Take a walk through Fair Haven — a neighborhood marked by environmental injustice A new tour series takes participants on a journey through New Haven’s Mill River district, highlighting the environmental impacts of numerous man-made structures in the neighborhood. Words and photos by Lily Belle Poling.
In the shadows of pollution from a deserted power plant releasing toxic contaminants and colossal piles of salt and sand, the Fair Haven community is still finding ways to invest in neighborhood health.
In a new walking tour organized by Anstress Farwell, president of the New Haven Urban Design League, the man-made structures causing environmental decline in the area are put on full display.
“This is a neighborhood that is making gigantic investments in schools, people buying houses, businesses expanding [and] people taking a chance on the city of New Haven,” Farwell said. “This is the community most impacted [by pollution], but it also impacts everyone in this region. Vast amounts of land in New Haven are underutilized and look terrible, when it has so much potential to actually be serving really vital uses to make New Haven, and this neighborhood, really wonderful places.”
One of the earliest stops on the tour at Criscuolo Park showcased a 180-degree view of where the Mill and Quinnipiac rivers intersect — with all of the structures contributing to environmental degradation looming nearby. English Station, sand and salt piles for treating snow and ice, oil tanks and I-95, which run over the two rivers, not only pollute the water, but add to dust, wind and noise pollution in the area.
Outdoor pollutants are a significant risk factor for the development of asthma in children. Lee Cruz, a resident of Fair Haven, told the tour that the neighborhood surrounding the structures is predominantly Latino and Black, and the playground in the foreground is one of the most used in the city.
According to Yale Law School’s Local Health Justice project, Black and Hispanic communities in New Haven face higher rates of asthma than predominantly white communities, in a city whose total asthma rates are already significantly higher than those in other cities in Connecticut and around the country.
As the walk moved closer to English Station, Kathy Czepiel, land protector manager at Save the Sound, explained how the abandoned thermal power plant has become a water pollutant. The building, which sits on an island in the Mill River, has a history of emitting toxic man-made chemicals and other contaminants.
In 2013, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, or DEEP, issued an administrative order to clean up both the site’s land and water contamination, with the plan to target land pollution first. But even the land clean-up wasn’t “vigorously enforced,” Czepiel said. DEEP did not respond to inquiries from the News about its work on environmental issues in Fair Haven.
In 2016, the city and Connecticut negotiated an agreement with United Illuminating, which owned English Station until 2000, to put at least $30 million toward remediating the site by 2019. According to Czepiel, only $18 million has been spent on remediations, “and completion is obviously nowhere in sight.” United Illuminating declined to comment on the pollution caused by English Station.
Nearby sit gargantuan piles of salt and sand that are used to treat roads across the state during the winter months. So close to the water, salt and sand find their way into the rivers with the help of precipitation, which is “nearly impossible to clean-up,” according to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.
Chris Ozyck, who said he has lived in Fair Haven for more than 30 years, pointed out how few trees remain in his neighborhood. He said the streets used to be lined with trees, but suggested they “succumbed to the salt” — a known threat to greenery. What’s more, a lack of tree cover can increase street temperatures.
Regardless of Fair Haven’s environmental plights, locals are still working to improve the neighborhood as best they can.
The Mill River Watershed Association, for example, used an award from the New Haven Garden Club to plant a pollinator garden at John S. Martinez School, which is adjacent to English Station. Pollinator gardens increase biodiversity and attract and support local pollinators, such as bees or butterflies.
With the help of Martinez students, the Watershed Association covered the lawn in wood chips and native plants from Urbanscapes Native Plant Nursery, which is now also attracting pollinators.
The nearby mural is painted with cooling paint on MATCH, the Manufacturing and Community Technical Hub — a nonprofit that provides manufacturing training, mentorship and jobs to the New Haven community. The mural references climate change in its design while also actively reducing temperatures because of its special paint.
According to Kymberly Pinder ART ’95, dean of the School of Art, the paint used on this mural by Victoria Martinez ART ’20 can bring down the buildings’ temperature. Because Fair Haven lacks some of the natural shade other neighborhoods boast, it faces “severe risk” from heat and often feels hotter than other areas in New Haven.
Pinder said that, compared to temperature readings from buildings without cooling paint, the MATCH building and its surrounding atmosphere are noticeably cooler.
Local volunteers have also been working on maintaining and adding to the Mill River Trail, which connects locals with the waterfront. Volunteers, with the support of the Mill River Watershed Association, Save the Sound and the Urban Resources Initiative, plant trees, pick up trash and remove invasive plants.
The tour also highlighted recent efforts to study the impact of sea level rise in New Haven.
University of Connecticut’s Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation research is especially relevant to Fair Haven, which is already at high risk of flooding. According to John Truscinski, who works on the CIRCA project, the team has developed a concept plan for Fair Haven that would include possible elevation projects, flood protection and other redevelopment.
The next Mill River District tour is scheduled for September 25.
Contact Lily Belle Poling at lily.poling@yale.edu.