Environmental Justice
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ALocalExampleOfEnvironmentalInjustice.edited.docx3
A Local Example of Environmental Injustice
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A Local Example of Environmental Injustice
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), environmental justice is the fair treatment meaningful involvement of all people regardless of color, race, and national origin, income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, policies, and regulations. EPA has made significant efforts to protect everyone from environmental harm in the United States. However, there is still a systematic disparity of exposure to environmental pollution which forces low-income minority groups to bear the burden of associated health risks and problems.
Environmental justice is based on the premise that everyone has a right to be protected from environmental pollution and to live in and enjoy and clean and healthy environment. It also maintains that everyone has a right to equitable distribution of environmental benefits hence the first and most important component of environmental justice is public participation. Closely related is the concept of meaningful involvement which emphasizes meaningful participation in decisions and activities that may affect the environment (EPA, n.d). It ensures that community concerns are considered in the decision-making process thus enhancing the integrity of the environment. It also mandates policymakers to facilitate the involvement of those who are most affected. The third concept is fair treatment which means that no group of people should bear a disproportionate share of negative environmental consequences resulting from industrial, governmental, and commercial operations or policies.
In the United States, communities of color have often been victims of environmental injustice because of living near hazardous pollution. Studies have shown that black and Hispanic communities are exposed to high proportions of pollution, lead poisoning, and other industrial complexes as compared to their white counterparts. For instance, an estimated 70% of contaminated waste sites are situated in low-income neighborhoods, the majority of which are Black and Brown communities (Colarossi, 2020). Some examples of environmental injustice in America are Cancer Alley, Louisiana, Pahokee, Florida, and Cheraw, South Carolina. Cancer Alley is an 85-mile stretch along River Mississippi that is lined with petrochemical plants and oil refineries. The area got its name from the fact that residents of the area are 50 times more likely to develop cancer than the average American. Also, a majority of people who live in the area are predominantly black. As a result, it is the frontline of environmental injustice in America with many alluding it to new slavery. The residents of Pahokee, Florida also face harrowing environmental injustice due to 'black snow' or thick soot that pollutes the environment due to the burning of sugar. Again, the area is dominated by poor black communities. Research indicates that the residents experience a greater amount of respiratory distress and immune system complications (Colarossi, 2020). For Cheraw, Burlington Industries dumped cancer-causing PCBs or polychlorinated biphenyls, and years later, the effects are still felt by the residents of surrounding areas.
One local example of environmental injustice is in the South neighborhoods of Chicago which consists of predominantly Black and Latinx members. Chicago is one of the most segregated cities in America where discriminatory practices in the 1920s segregated minority communities and segregated immigrants into areas that lacked access to education healthcare and job opportunities. This put the communities at a significant disadvantage while exposing them to high-risk jobs in hazardous industrial environments. Even after the fair housing Act of 1968, these practices persist to date. In the west of Chicago, some industries deal in hazardous material thus exposing the people to environmental and health risks. The sociological research questions for this example are:
1. When did it begin and what is its history?
1. Who is responsible? Who contributed?
1. Who is affected by environmental injustice and how are they affected?
1. vi. Why do many believe that more must be done to safeguard the rights of all Americans around environmental health?
1. viii. What are some communities doing to address the problems?
References
United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Environmental Justice. https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/learn-about-environmental-justice
