Nizgui Gomez dreams that one day her community will be filled with trees and parks and that she and her neighbors will breathe clean air.
Gomez lives in Wilmington, California, a Los Angeles neighborhood that is home to several oil wells and refineries.
“And we have so many diesel trucks coming in and out,” she says. “And not only that, but we also have the Port of LA, which is one of the biggest ports in the country. So we have so much pollution from so many different places. And it’s hard to get access to clean air here.
She says many residents suffer from nosebleeds, headaches, asthma and other health issues.
Gomez is an intern with Communities for a Better Environment, an environmental justice group. She says the organization has rallied the community around the issue of pollution and health – and pushed for change.
In January, they won an important victory: the Los Angeles City Council voted to ban new oil and gas wells in the city and phase out existing ones.
Gomez says the work of activists is not done.
“We want to make sure they’re actually following up,” she says, “and that they’re following up in a reasonable amount of time.”
But the ban was an important step towards the Wilmington she dreams of.
“I’m so proud of everyone in the community who made this possible,” says Gomez.
Read: Burning fossil fuels warms the climate. It also harms public health.
Reporting credit: ChavoBart Digital Media