My daughter has asthma. A lot of our children have asthma.

Before she learned soil science, growing food this close to the mills just meant fear — could anything pulled from this ground be safe to eat? Ten years in, Frieda Graves runs a farm in the shadow of Gary's steel plants and gives away 75% of what she grows.

But the smoke overhead still worries her, and it's personal: "I have concerns because I have asthma. My daughter has asthma. A lot of our children have asthma." Her hope points past the mill entirely — more local growers, more solar, "if it was up to me, we'll have windmills out here."

Photos: Tyrell Anderson / Decay Devils