Previous Environmental Justice News 2023
Moving South, Black Americans Are Weathering Climate Change 12-15-23
The desire for a better quality of life is pushing Black people toward the epicenter of climate disasters and racism.
Navajo Nation Faces Possible New Threats After Decades of Uranium Mining 12-07-23
A Canadian company is working to move forward with uranium extraction. Read more
Inside the Marshall Islands’ Life-or-death Plan to Survive Climate Change 12-05-23
The Pacific island nation is seeking $35 billion to protect against sea-level rise and prevent a mass exodus. Read more
Where is Noise Pollution the Worst? Redlined Neighborhoods 11-30-23
Nearly all of them are subject to noise levels linked with hearing loss, a study shows. Read more
The Lower Sioux in Minnesota Need Homes — So They Are Building Them From Hemp 11-27-23
The Indigenous nation will soon have the only facility to create hempcrete in the country. Read more
EPA offers $2B to clean up pollution, develop clean energy in poor and minority communities 11-21-23
The Biden administration is making $2 billion available to community groups, states and tribes to clean up pollution and develop clean energy in disadvantaged communities in what officials called the largest-ever investment in environmental justice. Read more
Majority-Black Pennsylvania community fights back against proposed $6 billion LNG terminal 11-02-23
“There’s no place to put it that is not going to be an unbearable, intolerable burden for the people who live near it.”
Segregation’s toxic past re-emerges in North Carolina’s lead-poisoned 10-10-23
Lead was found in several parks in Durham, North Carolina, a legacy of industrial waste in the city’s Black neighborhoods – and worsening segregation doesn’t help. Read more
A gas storage plant and new pipeline disrupt life in this Black community 10-08-23
The environmental health crisis ruminating in Houston’s Southwest Crossing neighborhood is the product of climate change and an unstable energy grid. Read more
In communities of color, most oil and gas jobs still go to white workers 10-06-23
“If one group gets all the pollution and another group gets all the jobs, it’s not really a trade-off anymore.” Read more
New EPA watchdog report says refineries can’t police themselves 09-18-23
Many of these refineries are located in and around neighborhoods of color. Read more
Teaching the full story of public lands 08-22-23
A new curriculum tells a more inclusive history of public land preservation & access in the U.S. Read more
In Jackson, Mississippi, a water crisis that never ends 08-17-23
“It’s a red war on a blue city, and it’s a white war on a Black city.” Read more
Biden, on three-state tour, designates new national monument 08-08-23
Environmentalists and tribal leaders applaud the move; mining companies denounce it. Read more
Infrastructure funding is bringing zero-emission buses to communities that need them most 06-28-23
The awards have already added 1,800 no-emission buses to the nation’s roadways, more than doubling the number of such vehicles in use. Read more
FEMA’s buyout program reduces flood risk. But does it deepen segregation? 06-16-23
A new study shows how federal money for managed retreat may also fuel white flight. Read more
How climate justice could look different — and the same — in the Gulf Coast and Appalachia 06-12-23
Four new reports draw connections between the two regions. Read more
FarmsSHARE connects growers, underserved communities 06-05-23
A farm-to-table program created to provide fresh, locally grown vegetables, fruits and produce to out-of-work food service employees during the pandemic shutdown will be expanding in North Carolina. Read more
Biden Administration Bans Drilling Around Native American Cultural Site 06-02-23
The Interior Department will withdraw public lands around Chaco Canyon from new oil and gas leasing for 20 years. Read more
How an energy giant helped law enforcement quell the Standing Rock protests 05-22-23
New documents show Energy Transfer spent big on police gear and worked with a cadre of spin doctors to fight an information war against protesters. Read more
‘Six times the size of Yosemite’: the new tribal sanctuary off the super-rich California coast 05-18-23
Viewed by the Chumash people as their ancestral home, the Native American tribe is behind the first Indigenous-led initiative to protect the ocean and repair its damaged ecosystem. Read more
Cancer Alley: Pollution Is Making Louisianans Sick, and They’re Fighting Back 05-10-23
In this op-ed, a Louisiana mother and daughter talk about getting involved in climate activism. Read more
This Fund Is Investing $20 Million to Help Black Farmers Thrive 05-10-23
Farmer-activists Karen Washington and Olivia Watkins created the Black Farmer Fund to boost Black farmers, agricultural businesses, and food entrepreneurs in the Northeast with tools, training, and cash. Read more
A landmark investigation brings environmental justice to rural Alabama 05-08-23
Federal investigators found that Alabama neglected a Black community’s sewage and sanitation needs — then punished them for the results. Read more
City planners targeted a Black community for heavy pollution. Can the damage be undone? 05-07-23
Highway and city planners saddled a once-proud Black community with freeways and diesel fumes. Read more
Biden signs order prioritizing ‘environmental justice’ 04-21-23
President Joe Biden on Friday signed an executive order that would create the White House Office of Environmental Justice. Read more
Racial disparities are working against disaster recovery for people of color. Climate change could make it worse 04-17-23
People of color in the US face heightened risks of harm from climate-induced disasters. Now, non-profits are pushing to remedy that disparity with more equitable approaches to disaster preparedness, response and recovery. Read more
In Washington state, a new initiative to boost urban tree cover 04-14-23
The Washington Tree Equity Collaborative aims to bring more greenery to underserved communities. Read more
Recovering the Past: A History That Mirrors My Own 04-04-23
VVCR History Intern Vanessa Moses reflects on the enslaved individuals who built what is now Brownsville Preserve, and finds connections across time in her own family’s history. Read more
Educators and Advocates Critique Ohio Anti-DEI Bill 04-04-23
In the wave of anti-DEI state legislation that has crested over America this year (29 bills in 17 states), the recently introduced Ohio Higher Education Enhancement Act (SB 83) is uniquely comprehensive. Read more
Majority-Black town fights to stop land being seized for gravel quarry rail link 04-03-23
Residents of Sparta, Georgia, are trying to stop the Sandersville railroad and its influential owners from building a spur to a quarry. Read more
Where Does the Money Go in Environmental Grantmaking? 03-29-23
A new study by the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Sustainability Initiative (JEDSI) at the Yale School of the Environment examined nearly $5 billion in grants awarded by 220 foundations in 35 states. Read more
Biden to create national monuments in Nevada and Texas 03-21-23
President Joe Biden on Tuesday will sign proclamations establishing two national monuments in Nevada and Texas. Read more
Black Residents of Cancer Alley Sue Local Government for Discrimination in Siting Chemical Facilities 03-21-23
The St. James Parish Council’s actions continue a long history of racism in this part of Louisiana, the lawsuit claims. Read more
Biden Plans to Name Nevada’s Spirit Mountain Area a National Monument 03-16-23
The biologically diverse land is central to the creation story of the Mojave and other tribes. Energy companies have also identified it as a prime location for wind or solar installations. Read more
Scheduling woes delay Biden’s largest land conservation act 03-10-23
It’s been 100 days since Biden promised to protect Avi Kwa Ame in Nevada. Read more
An Alabama clean water fund discriminated against Black communities, complaint alleges 03-07-23
The state is accused of making access to federal dollars so hard that the people who needed it most got nothing. Read more
Justice Department sues major polluter in Louisiana’s ‘Cancer Alley’ 03-01-23
“EPA is finally treating this health crisis for what it is — an emergency.” Read more
How the seeds of environmental racism were planted in the Progressive Era 02-24-23
Africatown, the only U.S. community established by West Africans who survived the Middle Passage, demonstrates the long roots of environmental injustice. Read more
As Louisiana’s coast disappears, its historic communities are disappearing too 02-22-23
New levees are too late to stop the exodus for bayou villages like Pointe-aux-Chenes. Read more
On the Frontlines in a ‘Cancer Alley,’ Black Women Inspired by Faith Are Powering the Environmental Justice Movement 02-20-23 Read more
Documents show how a pipeline company paid Minnesota millions to police protests 02-09-23
From riot gear to PR to Dairy Queen, records detail every expense Enbridge reimbursed after the Line 3 protests. Read more
Six Environmental Justice Policy Fights to Watch in 2023 01-19-23
These are the issues competing for priority this year as $60 billion earmarked in the Inflation Reduction Act for environmental justice efforts begins to flow into U.S. communities. Read more
‘Environmental racism’ and the mysterious cars rusting in D.C. woods 01-19-23
“They don’t have cars in the woods of Rock Creek Park,” said advocate Nathan Harrington. “I don’t see why we should.” Read more
Environmental racism in Tennessee, fueled by the presence of military bases 01-17-23
As a nationwide phenomenon, environmental racism occurs when low-income people of color are disproportionately exposed to pollution due to the neighborhoods they are forced to live in. Read more
The Martin Luther King Jr. collection at Morehouse – five things I’ve learned 01-12-23
King read voraciously across a wide range of topics, everything from the “The Diary of Anne Frank” to “Candide.” Of course, he also read about theology and religion and philosophy and politics. But he especially enjoyed literature and the works of Leo Tolstoy. Read more
Funding for environmental justice is coming. Will it reach communities most in need? 01-10-23
Michael Regan hardly could have sounded more ardent Tuesday afternoon as he announced that the first $100 million in environmental justice grants made possible by last year’s Inflation Reduction Act will soon become available. Read more
