ATLANTA — The recent water outage in Atlanta sparked conversations about the city’s aging infrastructure and how long it would take to repair the issue.
In west and south Atlanta, water-related concerns are part of on-going systemic issues, according to environmentalists.
Dr. Na’Taki Osborne Jelks is an environmental justice advocate and assistant professor of environmental and health sciences at Spelman College. Over the years, she has conducted extensive research on Atlanta’s water infrastructure and cases of water injustice.
“What I immediately thought is that here it is again," she said. "Insult to injury,."
The water crisis initially started at the intersection of Joseph E. Boone Boulevard and James P. Brawley Drive on May 31 in Vine City. This is on the westside of Atlanta.
Osborne Jelks says there’s a pattern to how Atlanta's aging water infrastructure impacts historically Black communities. She said it’s by design, tracing back to Jim Crow engineering during post-Civil War Atlanta.
“Architects of segregation at that time decided the way to segregate the races, primarily Black and white in Atlanta, was through the control of natural resources,” she said.
She mentions patterns of water-related problems over the years in English Avenue and Vine City, ranging from flooding issues to sewer backups.
For the westside, the recent water main break and outage reveals the ongoing relationship between racial disparity and the city’s water infrastructure.
The infrastructure failed on May 31 when major pipes burst in the westside’s Vine City, and then in Midtown, leaving thousands without water for days. The city admitted the pipes were more than 80 years old.
Just like Osborne Jelks, Atlanta historian King Williams says he sees the pattern on the westside, too.
“It’s just more apathy. You’ve seen it happen so many times throughout your life,” he said.
There's been several instances of flooding in south Atlanta over the years, particularly in Peoplestown, Summerhill, and Mechanicsville. These are all historically Black communities.
Williams believes that long-term solution will require addressing deep-rooted concerns.
"If we're going to invest in Atlanta, it's not just building a pipe," he said. "It's not just fixing a pipe, but fixing the communities."
Osborne Jelks stated that in order to truly fix this concern for the long term, not only does the city need to invest in an infrastructure overhaul, but it needs to be examined from an equity lens.