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About Us
Annual Reports:
2007 2007
mid-year report
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
History and
Purpose of the Glynn Environmental Coalition
Glynn County is home to
seventeen identified hazardous waste sites, four Superfund Sites, and six
actively polluting industries. Community awareness of health risks associated
with these polluters and toxic waste sites led to the formation of the Glynn
Environmental Coalition (GEC) in 1990. The focus of the GEC has expanded from
technical assistance and educational speakers to also include governmental
oversight and environmental justice. The GEC is working to preserve our right
to information and input into the decisions that affect our lives.
The many toxic sites in Coastal Georgia threaten the environment at large, but
are particularly dangerous to nearby neighborhoods in Brunswick. Predominantly
low-income minority residents who depend on fish caught in highly polluted
waters live in these neighborhoods. The LCP Chemicals, Hercules, and Terry
Creek Superfund Sites are directly adjacent to low-income neighborhoods. Years
of inadequate environmental enforcement have resulted in extensive distribution
of the pesticide toxaphene, dioxin, mercury, and many other chemicals throughout
nearby schoolyards and neighborhoods. The GEC has focused on organizing
community groups, and in doing so we have succeeded in getting polluters and
government agencies to remove toxic and endocrine disrupting chemicals from a
neighborhood, an elementary school, and a daycare center.
We empower citizens through community organizing, educational presentations,
technical assistance, submitting comments, and requesting public hearings. The
GEC provides technical assistance
at our four Superfund Sites by administering EPA Technical Assistance Grants,
which provide our community with answers to questions and an independent review
and analysis of Site documents. We also submit comments on cleanup plans and
"permit to pollute" requests. Since the inception of the GEC, focus has been
on Glynn County, but we increasingly collaborate with local, state, and national
organizations to address the environment and quality of life in all of Coastal
Georgia.
The GEC maintains a 24-hour Hotline (912-466-0934) for confidential reporting of environmental
violations and a Resource Center for information and educational materials.
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P. O. Box 2443