Abstract
In 2013, Allen Harim Foods purchased the former site of a Vlasic Pickle plant in Millsboro, Delaware, and proposed to convert the site into a poultry processing plant that would process approximately two million birds weekly. This generated concerns about the proposed plant’s potential to impact health and quality of life among residents. We conducted a rapid health impact assessment (HIA) of the proposed plant to assess baseline environmental health issues in the host community and projected impacts. The scoping and baseline assessment revealed social, economic, and health disparities in the region. We also determined that residents in the area were already underserved and overburdened with pollution from multiple environmental hazards near the proposed plant including two sites contaminated with hazardous wastes, a power plant, and another poultry processing plant. The projected size and amount of poultry to be processed at the plant would likely cause increased levels of air, soil and water pollution, additional odor issues, and increased traffic and related pollution and safety issues. The information generated from the HIA formed the basis of a campaign to raise awareness about potential problems associated with the new facility and to foster more engagement of impacted residents in local decision-making about the proposed plant. In the end, the HIA helped concerned residents oppose the new poultry processing plant. This case study provides an example of how HIAs can be used as a tool to educate residents, raise awareness about environmental justice issues, and enhance meaningful engagement in local environmental decision-making processes.
Highlights
The rapid health impact assessment (HIA) was useful because it provided information to the community about potential negative impacts of the planned processing plant on the environment and human health
The rapid HIA found that the Harim Millsboro processing plant would contribute to air and water pollution, further worsening the health of residents in Millsboro, which has economic and health disparities when compared to the rest of the County and the state of Delaware
Would this community be impacted by contaminants released from the new facility that can cause respiratory problems, developmental issues, and cancer, their health risks would increase because they already suffer from environmental injustice
Summary
Poultry Production and Impacts on the Environment and Human Health. Industrial poultry production is widely known as a major environmental hazard [1,2,3,4,5]. Research has confirmed that concentrated poultry production results in significant air and water pollution [1]. Factory-style farming of chicken tends to create greenhouse gas emissions, eutrophication of nearby waterways, and large volumes of waste [4]. In terms of airborne pollutants, poultry production releases significant emissions of ammonia (NH3 ), methane, and sulfur dioxide [6]. Other pollutants such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), particulate matter (PM) including PM2.5 , and airborne
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