Category: ACE Research

Executive Summary

Environmental justice is both a field of study and a powerful social movement that is concerned with the unequal distribution of environmental benefits (e.g. clean water, parks, healthy food, etc.) and costs (e.g. unsafe housing, air pollution, soil pollution, etc.) between different social groups. Environmental justice is an intersectional concept that includes both environmental conservation and social justice elements, as issues that impact the environment have disproportionate impacts on certain people who live there. Environmental justice aims to ensure that everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, has the same degree of environmental protection and equal access to the processes that directly impact the communities they live in. Although the concept of environmental justice emerged as recently as the early 1980’s, it has since gained significant political attention. Its goals have been incorporated into national, state, and local policies across the country.

The history of environmental justice within the United States predates the country’s initial founding and begins with the earliest European settlements of the 15th century. European colonization forced indigenous groups away from their traditional lands and ignored the methods they used to manage land sustainably. Throughout the years, environmental injustices continued to take on various forms as the country evolved. For example, larger populations created a need for increased city planning, and urban developers placed most waste incinerators in predominantly low-income and minority communities. Today, environmental injustices are observable in a wide variety of circumstances, ranging from food deserts, to water pollution, to flooding vulnerability. Our understanding of environmental injustices has evolved especially quickly over the last few decades, as the reality of climate change and its repercussions are more widely recognized by both the public and policymakers. For instance, as natural disasters exacerbated by climate change threaten the nation’s wellbeing, we find that those unable to evacuate, adequately prepare, and recover are already-vulnerable communities. 

Elected officials across the United States have made attempts to address and combat environmental injustice on all levels of government. Local attempts have been made through municipal bans on certain activities, strengthened environmental review processes, enforced public health codes, and many other methods. While not every state has embraced environmental justice goals, many states such as California, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and several others have committed to environmental equity by creating Offices for Environmental Justice, prioritizing environmental justice through legislation, enforcing environmental justice-focused programs, and more. Federal responses to environmental injustices have varied dramatically over the last few administrations, with some being less favorable to environmental justice advocates than others. However, with a new administration now in place, many are hopeful that current President Joe Biden will live up to the promises he has made to reduce the environmental burden faced by marginalized communities across the nation. 

Ongoing efforts to improve the environmental conditions of overburdened populations exist both across the country and abroad. Further reforms are also being discussed, with many pushing for potential solutions such as encouraging and valuing indigenous voices on environmental topics, better educating students on environmental injustices, mandating environmental justice analyses for all land use projects, and more.

Introduction

Marginalized Communities and Environmental Justice

Marginalized communities are communities that face discrimination and exclusion in various forms based on their identities. The norms and processes affecting marginalized groups put them at a severe social, cultural, economic, and political disadvantage. Marginalized communities typically include racial/cultural/religious minorities, low-income and homeless individuals, immigrants, disabled individuals, refugees, and more. Some examples of exclusion and discrimination faced by such groups include, but are not limited to, disenfranchisement, unequal representation in politics, unequal pay, and harassment.

Environmental justice is an immensely important topic, as marginalized communities often face significantly worse environmental conditions than those who are of a higher socioeconomic status. Because marginalized communities have fewer resources, less time, and less political power to resist unequal environmental conditions, they will continue to have less of an influence over the environmental policies that affect them most. Marginalized communities experiencing environmental inequities are often referred to as environmental justice communities. 

Examples of Environmental Injustices

Environmental injustices can be observed in a number of situations. These examples have changed over time as the United States has grown and modernized. During European colonization of the Americas, examples of environmental injustices included indigenous exclusion and displacement from ancestral lands. Today, examples of modern environmental injustices have expanded to include a large variety of concerns, and the list continues to grow as climate change poses new and worsening challenges. The following list describes 10 ongoing environmental justice concerns within the United States and its territories, but this list is not exhaustive.

1. Water pollution and access: Drinking water violations are issued when a water system does not meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) healthy drinking water standard. Polluted drinking water can arise from a wide variety of sources, such as corroded pipes or industrial discharge. A 2019 study of drinking water violations across the United States confirmed that the rate of such violations is higher in communities with more low-income individuals, racial minorities, and non-native English speakers. Increased drinking water violations were also observed in areas with less reliable access to transportation and more crowded living conditions. Furthermore, these communities experience slow and poor enforcement of laws ensuring clean water access, meaning that these communities face unsafe drinking water conditions more frequently, and for longer. The health implications from contaminant exposure can range from gastroenteritis, to decreased immune system functioning, to cancer. 
2. Air pollution: Marginalized communities are more likely to live near highways, industrial plants, waste incinerators, and other significant sources of air pollution. Studies show that approximately 79% of solid waste incinerators within urban areas are located in marginalized communities. The EPA also classifies air pollution as an environmental justice concern due to the fact that marginalized communities are disproportionately impacted by hazardous air quality, and are at a higher risk of developing health issues such as asthma, cardiovascular disease, and reduced lung function.
3. Soil pollution: Contaminated sites are areas of land that contain hazardous waste and/or other substances that could potentially harm property, people, or animals. Because those living within a close proximity to such areas tend to be ethnic minorities and lower-class individuals, this raises environmental injustice concerns. Living near contaminated sites puts individuals at a higher risk of developing cancer, experiencing developmental disabilities, birthing children with congenital defects, and more.
4. Food deserts: Food deserts are regions where healthy food options are not easily accessible to residents due to insufficient amounts of grocery stores within a practical traveling distance. Food deserts predominantly affect low-income people of color, as research shows that wealthy neighborhoods have 3 or more times the amount of grocery stores than poorer neighborhoods. Food deserts are an environmental justice issue because the lack of affordable, nutritional food is a harmful environmental condition affecting society’s most vulnerable communities. The negative health impacts residents of food deserts face include malnutrition, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and a host of other concerns.
5. Wildfire resilience: Wildfires are one type of natural disaster exacerbated by the rising global temperatures associated with climate change. Wildfires, a common occurrence across much of the United States, are burning longer and covering more area than prior decades. With wildfires destroying thousands of homes and other structures each year, those that suffer most are low-income and under-insured individuals who struggle to recover from such significant losses.
6. Flooding vulnerability: Climate change increases flooding severity. Whether through weather events or sea level rise, flooding will disproportionately affect already-vulnerable communities. One study estimates that one in ten low-income housing projects are located in areas with a direct risk of flooding, affecting nearly half a million people. This estimate is likely to be even higher, as it is based off of historical climate data and did not account for recently observed changes in climate. Additionally, with the often unaffordable $700/year cost of flood insurance, many low-income individuals and families cannot financially recover from property loss or damage.
7. Hurricane preparation and resilience: Climate change increases the wind speeds, rain levels, and storm surges of hurricanes, making them more destructive and deadly. Inequalities in community preparation and recovery from hurricanes negatively impact already-disadvantaged communities. One example of these injustices can be seen in Puerto Rico’s nearly 11-month long delay in electricity restoration following Hurricane Maria. Another example can be seen in how poor and disabled Houston residents were unable to heed Hurricane Harvey evacuation notices, likely a result of not having sufficient resources or capabilities to do so. 
8. Pesticide exposure: Pesticides are potent chemical substances used to control insects, rodents, molds, and other organisms that pose a threat to agricultural yields. Pesticide exposure is an environmental justice issue that most affects the United States’ low-income and primarily Hispanic farmworker population. These workers often suffer from disproportionate and chronic exposures to harmful pesticide components such as chlorpyrifos, paraquat, and phorate. Scientists link pesticides to a host of harmful health impacts, and farmworkers have suffered from illnesses ranging from Parkinson’s disease, to blindness, to a long list of cancers. 
9. Climate migration: Climate migration describes the forced movement of people from their region of residence because of climate change-related concerns. Climate migration can refer to movement across state or international borders, and can be caused by many dangerous environmental conditions such as sea level rise, drought, frequent hurricanes, deadly wildfires, and more. Because climate change will undoubtedly hit marginalized populations the hardest, those forced to become climate migrants will likely be low-income and minority individuals. 
10. Inadequate governmental preparation for natural disasters in disadvantaged communities: With climate change resulting in increasingly severe natural disasters, sufficient planning to ensure human safety is vital. However, in the face of natural disasters, socioeconomic disparities in governmental preparation puts marginalized communities at a much higher risk. For example, this lack of preparation proved immensely fatal during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, where over 1,800 New Orleans residents lost their lives. The improper maintenance of dams and levees in predominantly black neighborhoods allowed them to fail and create massive floods. Additionally, the government did not correctly prepare or implement evacuation procedures, leading to hundreds of avoidable deaths.

Image 2.1 – This image illustrates the noticeable difference in the number of evacuees between wealthier and poorer New Orleans neighborhoods during Hurricane Barry. The French Quarter, a more affluent region of New Orleans, saw higher rates of evacuations in response to a dangerous flood warning (colored in red). Poorer individuals from the Lower Ninth-Ward neighborhoods were unable to evacuate as well (colored in blue), likely due to fewer financial resources for alternative housing and/or a lack of transportation.

Image 2.2 – Created by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, this image details Minnesota’s ongoing struggle with environmental injustices. Overwhelming data supports the idea that Minnesota’s low-income communities and communities of color experience air pollutant exposure on a higher level than the state average. 

Arguments Against Environmental Justice

As previously discussed, the Environmental Justice Movement aims to create a society where everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, experiences the same degree of environmental protection and access to environmental benefits. Thus, environmental justice advocates commonly believe citizens have a right to environmental equity, and therefore work to promote both environmental conservation and social justice. However, not everyone agrees with the goals and methods of the Environmental Justice Movement. Critics of environmental justice believe that the resulting increase in government intervention (e.g., stricter regulations) is unnecessary, and only provides politicians with more power to harm and control American citizens. They claim the stricter rules and regulations following environmental justice advancements would inadvertently prevent the creation of jobs and reduce economic output.

Furthermore, because climate change itself is an environmental justice issue that puts disadvantaged groups in an even more vulnerable position, climate change deniers and/or those who dismiss the seriousness of climate change perpetuate these unjust conditions. Denying or diminishing the impact of humans on the global climate can promote environmentally harmful activities such as fossil fuel combustion, and those consequences most affect marginalized communities. In other words, if someone does not view climate change as an issue, they will not have motivation to address it or its environmental justice implications. 

Finally, because environmental injustices widely impact low-income and homeless communities, some are hesitant to offer forms of aid and protection as they believe poverty is simply a result of one’s work ethic. They attribute economic success to persistence, grit, and effort, and economic deprivation to laziness, substance abuse, and low moral values. External factors and other uncontrollable circumstances are usually considered less relevant to economic circumstances. As a result, some believe that those disproportionately burdened by poor environmental conditions are either deserving of their current circumstances, or are simply not doing enough to improve them.

Appendix 1 provides a description of key terms relating to environmental justice. For those new to the field of environmental justice, it can be helpful to either read Appendix 1 in advance or refer to it while reading the report. 

Further Reading

• Report on the people and buildings vulnerable to the flooding effects of climate change:
  • https://furmancenter.org/files/NYUFurmanCenter_HousingInTheFloodplain_May2017.pdf
• Examining inequities in Puerto Rico’s disaster recovery following Hurricane Maria:
  • https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1462901121001015
• Environmental Justice Through the Eye of Hurricane Katrina:
  • https://inequality.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/media/_media/pdf/key_issues/Environment_policy.pdf
• Racial Disparities and Climate Change:
  • https://psci.princeton.edu/tips/2020/8/15/racial-disparities-and-climate-change
• How 600 Years of Environmental Violence Is Still Harming Black Communities:
  • https://earthjustice.org/blog/2021-march/overlooked-connections-between-black-injustice-and-environmentalism

Historical Overview

The Historical Overview section begins with an analysis of European colonization’s influences on today’s environmental injustices, continues with descriptions of early conservation movements hostile to indigenous peoples, describes increasing attention to civil rights and environmental issues during the mid-20th century, and concludes with a discussion of modern environmental discourse and its resulting social movements. 

15th century-19th century: European Arrival, Colonization, and Racism

European colonization of lands now known as the Americas continues to greatly influence the way many Americans treat the natural environment, as well as one another. The beliefs held by many early European settlers persisted across several centuries and created a tradition of racism and anti-environment sentiments that have contributed to, and continue to exacerbate, environmental injustices. 

Indigenous peoples throughout North America give deep spiritual, social, economic, and cultural significance to their traditional lands. Viewing themselves as a part of nature rather than separate from it, native groups sought to protect the environment and ensure proper and sustainable management practices. For example, indigenous groups recognized the importance of fires in certain ecosystems, and would often carry out strategic land burnings to promote nutrient cycling, foster ecological health, and prevent uncontrollable wildfires. 

Unlike indigenous peoples, however, European colonizers believed that humans were separate from nature, and that nature was something to be conquered, commodified, and exploited. European settlers’ disregard for sustainable indigenous practices led to severe environmental degradation that persists today. Overfishing and overhunting of many wildlife species led to severe population declines and/or extinctions. Aggressive wildfire suppression over centuries results in increasingly destructive fires fueled by years of plant debris accumulation. Widespread deforestation reduced the United States forest cover by hundreds of millions of acres, and exacerbated climate change by decreasing carbon sequestration rates.

Additionally, racist beliefs held by European colonizers perpetuated the idea that certain races and ethnicities are inferior and less deserving of dignified lifestyles. Natives faced cruelty and violence at the hands of European colonizers, such as massacres, forced removal from their ancestral homelands, forced cultural assimilation, mass starvations via food supply limitations, and more. Today, those anti-indigenous beliefs have translated into many native groups being subjected to some of the worst environmental conditions in the nation. Major concerns on native lands include abandoned and contaminated uranium mines, leaking oil-transportation pipelines, disparities in clean water access, and air pollution, to name a few. However, European colonizers’ racism extended past indigenous groups and also included a variety of other ethnicities.

Another major manifestation of European settlers’ racism is seen in the enslavement of Africans. Selling human beings as property to be exploited for labor severely dehumanized enslaved individuals. Treated as sub-human, enslaved Africans were often subjected to notoriously poor conditions at the hands of both slave-owners and many white community members. The end of slavery in the mid-1800’s was not the end of racism against black individuals, as discriminatory beliefs against African Americans passed down from generation to generation still permeated many aspects of American life. Today, one example of continued racism against black communities can be seen in the variety of environmental injustices they face. In comparison to white communities, black communities are 75% more likely to be located near oil and gas refineries, are more likely to live in regions with uncontrolled toxic waste, and are at a higher risk of developing air pollution-related illnesses such as asthma. Furthermore, African Americans own significantly less wealth than non-Hispanic white individuals, experience higher rates of food insecurity, and are more economically vulnerable to natural disasters. The environmental inequities faced by black communities come in many forms, and many are rooted in the racism they have experienced for centuries. In short, hundreds of years of European colonization and racism has played a major role in many of the environmental injustices observable today.  

Image 3.1: This image contains information on the Dakota Access Pipeline, an underground oil transportation line that spans approximately 1200 miles through 4 different states. This pipeline created significant controversy due to its likelihood of contaminating the environment and the water supplies many Indigenous tribes rely on. This image details how close the pipeline runs to various Native reservations, which puts their health at risk. 

19th Century-early 20th Century: Early Conservation Movement and the Rise of Anti-Asian Discrimination

The mid-19th century marked the beginning of the American conservation movement, a period of time where many advancements towards wilderness preservation took place. Prominent voices of this time period included President Theodore Roosevelt, Henry David Thoreau, and John Muir. Conservationists of this time period sought to protect nature’s scenic beauty. Many of the protected areas established during the early American conservation movement still stand today, such as Yosemite National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, and the Grand Canyon National Park. These protected areas not only allow wildlife species to thrive within their boundaries, they also foster environmental stewardship amongst the American public and provide valuable ecosystem services such as water and air purification. 

However, even when advances were made towards environmental preservation, those efforts were largely harmful to indigenous peoples, as they tended to exclude and displace these groups from their ancestral lands. Native groups were often quickly and violently removed from their homes, or pushed out over several decades. For example, in 1886 the United States Army forcefully gained control of the Yellowstone National Park region and used violent measures to discourage Natives from returning. In 1895 the Blackfeet tribe, faced with starvation from the US government’s widespread buffalo killings and insufficient rations, sold 800,000 acres of their reservation in order to purchase food and supplies for their people. By 1897, that land was designated as a forest reserve, and was later used to establish Glacier National park in 1910. John Muir, one of the most prominent faces of the early conservation movement, stated that indigenous peoples “have no right place in the landscape.” Early conservation efforts were almost exclusively made with the intent to benefit white, middle- and upper-class citizens. 

Anti-Asian discrimination also became more prevalent during the latter half of the 19th century as more Asians immigrated to America to pursue job opportunities. Their early contributions were vital in aiding the country’s development, as they worked as farmers, miners, fishermen, railroad constructors, and factory workers. Throughout their long history of settlement in the United States, however, Asian Americans have continuously faced labor exploitation, exclusion, violence, xenophobia, and many other forms of inequities. The legacy of early anti-Asian racism still harms today’s Asian communities in a number of ways, including environmental injustices. To name a few examples, Asian Americans often live in areas with uncontrolled and dangerous waste sites, work in overcrowded and chemical-laden garment factories, and face greater cancer risks from air pollution than white individuals. Although environmental injustices against Asians are under-researched and often under-discussed, it is nevertheless important to acknowledge the inequities they face. 

Mid-20th Century: Civil Rights Movement and the Modern American Conservation Movement

The modern conservation movement of the 1960’s and onwards was another important era for environmental policy. This era saw increasing attention and political energy centered around the public and ecological health effects of various human activities such as pollution and chemical use. Unlike the early conservation movement which predominantly focused on natural resource protection for aesthetic and recreational purposes, this movement also centered around less-apparent human and ecological health implications. 

In 1962, Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, a now-famous book exposing the dangerous environmental and human health effects of widespread pesticide usage, something once thought to be relatively harmless. Carson dedicates most of the book to discussing the environmental effects, such as bioaccumulation, and how pesticides cause significantly more wildlife deaths than those they intend to kill. She also examines cases of human poisoning from pesticides, such as a physician who experienced permanent nerve damage after a year of using a lawn pesticide. The public outcry following Silent Spring’s publication served as one major catalyst for stronger pieces of environmental legislation, and a “Golden Age” of environmental policy followed. Many strong environmental laws, agencies, and policies were created between the 1960’s and 1970’s, including the Clean Air Act of 1963, the Clean Water Act of 1972, and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. The EPA was also established in December of 1970.

While this time period was marked by major environmental protection efforts, many policymakers had not yet understood that the burden of unhealthy environmental conditions were disproportionately placed onto marginalized communities. The country was still grappling with basic civil rights concerns such as segregation, disenfranchisement, and legalized racism. 

The civil rights movement of the 1960’s was notable for many reasons, such as securing voting rights for black individuals, prohibiting segregation, and increasing economic opportunities for African Americans. While it did not directly evolve into today’s environmental justice movement, the civil rights movement paved the way for environmental justice discourse by emphasizing the public health dangers faced by communities of color.

1980’s to the Present: Environmental Justice Movement

The 1980’s marked the beginning of the modern environmental justice movement. Coherent discourse of environmental justice began in the United States when Dr. Robert Bullard, now known as the “father of environmental justice” began studying how waste disposal sites were distributed across Houston, Texas. His initial beliefs that the placement of these sites were racially motivated were later confirmed. Bullard discovered that the vast majority of waste dumps and incinerators were located in black communities, despite African Americans only accounting for 25% of the city’s population. This prompted Bullard to become a leading academic and activist campaigner against environmental racism, helping to shape our understanding of environmental injustice and combat its many sources.

Environmental justice was not immediately recognized by policymakers and members of the general public; grassroots efforts by early environmental justice advocates led, and still lead, the Environmental Justice Movement we know today. Pioneered primarily by people of color who saw first-hand the public health dangers posed by poor environmental quality in their communities, they sought to find solutions that would ensure the health of themselves and their loved ones. 

One of the earliest and most important fights for environmental justice occurred in 1982 during a nonviolent sit-in against Warren County’s PCB Landfill. PCB stands for polychlorinated biphenyls, which are highly toxic organic compounds known to cause birth defects, skin ailments, cancer, and more. North Carolina planned to dispose of 120 million pounds of soil contaminated with PCB in Warren County, a region of the state housing predominantly poor, African American families. Concerned for the health of their community, hundreds of peaceful protesters fought against these plans. Although the protest was ultimately unsuccessful, it spurred the beginning of the Environmental Justice Movement and motivated citizens to examine other instances of environmental injustices across the country. 

Throughout the years, the Environmental Justice Movement has had a large number of notable successes, such as national policy changes and strong pieces of environmental legislation. Now a mainstream movement, many local, state, and federal governments actively work towards achieving its goals. The Environmental Justice Movement also constantly evolves, with today’s movement now tackling new types of environmental injustices and embracing the fight against climate change. Although a lack of environmental justice awareness caused generations of marginalized communities to suffer, many are hopeful the future will continue to bring even more positive change. 

Further Reading

• EPA environmental justice timeline:
  • https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/environmental-justice-timeline
• National Wildlife Federation report on how climate change disproportionately impacts Native reservations across the United States:
  • https://www.nwf.org/~/media/PDFs/Global-Warming/Reports/TribalLands_ExtremeWeather_Report.ashx
• More information on Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring and its legacy:
  • https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/whatischemistry/landmarks/rachel-carson-silent-spring.html
• Toxic Wastes and Race – This 1987 study conducted by the United Church of Christ Commission on Racial Justice was the first to examine and address the links between class, race, and the environment on a national level:
  • https://www.ucc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/toxic-wastes-and-race-at-twenty-1987-2007.pdf
• Columbia Climate School report on why climate change is an environmental justice issue:
  • https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/09/22/climate-change-environmental-justice/
• More information on how Native groups were removed from their homelands in order to create several of today’s national parks:
  • https://www.intermountainhistories.org/tours/show/30
• Environmentalism and the legacy of colonialism:
  • https://www.humanrightspulse.com/mastercontentblog/environmentalism-and-the-legacy-of-colonialism

Current Policies and Challenges

The Current Policies and Challenges section will discuss existing environmental justice policies on a local, state, and national level, examine the ever-changing challenges posed by worsening wealth inequalities, climate change repercussions, and conflicting political party stances on environmental justice issues. 

Local Policies

Over the last few decades, elected officials on local, state, and federal levels have tried to tackle environmental injustices through legislation and policy changes. Policies on environmental justice are most varied at the local level, and have brought about significant change within their respective communities. 

Local policies and laws aimed at combating environmental justice issues are predominantly found in large coastal cities. Although these policies do exist in other areas of the United States, municipalities along the continental coastlines tend to have larger, more established environmental justice communities, as well as political environments that are more accepting of environmental justice reforms. Municipalities typically work towards environmental justice using six strategies:

1. Bans: Banning specific land uses or industries is a direct and effective way to prevent harmful human activities that put humans and the environment at risk. For example, California’s Oakland region issued Ordinance 13385 in 2016 which stopped coal loading, unloading, storage, stockpiling, and handling within the city. This benefited environmental justice communities who would have faced the greatest environmental burdens and health repercussions from coal facilities. 
2. Environmental Justice Policies and Programs: Establishing policies and instituting programs that affect local decision-making are another way municipalities further environmental justice. An example can be seen in San Francisco’s Environmental Justice Program, which includes a diverse set of steps and programs to promote environmental equity within the city. Those include the creation of parks and open-space areas, a Community Health Plan, and millions of dollars in community grants to nonprofit groups helping vulnerable individuals. 
3. Review Processes: Before a proposed urban development project (e.g. buildings, roads, etc.) can be constructed and put into operation, review processes must first be carried out in order to assess its environmental impact. Municipalities aiming to reduce local environmental injustices often add an environmental justice component to the review process, ensuring that new developments do not disproportionately impact communities already burdened by poor environmental quality. For example, Cincinnati’s 2009 Environmental Justice Ordinance states that all proposed development projects within the city must first obtain an environmental justice permit from the Cincinnati Office of Environmental Quality before operation can begin.
4. Proactive Planning: Anticipating future city development requires special foresight and planning. Some municipalities address environmental justice by creating comprehensive guides and goals that promote the development of cities in an environmentally equitable way. For example, Eugene, Oregon’s 2013 Envision Eugene Development Plan guides policies for land use planning that consider environmental justice goals.
5. Targeting Existing Land Uses: Environmental injustices are commonly a result of past permitting of toxic facilities, decades of economic disinvestment, and poor enforcement of environmental standards. It is relatively easier to plan appropriately and prevent environmental injustices from occurring than to deal with existing land use issues. Sometimes, the environmental burdens faced by marginalized communities are so difficult to tackle through land use and zoning approaches that other methods become necessary. Instead, municipalities can utilize targeted mitigation efforts such as the phasing out of harmful land uses, ensuring stronger code enforcement, and creating buffer zones.
6. Public Health Codes and Policies: Cities adopt and enforce codes that protect citizens from various forms of pollution. These forms of pollution include soil water, and air pollution, and can also include other forms such as noise pollution, odor pollution, and light pollution. One example of cities using health codes to advance environmental equity can be seen in San Francisco’s Health Code Article 38. For new residential construction projects located in areas with poor air quality (commonly areas with large minority and low-income communities), this code protects public health by requiring the installation of stronger ventilation. 

Image 4.1: This image from the Natural Resources Defense Council highlights the diversity found in local policies that work towards environmental justice. Although this image is not comprehensive of all local environmental justice policies within the United States, it shows the presence of bans, proactive planning, and other types of reform in various parts of the country. 

State Policies 

State-level involvement to address environmental injustice can take similarly diverse forms as those seen in local governments. Statewide bans on certain activities, strengthened review processes, establishments of environmental justice programs, and more, are commonly seen in states committed to furthering environmental justice. Some examples of states promoting environmental justice include:

1. New York: New York’s 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act is one of the world’s most ambitious climate laws, and a monumental environmental justice effort. As written in the law, actions aimed at reducing the state’s greenhouse gas emissions “should prioritize the safety and health of disadvantaged communities, control potential regressive impacts of future climate change mitigation and adaptation policies on these communities, and prioritize the allocation of public investments in these areas.” 
2. Oregon: In 1997, Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality adopted an Environmental Justice Policy in order to ensure environmental equity within the state. Some of the principles outlined within the policy included contaminated land cleanups in marginalized communities, encouraging public feedback for the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission, and supporting local environmental justice groups. 
3. California: In 2016, California became the first state to require environmental justice considerations within general city plans. It also provides environmental justice communities with financial benefits taken from the state’s cap-and-trade program on greenhouse gases. 

Figure 4.2: This image, taken from a 2021 study on state trends in environmental justice legislation, details which states adopted, or are attempting to adopt, laws that promote environmental justice. Although less than half of all states have fully enacted environmental justice regulations and policies, many others have attempted to do so as well. 

National Policies

The federal response to environmental justice issues has not historically been as direct and ambitious as policies found on state and local levels. Environmental justice was first federally validated through Executive Order (EO) 12898, which was signed by President Clinton in 1994. This order instructed federal agencies to identify environmental injustices, implement environmental justice strategies, and promote political participation in decision-making processes. Among EO 12898’s more notable contributions towards environmental equity was aligning the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) with environmental justice goals. Although its initial creation in 1969 did not discuss environmental justice, NEPA now strongly encourages federal agencies to consider environmental justice implications before taking any major federal actions or activities. 

More recently, the Biden Administration has made strides towards a more environmentally equitable country that is unmatched by past presidencies. In order to protect communities with less political power, Biden has guided agencies to direct funding for environmental justice advancements, incorporated environmental justice goals into environmental reviews, and more. Biden has embraced environmental justice in a way no prior administration has, and many are hopeful that his steps will continue to reduce the environmental burdens experienced by the country’s vulnerable communities. 

Challenges: Climate Change

Climate change poses new environmental justice challenges that disproportionately impact already-vulnerable communities. Oftentimes, those who produce the fewest greenhouse gas emissions experience climate change’s greatest risks. Some of the new climate change-related challenges include:

1. Higher wildfire risks
2. Extreme high heat levels
3. Greater heatwave frequency
4. Greater hurricane severity
5. Increased flooding severity
6. Extreme low temperature levels
7. Reduced agricultural yields
8. Stronger droughts
9. Rising sea levels
10. Increasingly dangerous winter storms

Challenges: Wealth Inequality

The wealth divide among upper-income families and middle- and lower-income families has risen sharply over the last few decades. Increasingly severe income inequalities between different classes of Americans puts many citizens at an environmental disadvantage. As previously discussed, being low-income or homeless makes one more likely to experience poor environmental conditions such as polluted air, water, and soil. Additionally, as the wealth divide pushes more Americans further into poverty, it reduces their ability to access the decision-making process that shapes the environment in which they live.

Figure 4.3: This image, taken from a 2020 Pew Research Center study, details the increasing wealth gap between American economic classes. Over the last few decades, it is evident that upper income families hold significantly more wealth than years prior, meanwhile lower and middle income families have seen little to no increase.

Challenges: Political Party Conflict

The United States is a hyperpolarized nation, with Democrats and Republicans often finding themselves at opposite ends of many conversations, including those involving environmental justice. According to a 2014 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, the last few decades have seen more Democrats align with consistently liberal beliefs, and Republicans with consistently conservative beliefs. Partisan animosity is also on the rise, with more Democrats and Republicans harboring highly negative opinions of the opposing party. This hyperpolarization is not only apparent among everyday American citizens; it is especially evident amongst the elected officials who shape the country’s laws and policies. 

Donald Trump, America’s 45th President, was known for his denial of climate change. His administration undermined efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions by withdrawing from the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, weakening greenhouse gas regulations, and aiming to revive the coal mining industry. Furthermore, the Trump Administration reversed environmental policies which greatly affected low-income communities. Some of these examples include:

• Restricting funding for the EPA, including its environmental justice programs
• Relaxing coal ash regulations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Because power plants that produce toxic coal ash are usually located in environmental justice communities, this decision had negative implications for vulnerable residents nearby. 
• Removing the ban on chlorpyrifos, a pesticide with harmful health impacts that primarily impact low-income farm workers.
• Cutting funding for environmental law enforcement, creating opportunities for environmental injustices to go unnoticed and unmitigated. 

In contrast, the current President Joe Biden expressed a strong commitment to delivering environmental justice early in his presidency. Within the first 90 days of being sworn into office, he:

• Supported legislation funding environmental justice programs  
• Signed Executive Order 14008 to address climate change and environmental justice issues
• Created two White House councils in order to address environmental justice implementation
• Appointed Michael Regan as head of the EPA, who aligned all EPA offices with environmental justice goals

As evidenced by the last two administrations’ stances on climate change and environmental justice, Democrats and Republicans generally do not share similar beliefs and priorities regarding these issues. Without bipartisan agreements and cooperation, progress towards environmental equity may become increasingly difficult to achieve. 

Image 4.4 – This image illustrates how the American public has become increasingly politically polarized over the last few decades. Beliefs shared by members of both parties became more divided, with Democrats expressing more consistently liberal opinions and Republicans expressing more consistently conservative opinions. 

Further Reading

• An examination of environmental justice under the Trump Administration:
  • https://dc.law.utah.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1173&context=scholarship
• Study detailing the increase in wealth and income disparities across the United States:
  • https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/01/09/trends-in-income-and-wealth-inequality/
• Explanation of climate change and its consequences:
  • https://www.nrdc.org/stories/global-climate-change-what-you-need-know
• Local policies for environmental justice:
  • https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/local-policies-environmental-justice-national-scan-tishman-201902.pdf
• State trends in environmental policy:
  • https://www.waste360.com/legislation-regulation/state-trends-environmental-justice-legislation

Policy Alternatives and Reforms

The Policy Alternatives and Reforms section discusses recent and ongoing efforts to reduce environmental inequities in the United States, and suggestions for how to adequately address environmental injustices moving forward. 

Recent and Ongoing Efforts Within the United States

As of September 2020, New Jersey is now home to one of the United States’ strongest pieces of legislation combating environmental injustices. In September 2020, Governor Phil Murphy signed Senate Bill 232. This bill made it mandatory for certain facilities to undergo a comprehensive review of public health impacts on overburdened communities before an operational permit can be issued. Because this law ensures that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection will deny permits to facilities who disproportionately harm vulnerable communities, it is a large and historic step towards environmental equity within the state. 

In March 2021, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed a Climate Law aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting overburdened populations. This new legislation seeks to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2050, and mandates environmental impact assessments for any project that may affect air quality in vulnerable communities.

Six Georgia Representatives recently introduced House Bill 432 in February 2021. If approved, this law would be Georgia’s first-ever piece of legislation that directly addresses environmental inequity. The bill aims to create Georgia’s first Environmental Justice Commission, a group of 22 individuals from diverse backgrounds who analyze facilities across the state and their environmental justice impacts. The Commission would also publicize their findings, and guide legislative efforts it deems necessary to mitigate the burdens faced by disadvantaged communities.

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker recently reintroduced a Congressional bill looking to advance environmental justice goals on a federal level. In August 2021, Booker reintroduced the Environmental Justice Act, stating that “clean air and clean water shouldn’t be luxuries for the privileged”. The bill seeks to advance environmental justice by codifying and expanding EO 12898, requiring cumulative impact analyses under the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act, Congressionally authorizing environmental justice grant programs, and more. 

More Potential Reforms

Combating Food Deserts/Food Insecurity

• Supporting community gardens and farmers markets for low-income individuals facing food insecurity
• Improving public transportation to provide rural and/or car-less individuals with better access to grocery stores
• Building affordable, government-owned grocery stores selling fresh produce in regions with food deserts

Preparing for Climate Change-Related Disasters

• Relocating low-income housing projects away from regions especially vulnerable to flooding
• Ensuring proper evacuation of environmental justice communities when faced with wildfire risks, hurricane warnings, etc. through improved public transportation and other evacuation assistance programs
• Providing housing for disadvantaged individuals facing severe property damage and/or loss following natural disasters

Monetary Support

• Provide financial compensation to residents facing health consequences associated with environmental injustices
• Reduce poverty and financially uplift disadvantaged communities
• Financially aid the relocation of vulnerable individuals and families living in environmentally harmful/risky regions (e.g. within a close proximity to waste incinerators)

Cleaning Contaminated Environments

• Prioritizing environmental cleanups within disadvantaged communities
• Repurposing abandoned/underutilized urban lots to create green spaces in disadvantaged communities

Valuing Marginalized Voices

• Mandating discussions with tribal governments/indigenous communities before making decisions that affect their lands

Spreading Awareness

• Encouraging schools to educate students on environmental justice

Reflection Questions

1. How important is environmental inequity to you? Would you vote for a candidate who did not share your views on this issue?
2. Can you name any instances where environmental injustices impacted your life/the life of someone you know?
3. Are you satisfied with the level of attention and political energy environmental justice currently receives? Would you like to see more/less of it?
4. Do you believe one answer to environmental injustice is increased government intervention and creating more environmental regulations? 
5. Would you consider environmental justice to be in the top tier of your political priorities? 
6. How has your opinion on the importance of environmental justice as a policy issue changed, if at all?

Make Your Voice Heard

Taking action to promote environmental equity does not have to be a daunting task. In fact, there are many ways one can stay involved and bring about meaningful change.

1. Continue to stay educated: Understanding and continuing to update your knowledge of environmental justice is a powerful first step towards environmental equity. There are many tools you can use to stay informed on environmental justice issues. A few examples are: 
   1. The EPA’s environmental justice resource webpage: Includes a long list of websites you can visit to learn more essential information relating to environmental justice.
   2. The EPA’s EJSCREEN mapping tool is one you can use to explore environmental injustices within your community and beyond. 
   3. The EJAtlas is a tool you can use to research documented environmental justice issues around the world. 
2. Educate others: Help spread the message of environmental justice by sharing this page and additional ACE resources, such as the environmental justice brief.
3. Vote for political candidates who prioritize environmental justice.
   1. Register to vote
4. Contact your representatives: Call or email your House Representative and Senators and tell them you want them to consider environmental justice concerns. 
   1. Find your House Representative 
   2. Find your Senators 
   3. Sample email: Dear [Their name], My name is [Your name] and I am a resident of [your district/state]. I am very concerned about ongoing environmental injustices and I want to see concrete steps to effectively work towards a more environmentally equitable future. The main reforms I would like to see are [list your main issues, for example: making environmental justice analyses mandatory, adequately informing marginalized community members of the environmental risks they face, etc.]. Thank you for your time, and I hope you will take the matter seriously.
5. Donate or volunteer for elected officials who prioritize environmental justice. Some examples are:
   1. President Joe Biden
   2. Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey
   3. New Jersey Senator Cory Booker
   4. Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth
   5. California Representative Raul Ruiz 
6. Contact the EPA about environmental justice concerns
7. Report environmental violations that you or someone you know has encountered
8. Support the groups working towards environmental justice: There are many organizations who work to elevate marginalized voices and organize/advocate for more environmentally equitable conditions. You can support them by donating, volunteering, and sharing their content so that it reaches a wider audience. A few examples of such organizations are:
   1. WE ACT for Environmental Justice
   2. Environmental Justice Foundation
   3. Climate Justice Alliance
   4. Indigenous Environmental Network
   5. Communities for a Better Environment

Appendix 1: Key Terms

1.1 Environmental Justice

Environmental justice can take on one of two meanings. First, it is commonly used to describe a field of study concerned with the disproportionate environmental burdens and risks experienced by disadvantaged communities. Researchers studying environmental justice often investigate how land use plans, pollution, emergency preparedness, climate change, and other environmental issues unfairly afflict the country’s most vulnerable individuals.

Second, environmental justice can also be used to describe the growing social movement aimed at reducing environmental inequities. The Environmental Justice Movement works to promote and achieve both social justice and environmental conservation goals. Advocates also fight for improvements in the social participation and political engagement of marginalized groups. Greater input from disadvantaged communities ensures that their voices are heard by policymakers, and allows them to shape the decisions that directly affect their lives.

1.2 Environmental Racism

Environmental racism is a concept that stems from the study of environmental justice. Environmental racism falls under the scope of environmental injustices, but is a more specific term that describes environmental inequities arising from one’s race. Dr. Robert Bullard, the father of environmental justice, defines environmental racism as “any policy, practice, or directive that differentially affects or disadvantages (whether intended or unintended) individuals, groups, or communities based on race or color.”

1.3 Climate Change

Climate change describes the long-term changes to Earth’s wind, precipitation, temperature patterns. Current observable changes in the global climate are largely attributable to human activity, such as fossil fuel combustion and other greenhouse gas emissions. These gases enter the Earth’s atmosphere where they absorb heat and radiate it back towards Earth’s surface. Climate change contributes to rising global temperatures, stronger heat waves, drought, sea level rise, destructive hurricanes, and a host of other negative effects. Climate change is an environmental justice issue because its resulting environmental challenges will disproportionately impact already-vulnerable communities.

1.4 Reforms

Political reforms are attempts to improve systems, policies, institutions, or practices that are seen as unsatisfactory. Many environmental justice advocates fight for political reforms that reduce the environmental burdens and risks experienced by disadvantaged communities. 

1.5 Grassroots Movement

Grassroots movements are political campaigns organized by everyday people. Through the use of collective action, grassroots groups fight for political change on the local, state, federal, and even international level. Grassroots groups in support of environmental justice continuously work to improve government regulations, environmental policies, and political participation amongst underrepresented groups.

1.6 ColonialismColonialism refers to the violent political and economic control of one country/territory over another. Colonialism aims to exploit dominated regions economically and occupy them with settlers. During colonialism, colonizers often force their religion, culture, language, and economic systems upon the colonized. Today, the United States’ legacy of colonialism continues to harm indigenous communities and the lands they inhabited for millennia