2023-2024 Projects
Hillsboro Environmental Impact Assessment: Community Perspectives on Waste Management Hillsboro Landfill and Superfund Site Cleanup
Afroza Hossain MistyThe Portland Harbor Community Coalition (PHCC) consists of various groups and individuals who aim to highlight those most affected, either historically or presently, by the extensive federal cleanup of the Willamette River Superfund site, spanning ten miles in the Portland Harbor area. PHCC is initiating conversations with individuals residing, working, or participating in activities near the Hillsboro landfill to ensure their involvement in decision-making processes. This project focuses on engaging Hillsboro community members because the cleanup of the Portland Harbor Superfund site involves dredging and removing contaminated sediment from the Willamette River, with an estimated 3 million cubic yards being cleaned up. The sediment may be transported to regional landfill sites, including the Waste Management (WM) Hillsboro Landfill.
As the project coordinator, Afroza Hossain Misty began by examining the demographic distribution of the Hillsboro area, understanding the landfill company's remediation policies, interviewing practitioners familiar with the region, and identifying suitable facilities for surveys. Initial outreach involved preliminary and face-to-face surveys, with plans to conduct a comprehensive questionnaire survey. The objective of this work is to gather insights into whether community members in Hillsboro are currently experiencing any impacts from the WM Hillsboro Landfill.
As of January 2024, this project has finished conducting preliminary research and community outreach. PHCC has offered to extend and fund Afroza Hossain Misty’s internship for an additional 200 hours, which would allow the project to continue. The ultimate goal is to understand public opinions on the Hillsboro landfill company, the Superfund Site Cleanup, and environmental justice issues, and advocating for individuals to receive appropriate support.