4.3.2013. Today, the Oregon Health Authority's Environmental Health Assessment Program/EHAPreleased the final version of the Cully Park Health Consultation. This version incorporates public comments received during the comment period, and incorporates more information about the community's involvement in the assessment process. EHAP reached two important conclusions in this Health Consultation:

• EHAP concludes that swallowing and touching soil found at the surface of the landfill cover of the Cully Park site is not expected to harm people’s health. This includes adults (both park visitors and workers) and children on the site. In 2012, soil samples were taken from the entire site. The concentrations of all chemicals in the soil are too low to affect people who come into contact with the soil.
• EHAP has concluded that air pollutants related to the Cully park site are not expected to harm people’s health. In April 2012, air concentrations of chemicals related to the landfill were monitored and found to be below levels of concern. Contaminants not produced by the landfill (specifically, benzene and naphthalene) were above their comparison values. These chemicals are related to regional air pollution rather than the landfill itself.

The Health Consultation, along with summary fact sheets in English, Spanish and Somali, provide information about the analysis of air and soil samples collected at the Cully Park site. You can also read more details about the community's involvement and the collaborative process involving OHA, the Department of Environmental Quality, Verde, the Let Us Build Cully Park! (LUBCP!) Coalition, and local residents in the Cully neighborhood.

Verde would like to recognize and thank all the agencies, individuals and organizations who participated in this very community-based, community-led Human Health Risk Assessment process. We are excited by these results, and equally excited and humbled about the inclusive model we created together.

3.15.2013. Today, Street Roots publishes a fantastic, genuine article by Donita Sue Fry (Portland Youth & Elders Council) about Living Cully: A Cully Ecodistrict. 2010, Verde, Native American Youth & Family Center and Hacienda CDC established Living Cully, a community-based and collaborative effort to drive environmental investments into Cully in response to long-standing community priorities: housing, education, health, economic opportunity...

Please click here to read the article in pdf, or visit the Street Roots website to read it online, and join us in thanking Donita for her great words about the good work we're fortunate enough to do together. And look for more Street Roots articles by Coalition of Communities of Color members in the future.

Street Roots creates income opportunities for people experiencing homelessness and poverty by producing a newspaper and other media that are catalysts for individual and social change.

3.21.2012. Per his Individual Learning Plan, Verde Landscape Crew Member Jesus Nuñez Jr is preparing for his GED test. Working with Verde Training Liaison Alyssa Kocsis, Jesus identified and enrolled in Mt. Hood Community College's ABE/GED program, and will begin Adult Basic Education classes in April. Please join us in congratulating Jesus, and in thanking him and Alyssa for developing this valuable educational opportunity. To be continued...