Partners in Science: Environmental Justice

Environmental justice works to ensure that all people are protected from disproportionate environmental and health hazards, and benefit from clean, healthy surroundings and sustainable economic development. Communities are at the core of environmental justice, and it was the actions of hundreds of residents that resulted in a presidential directive being signed on February 11, 1994, Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, which mandates 17 Federal agencies and White House offices to make environmental justice an integral part of their missions. Through an Interagency Working Group (IWG) on Environmental Justice, these Federal agencies and White House offices support community-based efforts to identify and use Federal resources to aid environmentally and economically distressed communities. By building partnerships between tribal, state, and local governments and community and non-governmental organizations, the IWG promotes Federal support of solutions that begin in the community and remain in the community. Their Action Agenda is based on the proven principle that environmental decisions are made best by those who are affected by these decisions.

The Office of Research and Development (ORD) supports the Agency's environmental justice activities through executive membership on the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC). In addition, an ORD Office of Science Policy representative serves as the co-Designated Federal Official (co-DFO) to the NEJAC Health and Research Subcommittee with a representative from the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances.

ORD's charge is to identify research needs to be assessed within the established ORD planning process and to coordinate responses to information requests from EPA's Office of Environmental Justice.

Recent Activities

• OSP co-sponsored with OPPTS and the Office of Environmental Justice a meeting of the Health and Research Subcommittee of the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC) on December 11, 2002. Key discussion topics included the Contaminated Sediments Science Plan that represents the first example of an Agency plan on a specific cross-Agency Office and Region-wide activity. The Subcommittee is reviewing the document with special emphasis on the Risk Communication and Community Involvement section and will provide recommendations by mid-January to the Agency's Contaminated Sediments Workgroup.

  In addition, Region 2 shared data collected in response to concerns of Subcommittee members on the impacts of the “9-11 tragedy” on surrounding communities, particularly “at-risk” (e.g., low-income, minority, and tribal) communities, and what steps have been taken to address community needs.
  For more information on this meeting, please contact Sam Williams at 202-564-6782 or williams.sam@epa.gov.

• On December 3-6, 2001, the Subsistence Consumption Water Quality Standards Meeting was held in Seattle, WA, to examine the proposed water quality standards, and the fish consumption patterns between various minority and ethnic groups, and the issue of environmental justice. The NEJAC meeting was held to allow and encourage public participation.