CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — Before Corpus Christi City Council voted to move forward on a seawater desalination facility in the Inner Harbor, Jeremy Coleman, president of the local NAACP chapter made a plea. He said that this plant is another example of discrimination against the black community.
“For the last several months and specifically to last night to 1 a.m. and all this morning, I have been on the phone with my state and my national office to come to this conclusion with this resolution, which was not an easy decision,” Coleman said.
During public comment at Tuesday's City Council meeting, Coleman addressed the council to issue a resolution. It demands the council stop their progression towards building a seawater desalination facility.
His reasoning is environmental racism against the northern Corpus Christi communities, specifically Hillcrest, Washington and Coles neighborhoods.
"Clear, accurate information is what we did not get," he said.
With the desalination plant going in the Inner Harbor, it would be in the backyard of those communities.
Coleman’s resolution said historically, environmental hazards have consistently been built near communities of minorities. Paired with the lack of resources given to those communities, adding a desalination facility there would negatively impact the environment and health of those residents.
Here is the full resolution:
Coleman was unavailable for an interview to dive deeper into his resolution. However, it appears his chapter is talking the stance against any desalination facility.
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