Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
SUSTAINABLE SOUTH BRONX Mercy Center
For Immediate Release: January 30, 2006
Media Contact:
For SSB: Marsha Gordon, LCGCommunications: 718.853.5568;
marshag@lcgcommunications.com
Sister Patricia Wolf, ICCR: 212.870.2294
Synagro, Operator of NY Organic Fertilizer Company in South Bronx Focus ofFaith-Based Institutional Investors’ Shareholder-Sponsored Environmental Resolution;Co-Filer Sustainable South Bronx, Mott Haven’s Mercy Center Applaud Action
Synagro of Houston, Texas, the operator of the New York Organic Fertilizer Company‘s (NYOFCo) facility in the South Bronx, NY, is the focus of a shareholder-sponsored resolution on Environmental Impacts filed by members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR). The ICCR investor coalition is a major force in bringing about advances in corporate governance, corporate social responsibility and economic justice through organized shareowner advocacy. The lead filer of the resolution is the Mercy Investment Program (http://www.sistersofmercy.org/justice/mercy_investment.html).
Sustainable South Bronx (SSB) (http://www.ssbx.org), which has been fighting for four years to get the company to clean up the foul air that it spews across the community, is a co-filer.
“Since March 2003, there have been at least 4 fires at the company’s plant in the South Bronx. NYOFCo has been cited for multiple violations on each of its permits—air, water, and waste-- since October 2003. From the day the company opened, the community has had to endure the nauseating stench and hazardous air pollution from the company’s smoke stacks. As Synagro’s largest municipal contract, NYOFCo ought to be its best-run operation. Instead, it’s a disgrace. This resolution firmly tells Synagro that it isn’t a good neighbor; that it must change its environmental policies and the way it relates to the community,” said Elena Conte, Solid Waste and Energy Coordinator, Sustainable South Bronx.
“Our community already suffers from one of the highest asthma rates in the country and is inundated with more than its share of power plants and other noxious facilities that create emissions hazardous to our residents,” said Sister Mary Galeone, a Sister of Mercy and Co-Executive Director of The Mercy Center, a community center for women and their families located in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx (http://www.mercycenterbronx.org). “Corporate social responsibility encourages corporations to work justly, including active participation in environmental protection. Shareholders have the power to encourage corporations to build a just world. That’s what we hope Synagro will do and it’s why the Mercy Investment Program has filed this proposal,” she added.
“There exists a deep concern regarding the impact of the Synagro facility on the health of
the residents of Hunts Point,” stated Sister Patricia Wolf, also a Sister of Mercy and executive director of the ICCR (http://www.iccr.org). “Providing information on the environmental impact of the facility is important for the company’s credibility and for the residents of the South Bronx.”
The resolution “…requests the Board of Directors to report on environmental, health and safety impacts of New York Organic Fertilizer Company (NYOFCo), operated by Synagro, on the South Bronx, New York community…” Synagro operates NYOFCo pursuant to a New York City contract, our company’s largest municipal services contract….”
In support, the resolution indicates that the “…Hunts Point, NYOFCo’s location, is a one square mile peninsula in southeastern Bronx County. It is one of the poorest Congressional Districts in the U.S., where incidence of childhood asthma is among the highest in the nation. This community bears heavy environmental burdens from local industrial and commercial facilities that daily bring thousands of diesel trucks through the neighborhood. Since opening, NYOFCo has added to environmental burdens of Hunts Point and the surrounding area. Even after our company acquired NYOFCo operations in 2000, residents continued complaining that noxious odors emanate from the plant. Odors from NYOFCo’s smoke stacks, only 163 feet tall, are carried to nearby Public School 48 that sits on higher ground. The resolution concludes “…We believe the report should include…NYOFCo’s total releases — both within its permit and emergency releases — to air, water and land, including releases of toxins, molds, pathogens, hazardous waste and hazardous air pollutants contained in the Environmental Protection Agency’s 1998 proposed rules…The extent to which NYOFCo’s operations may impact health and/or safety of individuals in Hunts Point and the South Bronx; and how Synagro and NYOFCo integrate community environmental accountability into environmental management procedures and business practices…”-30-
About the Filers:The Mercy Investment Program (MIP), a ministry of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, is involved in actions to ensure socially responsible investing. The Mercy Investment Program acts to influence corporate policy and the public conscience by utilizing its investment and financial power...in ways that respond to the social needs of the time and to demonstrate their founder’s, Catherine McAuley, preferential love for the poor and her special concern for women. The Sisters of Mercy were established in Ireland in 1827 with members coming to America in 1843. They are one of the world's largest English-speaking Roman Catholic congregations of women religious.Contact: Sr. Valerie Heinonen, Tel: 212/674-2542; E-mail: heinonenv@juno.com
Sustainable South Bronx, founded in 2001 by Majora Carter, is a community organization dedicated to the implementation of sustainable development projects for the South Bronx that are informed by the needs of the community and the values of environmental justice.Contact Elena Conte, Tel: 718.617.4668 x 27; E-mail: Elena@ssbx.org
About ICCR:For 35 years the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility has combined social values with investment decisions believing that as investors they must achieve more than an acceptable financial return. ICCR’s 275 faith based member institutions include major church denominations, foundations, religious orders, healthcare systems and pension funds, currently, with a combined market portfolio of more than $110 billion.
SUSTAINABLE SOUTH BRONX Mercy Center
For Immediate Release: January 30, 2006
Media Contact:
For SSB: Marsha Gordon, LCGCommunications: 718.853.5568;
marshag@lcgcommunications.com
Sister Patricia Wolf, ICCR: 212.870.2294
Synagro, Operator of NY Organic Fertilizer Company in South Bronx Focus ofFaith-Based Institutional Investors’ Shareholder-Sponsored Environmental Resolution;Co-Filer Sustainable South Bronx, Mott Haven’s Mercy Center Applaud Action
Synagro of Houston, Texas, the operator of the New York Organic Fertilizer Company‘s (NYOFCo) facility in the South Bronx, NY, is the focus of a shareholder-sponsored resolution on Environmental Impacts filed by members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR). The ICCR investor coalition is a major force in bringing about advances in corporate governance, corporate social responsibility and economic justice through organized shareowner advocacy. The lead filer of the resolution is the Mercy Investment Program (http://www.sistersofmercy.org/justice/mercy_investment.html).
Sustainable South Bronx (SSB) (http://www.ssbx.org), which has been fighting for four years to get the company to clean up the foul air that it spews across the community, is a co-filer.
“Since March 2003, there have been at least 4 fires at the company’s plant in the South Bronx. NYOFCo has been cited for multiple violations on each of its permits—air, water, and waste-- since October 2003. From the day the company opened, the community has had to endure the nauseating stench and hazardous air pollution from the company’s smoke stacks. As Synagro’s largest municipal contract, NYOFCo ought to be its best-run operation. Instead, it’s a disgrace. This resolution firmly tells Synagro that it isn’t a good neighbor; that it must change its environmental policies and the way it relates to the community,” said Elena Conte, Solid Waste and Energy Coordinator, Sustainable South Bronx.
“Our community already suffers from one of the highest asthma rates in the country and is inundated with more than its share of power plants and other noxious facilities that create emissions hazardous to our residents,” said Sister Mary Galeone, a Sister of Mercy and Co-Executive Director of The Mercy Center, a community center for women and their families located in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx (http://www.mercycenterbronx.org). “Corporate social responsibility encourages corporations to work justly, including active participation in environmental protection. Shareholders have the power to encourage corporations to build a just world. That’s what we hope Synagro will do and it’s why the Mercy Investment Program has filed this proposal,” she added.
“There exists a deep concern regarding the impact of the Synagro facility on the health of
the residents of Hunts Point,” stated Sister Patricia Wolf, also a Sister of Mercy and executive director of the ICCR (http://www.iccr.org). “Providing information on the environmental impact of the facility is important for the company’s credibility and for the residents of the South Bronx.”
The resolution “…requests the Board of Directors to report on environmental, health and safety impacts of New York Organic Fertilizer Company (NYOFCo), operated by Synagro, on the South Bronx, New York community…” Synagro operates NYOFCo pursuant to a New York City contract, our company’s largest municipal services contract….”
In support, the resolution indicates that the “…Hunts Point, NYOFCo’s location, is a one square mile peninsula in southeastern Bronx County. It is one of the poorest Congressional Districts in the U.S., where incidence of childhood asthma is among the highest in the nation. This community bears heavy environmental burdens from local industrial and commercial facilities that daily bring thousands of diesel trucks through the neighborhood. Since opening, NYOFCo has added to environmental burdens of Hunts Point and the surrounding area. Even after our company acquired NYOFCo operations in 2000, residents continued complaining that noxious odors emanate from the plant. Odors from NYOFCo’s smoke stacks, only 163 feet tall, are carried to nearby Public School 48 that sits on higher ground. The resolution concludes “…We believe the report should include…NYOFCo’s total releases — both within its permit and emergency releases — to air, water and land, including releases of toxins, molds, pathogens, hazardous waste and hazardous air pollutants contained in the Environmental Protection Agency’s 1998 proposed rules…The extent to which NYOFCo’s operations may impact health and/or safety of individuals in Hunts Point and the South Bronx; and how Synagro and NYOFCo integrate community environmental accountability into environmental management procedures and business practices…”-30-
About the Filers:The Mercy Investment Program (MIP), a ministry of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, is involved in actions to ensure socially responsible investing. The Mercy Investment Program acts to influence corporate policy and the public conscience by utilizing its investment and financial power...in ways that respond to the social needs of the time and to demonstrate their founder’s, Catherine McAuley, preferential love for the poor and her special concern for women. The Sisters of Mercy were established in Ireland in 1827 with members coming to America in 1843. They are one of the world's largest English-speaking Roman Catholic congregations of women religious.Contact: Sr. Valerie Heinonen, Tel: 212/674-2542; E-mail: heinonenv@juno.com
Sustainable South Bronx, founded in 2001 by Majora Carter, is a community organization dedicated to the implementation of sustainable development projects for the South Bronx that are informed by the needs of the community and the values of environmental justice.Contact Elena Conte, Tel: 718.617.4668 x 27; E-mail: Elena@ssbx.org
About ICCR:For 35 years the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility has combined social values with investment decisions believing that as investors they must achieve more than an acceptable financial return. ICCR’s 275 faith based member institutions include major church denominations, foundations, religious orders, healthcare systems and pension funds, currently, with a combined market portfolio of more than $110 billion.
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