Indicators of Environmental Health Disparities
EPA’s indicators of environmental health disparities identify and illustrate the disparities in key environmental and public health conditions, and to describe EPA’s activities that may contribute to reductions in these disparities and overall health burdens.
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Indicators of Environmental Health Disparities: Overview
In EPA’s FY2022-2026 Strategic Plan, the agency committed to assembling a set of indicators of disparities in environmental and public health conditions relevant to the agency’s work, consistent with the broader effort to advance environmental justice. These indicators represent health concerns that may impact millions of Americans. In sharing information about these environmental health disparities, EPA aims to inform the public about the inequitable distribution of health burdens and demonstrate how EPA and our partners play a role in addressing these burdens.
EPA’s mission is to protect human health and the environment. The selection of these indicators was informed by EPA’s scientific expertise as well as decades of statutorily authorized activities that the Agency has undertaken to advance its mission and to achieve measurable environmental, public health, and quality of life improvements in overburdened, vulnerable, and underserved communities. These indicators are intended solely as an informational tool and are not intended to be the basis for agency decision making. EPA does not, consistent with applicable laws, distribute governmental benefits or burdens based on race, color, national origin, or sex.
Each of these indicators represents an environmental health concern or potential health impact that can be influenced by a wide range of factors, including lifestyle choices, genetic predisposition, and other factors outside of EPA’s jurisdiction. However, through actions under its statutory authorities, grantmaking, and partnerships with federal agencies as well as state, local, and Tribal authorities, EPA is working to help mitigate environmental contributions to these health outcomes and disparities, in alignment with its mission to protect human health and the environment for all individuals.
Because of the wide range of factors shaping these indicators and the length of time necessary for actions to take effect, any influence of EPA actions on these health outcomes will take time to appear in the data. Further, data availability varies by indicator, and indicators will be updated regularly as new data become available.