Environmental Justice

Drawing from class assignments and discussions, explain what is meant by environmental justice.

the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.

Briefly describe the history of the environmental justice movement in the United States

1990: the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources holds the first conference on race and environmental hazards

1991: First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit

1994: President Clinton signs into law Executive Order 12898 to provide federal actions to address environmental justice in minority populations and low-income populations

What are some examples of environmental benefits? Examples of environmental burdens?

Environmental Benefits: Parks, bike baths, green spaces

Environmental Burdens: Waste facilities, factories, energy production, transportation facilities (airports).

Explain why people living in the same city might experience very different environmental conditions.

People can live in urban heat islands compared to other areas where there are more green spaces, in terms of environmental justice, some communities might be closer to more polluted areas compared to others

Briefly describe some examples of environmental injustices found in the Bayview-Hunters Point, Tulare County, and Juristic case studies.

Bayview-Hunters Point: shipyard used as an area for pollutants which affected nearby communities. Bad air quality, leaked areas.

Tulare County: Contaminated water, in ground water, etc, hurting thoughts like agricultural workers who are forced to buy bottled water.

Juristic: Some of the key issues here are the intrusion of the geosphere and biosphere. As well as it affecting the native american tribes. In terms of the intrusion of the geosphere, they want to dig for materials which in turn would greatly affect the biosphere, hurting the biodiversity of the area, hurting natural ecosystems, and more.