Residents Demand Pause on Camden Fire Cleanup Deal

Following a massive fire that broke out at an EMR recycling plant in Camden earlier this year on Feb. 21, residents and organizers in Camden, South Jersey, and Philly Neighbors met virtually to strategize a peaceful way to respond to EMR’s accountability for the incident.

The fire at the EMR facility, located at the 1400 block of South Front Street, Camden, could be seen from over 15 miles away. EMR, a UK-based company, has had a recent history of toxic fires in communities. Multimedia journalist Frank Santos led the discussion, which also included a brief history of EMR fires in Camden.

It was announced this past April during a press conference by the City of Camden and nonprofit Heart of Camden (HOC) that a $6.7 million agreement between the residents of waterfront south and EMR will take place, with $4.5 million committed this calendar year while $450,000 will be paid annually over the next five years. Funds will also be used to improve EMR’s fire suppression system at their Camden facility and to reimburse the city’s fire department for damages caused by the blaze.

Heart of Camden, a community organization that serves the south Camden area with affordable housing programs, community development, and direct family services, is finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the $6.7 million agreement.

While there is dialogue taking place between the City, EMR, and its residents, the Camden, South Jersey, and Philly Neighbors feel there is a lack of transparency in discussing solutions to prevent another incident from occurring.

“The City and their partners have manipulated this investment from EMR to look like it was a community-involved effort,” says Santos. “The press conference that was held just blocks away from the facility that caught fire was not communicated to any residents of Waterfront South, and since the MOU hasn’t been drafted yet, it’s dangerously unclear how those millions will actually be distributed.”

The Camden, South Jersey, and Philly neighbors hope to put a pause to the $6.7 million
agreement at Tuesday’s Camden City Council meeting to include Waterfront South Camden residents in the facilitation of funds. The matter will be voted on this Tuesday, May 13.

“As of now, there have only been back-door conversations between the city and strategic non-profits like Heart of Camden, who have admitted their lack of transparency at their community meeting this past week on May 7,” says Santos.

As far as long-term goals, residents will file class-action lawsuits against EMR for their pattern of toxic fires and what has been called a lack of preventative measures for future fires.

“All that has been mentioned is investment into fire suppression systems and alarm investments, but the real goal is to prevent a fire of this capacity to ever happen again,” says Santos.

The incident report from the Feb. 21 fire revealed that EMR workers were the cause of spreading the fire as they moved burning material on a conveyor belt leading to the building that caught fire, while EMR initially blamed the fire on lithium-ion batteries.

Following the incident, EMR’s public meeting on Camden’s Waterfront South community was cancelled on March 5. No major updates to the public have been given. EMR USA CEO Joe Balzano issued a statement that EMR would increase audits of incoming materials to its facility to identify prohibited items before they pose a threat and that it would upgrade its on-site fire suppression system. City officials reposted the statement but did not make any comments on it during their city council meeting on March 11.

It was then announced that the NJ State Assembly will cover three bills regarding businesses containing scrap metals, propulsion batteries, and automotive shredder residue on Thursday, May 8.

The bills are as follows: A5533, establishes requirements for receipt and purchase of scrap metals containing propulsion batteries; A5534, requires businesses that violate State environmental laws to forfeit economic development subsidies under certain circumstances; and A5535, requires certain facilities that store or process automotive shredder residue to obtain a DEP permit, which defines “hazardous waste” to include automotive shredder residue.

The incident on Feb. 21 has been recorded as the largest fire in Camden’s history. It took 19 hours for first responders to put out the blaze. Six major fires have taken place across the city since 2016.

Long-term effects from such fires include some of the highest asthma rates in the country. Camden County also ranks low for air quality. The American Lung Association has given the county a “D” grade for ozone pollution and an “F” for annual particle pollution. This includes automotive shredder particles that come from EMR facilities.