Environmental Racism in the Petrochemical Industry

Southeast Louisiana’s 85-mile stretch of Cancer Alley, the historical Neutral Ground between Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas, Flint, Michigan, and other areas in the nation, are victims of environmental racism.

When discussing the multi-billion-dollar petrochemical industry, environmental racism profits off of Black bodies and legacies through land theft, destroying sacred land, neglect from elected officials, and exposing Communities of Color to harmful carcinogenic chemicals.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the oil and gas industry produces the largest source of methane emissions in the United States.

Petrochemical facilities like CITGO Petroleum Corporation, Valero Energy Corporation, and Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s Garyville Refinery plague the Gulf Coast.