Johnson: Flint isn’t the only place with environmental justice problems

Officials say that all 8,657 children under age 6 in Flint, Mich., should be considered exposed to toxic lead from their drinking water and could experience lifelong growth, intelligence and behavior problems.

As horrified as we are by the water crisis in Flint, South Carolina is no stranger to environmental justice issues.

My Senate district borders on beautiful Lake Marion. Over decades, five million tons of hazardous chemical waste was dumped in pits within a stone’s throw of its shores. SafetyKleen filed bankruptcy and closed the Pinewood landfill in 2000, but we live today with the possibility that the water that is the lifeblood of our community could be polluted.

We live with the legacy of a mentality that looked the other way and accepted too little to ensure the safety of future generations.

Fortunately we can point to some recent progress. Because of public outcry, the state is spending $4 million annually for monitoring at the Pinewood site. Recently the Pinewood Custodial Trust recommended that we invest another $4.8 million this year to install a new synthetic cover over the dump’s oldest and most vulnerable section closest to the lake. I support this investment in our future.

African-American and low-income communities have faced aging infrastructure and exposure to toxic chemicals for decades. It was good news last month that SCE&G has now removed more than 876,000 tons of coal ash from its Wateree site — about a third of what was there — and that groundwater arsenic contamination at the site has plummeted.

South Carolina is a beautiful and bountiful place to call home, and we must make sure it stays that way. I applaud Hillary Clinton for saying “Environmental justice can’t just be a slogan — it has to be a central goal.”

Whether we are working to repair our crumbling roads and bridges, to make our dams safe or to remove dangerous coal ash, we must all remember our responsibility to ensure that the people of this state, wherever they live, have clean drinking water and a safe environment.

This story was originally published February 20, 2016 at 9:03 AM with the headline "Johnson: Flint isn’t the only place with environmental justice problems."