Many residents of Pike County have been following the grassroots effort by a number of Chatawa residents to oppose a 26-mobile home, 26-septic tank development in a flood zone, on a creek that directly feeds the Tangipahoa River.
As locals know, Chatawa is a small, beautiful rural community. It is not a town or a “city,” as it was recently referred to by those who propose to “develop” the area. This is indigenous land, a community named by its original inhabitants, the Choctaw Indians.
For over 100 years the land, waters, and wildlife were protected by the School Sisters of Notre Dame in close collaboration with their students, alumna, and area residents, many descendants of the families who settled the area.
As one of those families, we join our neighbors in opposing development that puts the beauty of the river and the natural habitat surrounding it in jeopardy. The mobile home development proposed to the Pike County Board of Supervisors on Old Highway 51 does both. We have seen no consideration by the out-of-state developer for the concerns raised by residents.
My father retired from a career as a bacteriologist with the Mississippi State Department of Health. He worked quietly behind the scenes to ensure the people of Pike County consumed safe water and dairy products before they reached the shelves of local grocery stores.
As an early environmentalist, when he noticed sick and dead fish on the Tangipahoa River, he mobilized with other experts to stop those who were polluting the river. He and many others worked tirelessly to protect the Tangipahoa River.
Because of the absence of public health protections some other Mississippi counties have in place, Pike County is at the mercy of developers. We desperately need our county supervisors to put common-sense protections in place before it is too late.
Over 500 Facebook followers of “Save the Scenic Tangipahoa River” are organizing to protect the river. To fight for the right to fill our glass with clean water from the kitchen faucet. To swim in the river. To eat the fish we catch.
The CDC estimates 3.5 million Americans get sick each year after swimming, boating, fishing or touching water they thought was safe. We do not want to become another statistic.
I hope everyone who cares about our rivers will call our county supervisors to oppose environmentally unsafe and unnecessary development.
— Dr. Abigail Stonerock, Chatawa
