1983 by Luke Terrell

A, P. “Plan to Burn PCBs In the Gulf Protested at Hearing in Texas.” The New York Times, November 22^nd, 1983.

This newspaper article covers the proposed solution by the Raegan administration to build incinerator barges that would take PCB, DDT, and other hazardous chemicals offshore to be burned and destroyed. This was fiercely rejected by the local populations and many EPA organizations due to the fact that the federal safety standards onboard these barges were not going to be the same as their sister facilities on land. This change could lead to further spills and disasters which would affect all communities and professions, such as commercial fishers, smaller fishing boats, and offshore jobs, up and down the coast of Texas.

Access Information: This article can be found in the New York Times digital archives. To find this particular article, open up the search box in the top left and type in the name of the article and the corresponding information will show up. The database and information can be accessed for free on the website.

Brown, Hal. “Despite Ixtoc Agreement, Texas still Pursuing Case.” Corpus Christi Times, Mar 3^rd, 1983.

This newspaper article primarily discusses the Ixtoc incident and the effect that it had on the surrounding communities and economies. It also goes into detail on the people that it affected, such as fishermen, property owners, and smaller neighborhoods that would see a loss of income due to shutdowns of certain areas and unavailability of products such as fish. This also discusses that Texas, and its people were going to continue their case against the company despite the company's agreement to certain wrongdoings.

Access Information: This newspaper article can be found at the La Retama Library in the downtown Corpus Christi area. When you arrive, you just need to head upstairs to the public history section and find the file cabinets on the left-hand side of the wall. There you will find this folder amongst a collection of others from the time period.

Corpus Christi Port Authority. “Elevator Rebuilding Dominates 1982,” in Horizon. 9. Corpus Christi, TX: Corpus Christi Port Authority Organization, 1983.

This book chapter discusses the rebuilding of the Corpus Christi Port’s grain elevator due to its explosion and destruction 2 years prior. It also goes on to discuss how its construction has been constantly delayed and that it has caused some inconvenience within the port and the surrounding neighborhoods. Many of these communities are lower-income, minority communities and seem to be affected more and more as the construction progress continues. With that, it also discusses the pros of the new grain elevator and the fact that it will be safer than ever before even though the old one was held to the same standard and it still had a catastrophic failure that ended with 9 dead and 29 injured. The environmental aspect stated is that the construction and implementation of the new grain elevator introduce new pollution to the environment that affects the surrounding communities in a similar way that the first one did.

Access Information: This book can be accessed at the TAMUCC library in Corpus Christi. All you have to do is go into the library, go to the second floor, and then go to the special collections room and there, if you tell them the name of the book, they will bring it to you. Make sure to try and make an appointment before you go, that way they can help you find it.

Corpus Christi Port Authority. “Local Plant Expansions Reach $1 Billion,” in Port Book. 45. Corpus Christi, TX: Corpus Christi Port Authority Organization, 1983.

This book chapter talks about the expansion of the port and how it is bringing out many new jobs and economic prosperity to Corpus Christi and her citizens. In a sly way, it also addresses the fact that some of the neighborhoods and businesses in close proximity to the already existing structure that is the port, will be uprooted and moved to certain areas, so as to make room for the expansion of the port.

Garland, William. “Study on Offshore Drilling Assesses Risks to Gulf Areas.” Corpus Christi Caller, Jan 12^th, 1983.

This article discusses the risks of offshore drilling and how certain incidents, like the Ixtoc oil blowout, make up for a majority of the oil spilled in the Gulf during the previous decades. It also addresses that while Corpus isn’t as affected as other areas such as Matagorda, they are still subject to some damages if an oil spill does occur but that they don’t have much to worry about. This article's main relation is to the Ixtoc disaster and how that brought about many changes due to major concerns on how another major spill could and would affect the local economy.

George, Ron. “Researcher Observes Tar Reef 300 Feet from Mustang Dunes.” Corpus Christi Caller, Jan 12^th, 1983.

This article discusses the creation of a tar reef due to the Ixtoc oil blowout in 1979-80 and how it came to affect the local environment and fish populations. Many fishermen and people of the area took notice of this tar reef and relegated it to a terrible disaster that never should have occurred and that it continued to be an eyesore. This relates to the wider Ixtoc blowout disaster that affected many citizens of the coastal bend area, especially those in and around the Corpus Christi area due to its economic, environmental, and societal impact on the neighborhoods and towns affected.

Killborn Jr, Robert. “Toxic-Waste Cleanups: Solving Problem or Relocating it?” The Christian Science Monitor, May 11^th, 1983.

This newspaper article covers the problem of toxic waste cleanup and how it affected multiple places across the United States, but more specifically, the coastal bend area. In 1983, the people of Matagorda blocked the Intracoastal Waterway in order to stop a shipment of what they believed to be heavily contaminated liquid from Alabama. This ship and the hazardous materials on board were headed for an injection well in Corpus Christi but were forced to reroute to Louisiana. They did this in order to stop the possible contamination of farmland and fishing grounds which, if contaminated, would destroy many minority communities' sources of income.

Access Information: This article can be found at csmonitor.com within their digital archives. To find this particular article, open up the search box in the top left and type in the name of the article and the corresponding information will show up. The database and information can be accessed for free on the website.

Mortensen, Eleanor. “Around the City,” Corpus Christi Times, Sept 23^rd, 1983.

This newspaper article primarily discusses the land transactions within the city and the fact that much of this land was voluntarily annexed to the city, allowing them to do with it as they saw fit. This resulted in the creation of neighborhood lines where in which some neighborhoods were built for those with status and wealth while others were built for those of lower socioeconomic status. Beyond that, many of these neighborhoods would become purposely separated from one another in terms of design and location.

Ray, Lee E., Murray, H. E., Giam, C. S.. “Analysis of Water and Sediment from the Nueces Estuary/ Corpus Christi Bay (Texas) For Selected Organic Pollutants,” Chemosphere, Volume 12, No. 7-8. (1983): 1039-1045. Found on ScienceDirect.

This journal article covers an analysis of the level of organic pollutants in the water and sediment around the Corpus Christi Bay area and was done by the TAMU College Station Department of Chemistry. This report brought to light the fact that many dangerous chemicals were found to have higher concentrations in the water near the refineries and facilities on land. This was also the fact for many of the minority communities around the refineries and although the levels weren’t deemed to be dangerous or life-threatening, they did bring about some side effects over time and also show that the regard for safety nearer to the refineries and these minority communities was much laxer than in other areas.

Access Information: This article can be found on ScienceDirect which is brought to you by TAMUCC. All you have to do to find this article is go to the ScienceDirect website and type the name of the article into the search box and the corresponding article will show up. The database is free to access and is easy to find and use for TAMUCC students.

US Congress, House of Representatives. Hearing before the Select Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. 98^th Cong, 1^st sess., October 12^th, 1983. Found on Congressional ProQuest.

This hearing discusses the potential effects of gas and oil development in the Gulf of Mexico. Many of the points addressed within the summary correspond to the fact that if something went wrong, and a disaster occurred, hundreds of wildlife species, as well as tons of commercial fishermen, would be affected due to the fish dying off. Many of the smaller communities along the coast, especially areas along the coastal bend would be heavily affected and could have adverse effects on the economy of these lower-income areas.

Access Information: This hearing can be found at congressional.ProQuest.com. In correlation with TAMUCC. All you have to do to find this article is go to the website congressional.Proquest.com and type the name of the article into the search box and the corresponding article will show up. The database is free to access and is easy to find and use for TAMUCC students.

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