These systems, which include conventional septic systems, are often incompatible with the impermeable Black Belt soil prevalent across Lowndes County and are expected to - and often do - fail. Here in Lowndes County, residents who are unserved by municipal sewage systems must bear the cost and burden of installing and maintaining state-permitted, private onsite wastewater systems, as required by the state. And while this may be the first, it certainly won’t be our last. This agreement marks the first time that the Justice Department has secured a resolution agreement in an environmental justice investigation under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The agreement puts ADPH on a path towards ensuring the development of racially equitable and safe wastewater disposal and management systems in Lowndes County. The Department of Public Health has agreed to take a number of significant steps to address the sanitation crisis that has plagued the predominantly Black, low-income communities of Lowndes County for generations. We are here this morning to announce that the United States has secured an interim resolution agreement in our environmental justice investigation of the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) in Lowndes County, Alabama. Attorney Jonathan Ross for the Middle District of Alabama. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and First Assistant U.S. I am honored to be here today with Melanie Fontes Rainer, Director of the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. ![]() I am Kristen Clarke, the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |