The fight to prevent flooding in sacrificed neighborhoods must stop. The founder of Northeastern Action Collective, activist/advocate Doris Brown and environmental activist/community organizer Alice Liu visited Politics Done Right to amplify their message to the City Council.
Northeastern Action Collective
The flood survivors and advocates with the Northeast Action Collective are organizing to fight for the City of Houston to increase investment in drainage for marginalized communities in this year’s budget cycle.
Their current City Budget Campaign has included over 100 residents who are fighting to increase city drainage spending in marginalized communities in Houston’s FY2024 budget. They have given 7 weeks of public comment, met with 9 city councilors, and hosted 2 rallies. Their four demands are:
- Demand 1a: Permanently increase SWAT program annual funding from $20M to $40M
- Demand 1b: Permanently increase LDP annual funding from $12M to $32M
- Demand 2: Increase funding for Public Works Dpt. in-house staff and machinery for maintenance
- Demand 3: Select drainage projects using equitable criteria and make public input processes meaningful
- Demand 4: End the diversion of drainage funding from the ad valorem drainage tax.
Northeast Houston and other marginalized communities in Houston are experiencing a crisis of infrastructure. The local drainage systems are often broken, unmaintained, or totally nonexistent. Even moderate rain can lead to street flooding and standing water.
Northeast Houston has a majority open ditch drainage system. When combined with pollutants from frequent sewage leaks, the largest creosote deposit in Texas, the city’s biggest landfill, and dozens of truck and train yards, poor drainage is a serious health hazard.
The significantly lower quality and condition of drainage in BIPOC areas shows that the City of Houston is failing to provide an equal level of protection from flooding to Black and Brown communities. The City of Houston is not adequately investing in its drainage system and is not providing pathways for meaningful public participation in drainage investment decisions.
The Northeast Action Collective are residents who aim to improve environmental conditions and quality of life in our neighborhoods. Many of us flooded in multiple storms over the past 25 years, including Tropical Storm Allison, Hurricane Harvey, and Tropical Storm Imelda. We help each other recover and prepare for disasters and also advocate for the equal protection from flooding that we deserve from the government.
Website: weststreetrecovery.org
Twitter: @weststrecovery
The Northeast Action Collective are residents who aim to improve environmental conditions and quality of life in our neighborhoods. Many of us flooded in multiple storms over the past 25 years, including Tropical Storm Allison, Hurricane Harvey, and Tropical Storm Imelda. We help each other recover and prepare for disasters and also advocate for the equal protection from flooding that we deserve from the government.