Health

• Pay attention to new or worsening symptoms like headaches, nausea, skin rashes, breathing issues, or neurological effects.
• If you seek medical care, insist on documentation that includes potential environmental exposure.
• Blood and urine tests for chemical exposure are often time-sensitive, so ask your doctor about testing options ASAP.

5. Demand Accessibility 

• When the crisis has passed, local authorities will issue an all-clear announcement and provide any additional information or instructions for staying safe. Keep in mind that elected officials and corporations alike are often quick to declare an area “safe” without considering the diverse needs of its community members – including those who are disabled.
• Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), individuals with disabilities have the right to receive information in formats that are accessible to them. This includes emergency alerts, evacuation orders, and other critical communications that must be provided in formats such as large print and Braille, or through sign language interpreters, as necessary.
• The ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act mandate that emergency shelters, medical services, and disaster recovery programs must be accessible to people with disabilities. This means shelters should accommodate mobility devices and service animals, and offer accessible transportation to those who need it.

6. Demand Accountability

• Ask local officials for transparent air, water, and soil testing data.
• Push for independent testing from non-governmental sources when possible.
• Get involved in community organizing efforts to advocate for stronger safety regulations and emergency response measures.

For a detailed preparation guide and list, check out this report from the People over Petro Coalition. 

What happened in East Palestine should have been a wake-up call. Instead, the cycle continues—one disaster after another, with the same government failures and corporate cover-ups. But we are not just statistics in a report. We are living, breathing people whose health and futures are being sacrificed for profit.

If you take away anything from my story, let it be this: Do not wait for someone to tell you to protect yourself. Do your own research. Learn where there is active infrastructure, facilities, junkyards, and rail lines around you. Make your own safety plan. Trust your own body. Know that when disaster strikes, those in power will prioritize their bottom line. It’s up to us to prioritize each other.

Hilary Flint is the Director of Communications and Community Engagement for Beaver County Marcellus Awareness Community, PA Field Organizing Manager for Center for Oil and Gas Organizing, and a Mutual Aid + Disaster Response Steering Committee Member for Break Free From Plastic. Her expertise spans critical issues, including health harms generated by the petrochemical buildout, natural gas extraction, plastic pollution, railway safety, and overarching corporate greed. As a cancer survivor, chronic illness warrior, and community member affected by the East Palestine train derailment and chemical disaster, Hilary is committed to advocating through the lens of disability justice and supporting communities through mutual aid.

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PennDOT released its annual transportation survey for all Pennsylvanians to complete. The survey asks participants about their transportation habits, what type and how they use transportation, and what improvements they want and how they want PennDOT to invest in the future. 

Your feedback will be an important part of PennDOT’s 12-year Transportation Program update process along with other state and regional transportation plans. Sustainable modes of transportation are the best for the environment. Clean Air Council supports active sustainable modes of transportation. For more information on how to complete the survey, please visit https://bicyclecoalition.org/penndot-transportation-feedback-survey/.