The Continued Fight for Clean Air in Fort Bend County and Beyond! Who Decides What We Inhale?

As concrete batch plants push closer to our homes, schools, and parks, Fort Bend County residents face an ever-increasing fight for their health, equity, and the right to be heard.

For decades, communities of color across the Greater Houston area have to deal with environmental decisions made without their consent—decisions that have quietly shaped health outcomes, shortened lifespans, and eroded quality of life.

Many people left other areas in the region and migrated to Fort Bend County, which was once viewed as a refuge from those patterns.

Today, that assumption is being tested.

The growing push to locate concrete batch plants and similar industrial facilities near residential neighborhoods in Fort Bend County has raised serious concerns about air quality, environmental justice, and whether history is repeating itself—just with new ZIP codes.

Nowhere has that concern more evident over the past several years than in the Fort Bend County cities of Missouri City, Rosharon, and Simonton.

Missouri City: A Familiar Pattern in a New Place

Over the past year, residents, environmental advocates, and local leaders have been raising alarms about a proposed specialty concrete batch plant by Verti-Crete Houston, LLC. The company applied to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for an Air Quality Standard Permit (Registration No. 176289) to construct a facility at 953 Pheasant Valley Drive, just off U.S. 90, which city leaders were also opposed to.

According to city’s website, the proposed Concrete Batch Plant does not appear to comply with the City’s zoning and regulations of land uses permitted, and that any development and use of this particular property must be in compliance with the City’s zoning regulations.

The proposed site sits near residential homes, Fort Bend ISD’s Thurgood Marshall High School, Buffalo Run Park, and local businesses—places where families live, learn, eat, worship, and gather.

What has intensified community concern is not just the location, but the expedited permitting process allowed under TCEQ rules. Many residents felt the application was being rushed through before the community had a fair opportunity to understand the long-term impacts of the concrete batch plant, or before they could meaningfully influence the outcome.

The surrounding ZIP code, 77489, is predominantly African American. For many residents, the proposal reinforces a troubling narrative—industrial facilities that pollute the air are consistently placed in communities of color, while more affluent neighborhoods remain protected.

A Recent Example: Rosharon’s Temporary Win

In the summer of 2025, TCEQ temporarily rejected a permit application for a proposed concrete crushing facility in Rosharon, TX—another Fort Bend County community. The commission returned the application to Julpit Inc., citing the need for corrections and clarifications related to emissions, operations, and site details.

While the rejection was not permanent, it demonstrated that public scrutiny and regulatory pressure can slow or challenge projects—especially when applications fail to meet standards. The Julpit, Inc. permit remains under revision, and its future will depend on whether the company adequately addresses TCEQ’s concerns.

Simonton: A Small Town, Big Stakes

In Simonton, a city of approximately 840 residents, another battle unfolded in 2022.

R Construction Company applied to TCEQ for an air quality permit to operate a concrete batch plant along FM 1093 near Cowhide Drive, with operations that were expected to potentially run 24 hours a day.

The proposed plant would have sat just a feet away from the Valley Lodge neighborhood park—where children play and families gather for community events.

To date, the permit has not been approved, and the concrete batch plant has not been constructed, however residents remain concerned about the application.

Simonton’s City Administrator formally asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for help. That request came as the EPA launched an investigation into TCEQ’s permitting process after receiving complaints alleging discriminatory public participation practices based on race.

Simonton leaders also asked Fort Bend County Commissioners to consider legal action against TCEQ over recent changes to the agency’s concrete batch plant permitting rules.

Who Really Has the Power?

TCEQ holds public meetings on these permits, allowing residents to ask questions and submit comments, but the reality is that the commission holds broad discretion and is the ultimate, unchecked authority. TCEQ commissioners are appointed by the Governor of Texas—and only the governor can remove or replace them.

That power imbalance leaves many communities feeling unheard and unprotected.

Leadership and Legal Advocacy in Fort Bend County

Fort Bend County Attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson has emerged as a key advocate on these issues, providing legal guidance and support to municipalities and residents navigating the complex regulatory landscape surrounding concrete batch plants. Her office has worked to assess legal options, protect county interests, and ensure that local governments understand their authority when confronting environmentally harmful development.

Smith-Lawson has personally shown up to the public hearings and proactively opposed these applications, and has advocated for the residents in the areas where the concrete batches have been proposed.

Her involvement reflects a growing recognition within Fort Bend County that these facilities are not just zoning issues—they are public health and civil rights concerns.

This Is Not New—And It’s Not Accidental

Concrete batch plants and other environmentally unfriendly facilities have long been a public nuisance in communities of color, particularly in African American neighborhoods in Houston and Harris County. These facilities are now increasingly seeking locations in Fort Bend County, raising fears that the same environmental inequities are simply seeking to expand to Fort Bend County.

Texas State Senator Borris Miles has repeatedly emphasized that these facilities have been linked to serious health conditions, including lung cancer, kidney disease, and autoimmune disorders caused by prolonged exposure to toxic air pollutants. He has also pointed out that Senate District 13 contains one of the highest concentrations of concrete plants in Texas—facilities that are never placed near affluent neighborhoods such as River Oaks, West University, Uptown, or Memorial. His message has been consistent since joining the Legislature in 2007—enough is enough.

Why Location Matters

Concrete batch plants produce fine particulate matter (PM2.5)—tiny particles that penetrate deep into the lungs and can enter the bloodstream. These particles are especially dangerous because they are hard to see, easy to inhale, and capable of causing long-term damage.

Despite the risks, Texas currently has no meaningful restrictions on how close these concrete batches plants can be to homes, schools, parks, or businesses.

Research consistently shows that air pollution disproportionately harms Black and Hispanic communities, and that industrial facilities tend to cluster in low-income neighborhoods across Greater Houston.

What the Health Risks Really Mean—for Families

Air Alliance Houston, a nonprofit environmental health organization, has worked for years to educate communities about the dangers associated with concrete batch plants. Simply put, the pollution from these facilities can make people sick—and keep them sick.

Here’s what residents need to know:

• If a plant operates 24 hours a day, residents may face constant exposure with no relief—day or night.
• Pollution from concrete batch plants has been linked to heart disease, lung disease, and cancer.
• Children exposed to this pollution may experience impaired lung development.
• Air pollution can trigger or worsen asthma, bronchitis, heart attacks, and other respiratory conditions.
• Pregnant people exposed to polluted air face a higher risk of birth complications and birth defects.

Where Do We Go From Here?

This moment demands more than concern—it demands action.

Here’s what Fort Bend residents and surrounding areas can do now:

1. Show up to every TCEQ public meeting—numbers matter.
2. Submit written public comments for every proposed permit.
3. Organize neighborhood coalitions across cities and ZIP codes.
4. Engage local, county, state, and federal elected officials and demand public positions.
5. Support legal and advocacy efforts that challenge harmful permits.
6. Educate neighbors—especially those who may not yet be aware.
7. Document any health and quality-of-life impacts in affected areas.

The fight for clean air in Fort Bend County is not abstract. It is personal. It is local. And it is happening right now.

The question is no longer whether this will affect us—but whether we will stand together and refuse to let history repeat itself yet again.