By Rona Kobell

Six years ago, the waters around Ellicott City flooded, turning the historic downtown into a disaster zone. Almost six inches of rain fell over two hours. It was a 100-year flood, but it would happen again in 2018, and Howard County would work with the state and the federal government on comprehensive plans and investments to make sure such devastation didn’t happen again. 

But rains and swollen rivers do not respect geographical boundaries. Just about seven miles down Frederick Road, in the community of Irvington, floodwaters raged, too. Hundreds of homes flooded, lives were destroyed, and home values eroded. Instead of plans to put this Baltimore City neighborhood back together, there was silence. No flood anniversaries, no public meetings around how to rebuild, no answers as to how to prevent future floods.

Almost exactly between these two communities sits another important community – the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Known as a premier science research institution, the school also has investigators working on urban forestry, stormwaters, floods, and the urban/suburban built environment. So, when English Professor Earl Brooks approached EJJI about a course focused on the sounds of environmental injustice, we thought UMBC’s in-between location offered the perfect vantage point to look at both communities.

Brooks, who teaches the course as an honors seminar, is a trained musician – he plays the saxophone – and he grew up in Topeka, Kansas. Being from another place can make one really attuned to the sounds of a new one. When I think of Topeka, which I have only visited once, I think of sounds, too. Trucks rumbling down the highway, tumbleweeds rustling in the wind, the echoes of vast open space. Irvington sounds different than Ellicott City; what do the sounds tell us about the place? 

You’ll be able to find out, soon, as the students are recording a podcast and conducting many interviews with scholars, residents, pastors, and others.