Finally, Our Government Recognizes EJ

   In 2010 our leaders in Washington D.C finally recognized that environmental justice is an issue that needs to addressed.  In September of 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency revived an interagency working group to confront and fight environmental justice.  Surprisingly, environmental justice is an issued that has been ignored by our nation's capital for an entire decade.  Lisa Jackson, the EPA administrator called this action a movement that is dedicated to put a stop to communities of color being unfairly exposed to environmental hazards; such as, landfills, coal plants a and toxic waste sites being located outlandishly close to them.  The working group aims to lay environmental discrimination to rest. 


   Environmental racism has been ignored because "Officials believed environmental justice was an impediment to business interests", and therefore cast more as an "unfunded mandate than actual law".   Unfortunately, after more then ten year of serious neglect, the problems have only worsened.  The same year the EPA finally began to acknowledge environmental discrimination, the BP oil spill occurred and investigations have found that toxic waste from the spill had "been disproportionately trucked into minority communities".  The population of the coastal counties of Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana is 26 percent minority communities, but for some reason they received 55 percent of the waste from the spill--approximately 21,867 tons of waste.  


  In a 1987 report, it was found that race the biggest factor in predicting a community's exposure to hazardous material.  Sadly, when a similar report was done 20 years later, the findings remained the same.  It is about time that the government firmly tackles environmental racism and actively takes a role in creating changes that are legally bound.  However, the article discussing the developments in the capital was written in 2010 and I have not heard any news of changes or work being done by officials.  Furthermore, the 2012 Presidential Campaign is well underway and none of the candidates has a platform that includes addressing environmental racism.  I suppose it's a step in the right direction for the EPA administrator to acknowledge the issue of environmental discrimination, but the government must foremost collaborate with the communities affected and also collaborate with other communities.  Officials are practically clueless as to the extremity of the hazards and effects brought on by environmental racism, so why not listen to those directly affected?  It seems only logical.  

Waste from the BP oil spill being "disposed of" in a colored community.

Article referenced:  http://www.miller-mccune.com/politics/environmental-justice-comes-back-to-life-23344/

~Eve Hansen