LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – Cancer. Heart disease. COPD. A Southwest Louisiana nonprofit says almost every family in the area has been touched by one of them and organizers believe pollution is to blame.

At a community meeting last year, Micah 6:8 Mission Founder and Executive Director Cynthia Robertson asked everyone in the room to raise their hand, then lower it if they or a family member had experienced cancer, heart disease or COPD.

By the time she finished, almost every hand in the room was down.

“I tell everybody that Calcasieu Parish is the head of the cancer corridor, which goes down I-10 with all the industries,” Robertson said.

Robertson says the reason isn’t complicated.

“It’s not hard to figure out what causes this because we’ve got 20+ facilities within an eight mile radius of this neighborhood,” she said.

She says that concentration of industry is why so many neighbors are getting sick and why her nonprofit is holding its second annual Health and Environment Summit.

“Our health is drastically impacted by air and water pollution,” Robertson said.

The free event brings in experts on topics ranging from drinking water contaminants to the health effects of industrial air pollution. Organizers will also lead attendees through a mapping exercise, marking disease clusters block by block across Calcasieu Parish.

“We have people speaking about the effect of particulate matter on our breathing and our heart functions,” Robertson said.

The Health and Environment Summit is set for September 26th at the West Calcasieu Event Center on Arena Road, starting at 10 a.m. Lunch is included at no cost to attendees.

Robertson hopes the summit leaves people with more than information, but a reason to speak up.

The Health and Environment Summit is free to attend, but organizers ask that attendees register ahead of time.