Latest News from the Clean Air Journal Blog

Join GASP in Celebrating the Season at Our First Annual Community Christmas Extravaganza!

by Madison Naves | Nov 7, 2024

This holiday season, the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP) is thrilled to announce our first Annual Community Christmas Extravaganza, bringing holiday cheer and clean air awareness to the Birmingham community. This special event will uplift families and caregivers, particularly those from the North Birmingham Superfund site, who face the dual challenges of caregiving and environmental health risks.ity.

Looking Through The Smoke: GASP’s Smoke School for Clean Air

by Madison Naves | Nov 6, 2024

The energy in the room was infectious. It was more than a training session—it was a gathering of individuals ready to take on the responsibility of protecting our community’s air quality.

Barbara Jackson, GASP’s Grassroots Organizer: In Her Own Words

by Barbara Jackson | Oct 3, 2024

As the Grassroots Organizer it is important to give them tools, strategies and resources they can use that will help to build a supportive network that will foster resilience and growth despite the obstacles they are facing.

The Hidden Cost of Industry: Health Hazards and Climate Consequences

by Perry Dowell | Oct 3, 2024

Jefferson County is home to one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters in the United States, the Alabama Power, James H. Miller Jr. Steam Plant, a coal-fired power plant. Birmingham is also home to several industrial facilities that produce materials like coke, steel, pipe, and concrete. These plants emit significant amounts of pollutants that harm the environment and contribute to climate change.

GASP and Partner Organizations Support EPA’s Strengthened Soot Pollution Standard, File Amicus Brief in U.S. Court of Appeals

by Madison Naves | Sep 4, 2024

Contact: Jilisa Milton, GASP, [email protected] Birmingham, AL — GASP, alongside several leading environmental justice organizations, has filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for...

COMMUNITY CHRONICLE: 9 – JULIANNE THARP

by Madison Naves | Sep 4, 2024

Julianne Tharp’s journey into environmental advocacy is one of profound transformation, shaped by her commitment to service and a deep-seated passion for justice. As the Field and Advocacy Fellow for GASP and the Chair of the Central Alabama Chapter of the Climate Reality Project, Julianne stands at the forefront of the fight for environmental justice in Birmingham and beyond. Julianne’s professional journey began in healthcare, where she earned her BSN in nursing.

COMMUNITY CHRONICLES #8: Charlie Powell – PANIC

by Julianne Tharp | Sep 4, 2024

Before the creation of the Clean Air Act in 1970, “It used to just rain stuff on us. You know, it would be all on our houses.” Powell’s family would hang their clean clothes on a drying line outside and have to bring them back in before too long because soot would make them dirty again. “I believe up until this day, if any of our fathers knew they (were) bringing us into an environment like this here, they never would (have).” Powell will never understand how two coke plants (ABC Coke and Bluestone Coke) were able to be built three miles from each other.