Environmental Justice at EPA - Transition Paper

The Environmetnal Justice Executive Steering Committee issued the "Environmental Justice at EPA- Transition Paper," on January 23, 2009.

EPA’s EJ program seeks to fully mobilize internal and external resources (programmatic, financial, statutory, and regulatory) to:

Achieve Measurable Environmental and/or Public Health Results in Communities with Greatest Need

Every EPA region and program office has committed to integrate EJ into its daily work through biennial “EJ Action Plans.” Support is needed to increase the Agency’s EJ integration efforts by:

• Ensuring significant measurable EJ results from every program and regional office;

• Affirming EJ program review efforts and direct all offices to continue them;

• Overcoming scientific and other barriers to incorporating EJ in decisionmaking; and

• More consistently incorporating EJ when EPA sets priorities, allocates resources, targets activities, and measures progress.

Climate Change and Green Economy

EJ should align its environmental goals (e.g., reducing greenhousegas and particulate emissions) with social and economic goals (e.g.,eliminating health disparities and creating jobs through the new green economy). EPA should address the disproportionate impacts of climate change and ensure that environmentally and economically distressed communities benefit from the building of a green economy. For example, EPA can:

• Develop partnerships with communities and states to showcase effective strategies, involving multiple agencies; governments, and stakeholders, to improve the environment, public health, andeconomies of disadvantaged communities, with a particular focus on creating green jobs; and

• Ensure EJ considerations are reflected when EPA develops climate change policies and regulations.

Action in the First 100 days:

Promote the creation of green jobs in economically distressed communities. Disadvantaged communities will benefit from constructing accessible mass transit; making homes, public buildings, and vehicles more energy efficient; implementing renewable energy projects; and other “green”infrastructure improvements.

Action in the First 100 days:

Issue a clear statement of the new Administration’s explicit, unambiguous and formal commitment to EJ. Encourage fulluse of EPA’s existing statutory and regulatory authorities to address disproportionate and cumulative impacts in areas of EJ concerns. Also commit to explore new scientific research and regulatory or statutory changes that are needed to better address these impacts of climate change and ensure that environmentally and economically distressed communities benefit from the building of a green economy. For example, EPA can:

• Develop partnerships with communities and states to showcase effective strategies, involving multiple agencies; governments, and stakeholders, to improve the environment, public health, and economies of disadvantaged communities, with a particular focus on creating green jobs; and
• Ensure EJ considerations are reflected when EPA develops climate change policies and regulations. Geographic InitiativesEPA should use its resources and leverage funding from otheragencies to increase focus on disadvantaged communities that aresuffering the worst environmental burdens. These EJ “Showcase Communities” would provide replicable examples to create green jobs, rebuild infrastructure, reduce environmental and public health problems, and revitalize communities.