Exploring Perceptions of Place and Environmental Justice in a Revitalizing Coal Town

Keywords: environmental justice, brownfields, community revitalization, community geography, coal towns
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

Environmental justice in coal regions tends to be tied to the active and legacy mining impacts of coal extraction on natural and human communities. However, in Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal mining region, there is a history of diverse industrial land uses in addition to coal extraction. These former industrial sites, often integrated in residential neighborhoods, now create a patchwork of brownfields with varying degrees of contamination. Such sites are both a potential asset (for creative redevelopment) and liability (depending on presence of contamination) for revitalization efforts. The City of Shamokin in Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal region was once a bustling city of over 22,000 people built on the wealth of coal, textile, and garment industries. A century after its population peak in the 1920s, it now struggles to maintain a population of around 7,000. The decline has resulted in abandoned buildings and brownfields posing challenges to the City’s on-going, and recently successful, revitalization efforts. This study analyzes survey data on Shamokin residents’ perceptions of the city and recommendations for three specific brownfield sites collected by students at the City’s invitation in spring 2020 as part of an undergraduate university course on environmental justice. Combining archival analysis of historic industrial use with present-day public opinion surveying, this research presents an analysis of how neighborhood and residency tenure (long-term vs. newcomer) impacts perceptions of the City and brownfield reuse.