DALLAS BRANCH NAACP

P.O. BOX 131768 DALLAS TEXAS 75313

972-803-3052/214-418-2752 August 10, 2011

The Honorable Al Armendariz Regional Administrator U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 6 Mail Code 6RA, Suite 1200 1445 Ross Avenue Dallas, Texas 75202 Dear Administrator Armendariz: As you may know, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) began to address the issue of environmental justice more than 10 years ago under the visionary leadership of our former national President, The Honorable Ben Chavis. This critically important issue is now one of the NAACPs national priorities. We have been encouraged by the progressive and bold leadership the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken regarding this critically important issue under President Obama and Administrator Lisa Jacksons leadership. As you know so well, environmental justice is a quality of life determinant in many communities. It is for the reason that the Dallas Chapter of the NAACP is appealing to you for immediate assistance. The Dallas Chapter is very concerned about the City of Dallas plans to divert almost a million tons of municipal and industrial waste each year from landfills in north Dallas to the City- owned McCommas Landfill in Southern Dallas. We strongly believe there are serious policy issues regarding the Citys Flow Control Proposal, including the following as suggested by available data: 1. Significant increases in the level of truck traffic from the northern part of the City, through the downtown core and into Southern Dallas. Most of these trucks are likely to be diesel fueled vehicles that emit significant quantities of emissions into the atmosphere; 2. The impact of the emissions resulting from the increased truck traffic on the Dallas- Fort Worth areas efforts to attain federal clean air requirements; 3. The serious issue of whether the Citys McCommas Landfill is properly designed to take various types of non-hazardous industrial waste, particularly the industrial waste that contains hazardous constituents; and

4. The adverse environmental justice impacts of the Citys Flow Control Proposal, as it would divert the disposal of a million tons per year of commercial waste from landfills in north Dallas County to Southern Dallas in a predominantly low income and minority impacted area. The Citys questionable decision to divert all municipal and industrial waste that are generated in Dallas by the commercial and industrial sectors to the McCommas Landfill in Southern Dallas will result in a need for massive horizontal and vertical expansions to that landfill within the next few years, which will mean more traffic, potentially higher emission levels and far more serious environmental justice consequences. These are serious public policy issues that the Environmental Protection Agency has jurisdiction over and the technical expertise to properly assess. The people of Dallas, especially the low income and minority citizens in Southern Dallas, need the EPAs immediate assistance. Accordingly, the Dallas Chapter of the NAACP respectively requests EPA Region 6s to promptly initiate a comprehensive assessment to determine the health and safety and emissions impacts of Dallas Flow Control Proposal, the issue of whether the McCommas Landfill is properly designed to handle commercial and industrial waste that contain hazardous constituents, and to determine whether Dallas proposal raises environmental justice concerns that need to be affectively addressed and remedied. Your prompt attention to this serious matter is greatly appreciated. I will be contacting you within the next few days to schedule a meeting to discuss this very important issue and how the EPA will move forward to address the legitimate concerns of Southern Dallas residents. Sincerely,

Juanita Wallace Ph.D. President Dallas Branch NAACP