Below Riverbank State Park is a sewage treatment plant

If you ride down the Hudson River Parkway (through the western edge of Harlem) and you smell a nasty stench and you wonder where it's coming from, here's the answer; what you're smelling is a state park.

But it's not the park that actually smells. Instead it's the sewage treatment plant on which the state park was built. This is one of the many reasons why The West Harlem Environmental Action Organization was started, to prevent Harlem from being polluted carelessly by the City of New York. Louis Bernitez, the youth coordinator of WE ACT, stated that this type of carelessness can be defined as "Environmental racism."

The West Harlem Environmental Action (WHE ACT - although now they go by the acronym WE ACT) is an organization that fights for the Harlem Community regarding environmental and health issues. WHE ACT was started in 1988 after its founders Vernice Miller, Peggy Shepard and Chuck Sutton brought a law suit against the city of New York for careless building and poor management of the North River Sewage Treatment Plant, which is bellow River Bank State Park located on 145th street.

After the settlement WHE ACT transformed into an environmental justice organization, determined to fight and educate the community regarding environmental and health issues. They became an advocate for the community, fighting for antipollution legislation. WHE ACT questioned why three major highways run through and around the Harlem community, which give us so much pollution. They argued against having the Waste Transfer Station (where garbage trunks go to unload their contents onto barges), located uptown, by River Bank State Park. The organization contested and won a fight, which kept an apartment building from being built on top of a Bus Depot.

One of several bus depots in Harlem

Mr. Louis Bernitez has worked for the organization as a youth coordinator now for four years. As a coordinator, Mr. Bernitez deals with many issues regarding the recruiting of kids for the program. During our interview, a scene of cheerful young adults were anxiously walking about in the office questioning and talking to Mr. Bernitez. Before working for the organization Mr. Bernitez, with his college degree in psycology did other jobs involving young adults. " He stated that, "Many times the government doesn't always put the lives of citizens before issues regarding money to their interest."

Mr. Bernitez (pictured on the left) is the head of the Earth Crew Internship Program. This program is designed to locate leadership abilities in youth, as well as providing them with the knowledge of the environment and the community in which they live in. The program meets two days out of the week. The youth works on educating their fellow community neighbors. They have clean up days where they rebuild and plant in empty spaces in Harlem. The youth is currently working on a video segment that will soon be aired on the public access channels.

WHE ACT has an office located at 271 west 125 street, for further information individuals can contact Mr. Louis Benitez at (212) 961-1136, regarding any questions or interest in the organization.

WHE ACT is there for the best interest of Harlem and its residents. If you feel there's an environmental hazard in your part of Harlem feel free to contact them.