In 1979, a group of residents in the Bridesburg neighborhood of Philadelphia organized the Bridesburg Civic Council to reduce pollution in their heavily industrialized community. Their air was contaminated with toxic chemicals and carcinogens that were undetectable to the eye or nose but could cause serious chronic health problems. The cancer death rate in Bridesburg was twice as high as the rate for the U.S. as a whole.

That same year, the Law Center partnered with the Philadelphia Area Project on Occupational Safety and Health (PhilaPOSH) to create the Delaware Valley Toxics Coalition (DVTC), a coalition of unions and community and environmental organizations to protect workers and community members from toxic exposures.

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