Environmental Justice

In 1996, the NEJAC recommended that EPA conduct roundtable meetings to address the needs of many public commenters whose needs could not be addressed at the national level. Local roundtable meetings allow more in-depth discussions of a specific environmental justice issue or of a variety of environmental justice issues focused on a specific area of the country. The San Antonio Roundtable hosted by the NEJAC Enforcement Subcommittee and the EPA's Office of Enforcement/Compliance Assurance addressed local enforcement and compliance concerns in more depth.

Regional roundtables also give an opportunity for involvement by more of the local stakeholders than are able to attend the national NEJAC meetings. Included in many regional roundtables are facilitated breakout sessions where community members can address specific issues of concern with representatives from their specific state agency or local government. There is no schedule for when a roundtable should occur.

U.S. EPA/NEJAC Roundtable on Environmental justice in the U.S.-Mexico border region:

• Region 9, National City, California, August 19 - 21, 1999
  Border Environmental Justice Report (PDF) (1,300KB, 171 pages, about PDF)

U.S. EPA/NEJAC Roundtables on Enforcement issues in EPA:

• Region 4 in Durham, North Carolina, December 11 - 13, 1997.
  
• Region 6, San Antonio, Texas, October 17 - 19, 1996 (PDF) (246KB, 48 pages, about PDF)

U.S. EPA/NEJAC Roundtable on Superfund Relocation issues:

• Pensacola, FL., May 2 - 4, 1996 (PDF) (172KB, 62 pages, about PDF)

• EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response maintains an index of Superfund Relocation Information; if you wish more information about relocation issues and policy.