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Region 6 Environmental Justice Program
The guiding principle of the Office of Environmental Justice is that everyone, regardless of race or income, is entitled to share equally in the benefits of environmental protection.
The goal of our Environmental Justice Team is to ensure that all people are protected from disproportionate impacts of environmental hazards. Environmental Justice is about real people facing real problems and designing practical solutions to address challenging environmental issues. The environmental justice movement advocates programs that promote environmental protection within the context of sustainable development.
The Agency's commitment to Environmental Justice was reaffirmed in a November 4, 2005 memo from Administrator Johnson [pdf, 3,560kb, 2 pages]. Region 6 is committed to integrating EJ into our programs and activities.
Click here for a list of Frequently Asked Questions about Environmental JusticeEnvironmental Justice Awards Recognize Local Excellence
Dillard University’s Deep South Center for Environmental Justice and the New Mexico Environment Department have received Environmental Justice Achievement Awards from EPA.
The awards recognize organizations for success in addressing environmental justice issues or adopting the goals of environmental justice to positively impact their community.
The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice mobilized minority residents and minority contractors to participate in the cleanup and rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
The Environment Department developed policies, amended regulations, and worked to affect decision-making with environmental justice goals in mind.
EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice inaugurated the award program this year to recognize organizations for their distinguished accomplishments in addressing environmental justice issues. EPA received dozens of nominations from across the United States. Twelve awards were given to community-based organizations, universities and state and local governments from nine states.
Environmental Justice Achievement Awards
EPA Awards $1 Million for Environmental Justice Projects
In a ceremony held in Washington, D.C., EPA awarded $100,000 grants to 10 community-based organizations for projects aimed at addressing environmental and public health issues as childhood asthma, farm worker pesticide protection, fish consumption, indoor air quality, drinking water contamination, and lead poisoning prevention. "From Rochester, New York to Oakland, California, engaged communities across the country are seizing the opportunity to clean up their own backyard," said Granta Nakayama, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. The purpose of the Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Program is to assist affected communities so that they can develop proactive, strategic, and visionary approaches to address their environmental justice issues and to achieve community health and sustainability. The Region 6 recipients, the Louisiana Environmental Justice Community Organization Coalition, plan to reduce exposure of residents to toxic air emissions from industrial facilities.
EPA Provides Spanish and Chinese Language Web Sites
EPA has launched a new consolidated Chinese-language Web site as part of its ongoing effort to provide environmental information in English, Spanish and Chinese. The new site compiles EPA Chinese-language materials on a wide variety of issues from lead poisoning prevention, energy efficiency, and clean water to proper management of pesticides. The site also serves as a valuable tool in delivering important health and environmental information to the Chinese-speaking community, both here in the U.S. and worldwide, to help protect local communities as well as the global environment. Chinese is the third most widely-spoken language in the U.S., after English and Spanish.
To view EPA’s Chinese site, visit: http://www.epa.gov/chinese.
To view EPA’s Spanish portal, visit: www.epa.gov/espanol.
Supplemental Environmental Projects
SEPs are environmentally beneficial projects that a violator voluntarily agrees to undertake during settlement of an enforcement action. The purpose of a SEP is to secure significant environmental or public health protection improvements beyond those achieved by bringing the violator into compliance.
Click here to learn more about SEPs in Region 6.
EPA study looks for better asbestos removal technology
More than three years ago, EPA’s Office of Research and Development and Region 6 embarked on a project to evaluate an alternative method to speed up efforts to demolish abandoned, dilapidated buildings containing asbestos.
Click here to learn more about the Alternative Asbestos Control Method