An April report on the Trump administration's discontinuation of certain environmental efforts indicates that the moves could negatively impact marginalized communities the most.
What's happening?
Reuters recently took a close look at "Cancer Alley," a section of Louisiana so-called because "nearly every census tract in the area ranks in the top 5% nationally for cancer risk." Under new leadership appointed by the current administration, the Environmental Protection Agency withdrew a lawsuit against a local synthetic rubber plant despite concerns about elevated health hazards from the emissions, which disproportionately impact people of color in the predominantly Black region.
The lawsuit dismissal followed President Donald Trump's executive order to end federal diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. In March, the EPA undid over 30 initiatives and scuttled its DEI program as well as its 10 regional environmental justice offices located across the country.
Close to 800 grants in the same vein have also been canceled. The California nonprofit Community Water Center, for example, reportedly lost a multimillion-dollar grant to strengthen access to clean water in low-income neighborhoods.
Weeks before all this, Lee Zeldin was confirmed as the new EPA administrator. Per Reuters, Zeldin emphasized deregulation in his strategy, saying the U.S. can boost economic growth while protecting the environment.
Experts told Reuters that ending the EPA's DEI and environmental justice programs, designed to support those facing pollution where they live and work, will impact Black and Hispanic populations the most. Due to discriminatory legacies and racist housing practices like redlining, neighborhoods near sites of contamination and lacking access to clean water sources are more often communities of color and low-income communities.
Why are environmental justice initiatives important?
Linda Birnbaum, former director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, told Reuters that removing the EPA programs will only cause more harm. "People who are already most impacted by high pollution are going to be most hurt by the loosening of regulations," Birnbaum said.
A 2019 study found that, in the U.S., Black and Hispanic residents breathe in 56% and 63% more pollution, respectively, than they are responsible for producing. White residents breathe in 17% less air pollution than they produce.
Exposure to air pollution can affect almost every organ in the body, per the World Health Organization. Long-term exposure is linked with increased risks for multiple health concerns, including cancer, pulmonary disease, and premature death in those with heart or lung disease.
The potential effects of poor air quality make for just one example demonstrating that marginalized communities, more likely to be living near or on polluted sites, are facing some serious environmental threats at higher rates. And it's why efforts like the EPA's have been working to ensure all people have equal access to healthy, safe homes, working conditions, and recreational spaces.
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Definitely 🥰 What's being done to protect environmental justice?
Although many federal employees working on environmental justice initiatives have faced layoffs and project closures this year, there are still active groups dedicated to protecting communities from environmental dangers.
Activists in Chicago are working to shift the burden of industrial pollution from falling squarely on low-income communities of color.
The Environmental Defense Fund is reporting on the disproportionate impacts of warehouse-related air pollution on marginalized communities in New York.
And advocates like Benjamin Chavis are continuing to raise awareness in the wake of political shifts. Chavis spoke with North Carolina public radio station WFAE in early May:
"The quality-of-life issues are not going to change unless we work hard to ensure that every community has environmental justice; that every community has good air to breathe; every community has good, clean water, uncontaminated water to drink; and every community has food that's not contaminated with these cancer-causing toxins."
Facing funding and staffing cuts, crucial supports for many nonprofits have indeed been weakened, and many organizations are up against existential threats. But residents can still do a lot in their own neighborhoods.
In fact, taking action locally can be extra effective, as participants have strong stakes in the outcomes and well understand their area's needs. Securing wins close to home can also be a great way to build resolve and resilience to take on aims at the national level.
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