SHIP INFERNO A NEW NEIGHBORHOOD INJUSTICE

There is not yet enough known about the massive fires that started Sunday aboard the Bonhomme Richard ship at Naval Base San Diego to blame the Navy for negligence or incompetence, though recent corruption scandals, collisions and abrupt firings make it a possibility. What is certain is that, for residents of Barrio Logan, Logan Heights, coastal National City and other communities, the polluted air they’ve had to breathe because of the nearby disaster is one more reminder of the health burdens they face from living near and in heavily industrial areas full of maritime businesses, car repair shops and more, and from living so close to busy Interstate 5.

As three essays printed on today’s opinion page note, the environmental consequences plaguing the area’s mostly Latino residents are harsh, especially the high asthma rates among children. Other essays to be printed in Friday’s paper also illustrate this problem. Past decisions by local elected leaders to allow heavy industries to locate immediately next to residential neighborhoods reflect the power of what might be called the Navy-port-maritime industry complex. And this power isn’t necessarily arbitrary or undeserved. The Navy is a core part of the region and of San Diego’s identity. The Port is an immense economic engine creating 70,000 jobs.

But the risks remain. When residents of neighboring communities complain that the balance that has been struck between their needs and those of powerful interests is neither fair nor humane, they have a point. Figuring out how to strike a better balance going forward should be a civic priority.