The Memphis town Community Action Group (CAG) was started in 2010. The original founders were Pastor Steve Jamison - Chair, Mr. Maurice Webber - Co Chair, Mr. Kenneth Mcfarland second Co-Chair, Ms Mildred Monroe - Secretary, and Mrs Connie Davis - Treasurer.

 

The mission of the Memphis Town Community Action Group is:

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1. To actively participate in the decision making process at the Kerr McGee site and other sites in Columbus, Mississippi which are of environmental concern to the community.

 

2. To learn about site environment, health and safety issues.

 

3. To review information about site cleanup plans, other sites which impact the community, provide data and information to EPA on the communities interest and concerns.

 

4.  To present recommendations to EPA concerning the EPA activities at the affected sites and alternative courses of action.

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5. To keep the community informed and educated at all steps of the process, to protect the environmental health and safety of the community.

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Prior to the formation of the community advisory group, creosote was found on the site of Maranatha Faith Center, one of the local churches. The then Pastor, Steve Jamison contacted the EPA and began the process of having the former Kerr-McGee site declared a superfund site. Upon the determination of the site as a superfund site, the community was entitled to a portion of the funds from a settlement with between Kerr-McGee/Tronox and several other communities that Kerr-McGee harmed. These funds as well as the remediation process is administered and overseen by the Greenfield Environmental Trust (the Trust) who also currently owns the site. The remediation process is overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Once the CAG was formed, they became the liaison between the Memphis Town community, the EPA, the Trust, the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the city of Columbus. The CAG was instrumental in ensuring that the community had a say in who would be responsible for the site clean-up and in making sure that local people were employed in that process. The CAG also holds monthly meetings to keep the community updated with respect to any of the changes occurring on the site. The operation of the CAG was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as were most areas. In 2021 the original founder, Pastor Steve Jamison passed away. Maurice Webber then became the Chair of the CAG.

 

At the beginning of 2023, the CAG, with assistance from the EPA, began a process of restructuring. The CAG re-established its monthly meetings and added a few components to their structure. Pastor Darren Leach was selected to be the Executive Director of the CAG and several committees are being launched to ensure that the proper attention is given to the issues faced by the Memphis Town community.​ The CAG also became a part of the Justice 40 Hub to ensure that the community has a clear vision and the resources necessary to properly make the community whole. The current officers of the CAG are: Mr. Maurice Webber - Chair, Mr James Samuels - Co- Chair, Ms Sharon Lewis - Secretary, Ms Connie Davis - Treasurer, and Ms Dorothy Lewis -Parliamentarian.

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