Previous Environmental Justice News 2024

Was Van Gogh an Environmentalist Ahead of His Time? 12-19-24

Two new books explore how artists have captured the human impacts on the environment – including the iconic Vincent van Gogh. Read more


With NJ’s Tough New Environmental Justice Law in Place, Why Is Newark in Line for Another Power Plant? 11-15-24

Activists in Newark’s Ironbound neighborhood say enough is enough.


Meatpacking Plants Mostly Pollute Low-income, Communities of Color, EPA Data Shows 10-25-24

Postville, Iowa, has long dealt with the fallout from Agri Star Meat and Poultry, the town’s largest employer. Read more


New Survey Puts Human Face on Pollution Caused By U.S. Wood Pellet Mills 10- 24-24

Forest biomass companies working in the U.S. Southeast in 2023 produced 9.54 million metric tons of wood pellets for export at their 28 mills scattered across the region. Read more


What a Second Trump Presidency Could Mean For Indigenous Peoples 10-03-24

Under the Biden-Harris administration, tribes got more of a say in Congress and tons more funding. A Trump-Vance win could upend that. Read more


Deja Vu Comes to Arkansas as Lithium Follows Oil 09-25-24

In the energy towns of Arkansas, the coming lithium rush is bringing with it the risk of repeating the same mistakes and inequities of the past. Read more


A New Salvo in the Fight to Protect the “holy grail” of Environmental Justice 09-20-24

Residents and legal advocates ask the EPA to keep enforcing Title VI civil rights protections Read more


Heat Exposure, Cloudy Water, and Bad Air: The Data Gap of Toxic Prisons 09-18-24

There’s been a proliferation of data-driven mapping tools that illuminate disparities in environmental harm, but they do little to compel suitable solutions — especially for incarcerated people. Read more


The Fossil Fuel Industry is Disproportionately Harming Low-income and Minority Women 09-17-24

“Women, in all of their diversity, must be at the center of climate and energy decision-making.”


Op-ed: “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you” — disabling environments in Cancer Alley and the Ohio River Valley 09-04-24

…struggles of environmental justice often fall on deaf ears.


NYC’s Food Delivery Workers Are Sweltering in the Heat — and Demanding More Protection 08-30-24

“We risked our health for the delivery companies during COVID, and now we are doing it again.” Read more


The Long History of Black Collegiate Sororities Mobilizing Voters 08-20-24

Vice President Kamala Harris’s almost 40-year membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA) has been reported on since she first ran for elected office in 2003. Read more


Exposed 07-11-24

Latino farmworkers risk their health working under threat of pesticide exposure. José Soria refused to keep working on a sweet potato field in North Carolina. Read more


Biden Admin Unveils First-ever Heat Protections For Workers. Here’s What to Know. 07-02-24

The proposal comes as Americans endure another summer of record-breaking temperatures. Read more


Real-time Data Show the Air in Louisiana’s ‘Cancer Alley’ is Even Worse Than Expected 06-11-24

A new study finds levels of the carcinogen ethylene oxide that are 9 times higher than those estimated by the EPA’s models. Read more


Heat Waves Are Making Restaurant Kitchens Unsafe. Workers Are Fighting Back. 06-10-24

When workers at the sandwich chain Homegrown unionized, they knew heat was one of their main issues. Read more


What’s the Difference Between Indigenous Nations Co-managing or Co-stewarding Their Land? A Lot. 05-24-24

Being a “steward” of the land isn’t enough for Native peoples. Read more


Global Tribunal Issues ‘Historic’ Ruling for Oceans and Small Island Nations 05-21-24

“Protecting the global commons of the oceans and atmosphere is a matter of life and death,” said one expert who praised the decision. Read more


Arizona Wants to Mine Uranium Near the Grand Canyon. Tribal Nations Are Fighting Back. 05-06-24

“The tribes fought very hard for the establishment of the monument and are here to defend it.” Read more


Texas Inmates Are Being ‘cooked to death’ in Extreme Heat, Complaint Alleges 05-04-24

With the threat of another hot summer ahead, advocates asked a federal judge to declare 100-degree-plus conditions in uncooled Texas facilities unconstitutional. Read more


DOJ Thinks Enbridge Line 5 Pipeline is Trespassing on Tribal Lands 04-12-24

But the agency stopped short of telling company to move. Read more


Water From Arsenic-laced Wells Could Protect the Pine Ridge Reservation From Wildfires 04-09-24

“We’re looking to deal with extended drought and the increasing intensity of wildfires.” Read more


In Chicago, One Neighborhood is Fighting Gentrification and Climate Change at the Same Time 04-05-24

The secret to success? Build affordable housing next to transit. Read more


Industry Poisoned a Vibrant Black Neighborhood in Houston. Is a Buyout the Solution? 03-06-24

“Do you have to lose your history, your culture, or your identity in that process?” Read more


Illinois EPA Must Revamp Its Permitting Process After Chicago Activists File Civil Rights Complaint 02-26-24

“It shouldn’t have to be this hard to get these common sense rules in place.” Read more


A Geothermal Energy Boom Could Be Coming to Chicago’s South Side 02-23-24

The key to building low-carbon infrastructure in the city? Its trademark alley Read more


Micro Solar Leases: A New Income Stream for Black Farmers in the South? 02-14-24

EnerWealth Solutions wants to bring the benefits of renewable energy to Black farmers and landowners in the Carolinas.


Campus Divestment Activists Eye Fossil Fuel Profits on Stolen Land 02-09-24

Grist investigation reveals 14 land-grant universities making millions off Indigenous land.


Michael Mann, a Leading Climate Scientist, Wins His Defamation Suit 02-08-24

The researcher had sued two writers for libel and slander over comments about his work. The jury awarded him damages of more than $1 million. Read more


Misplaced Trust 02-07-24

Stolen Indigenous land is the foundation of the land-grant university system. Climate change is its legacy. Read more


Ignoring Indigenous Rights is Making the Green Transition More Expensive 02-02-24

“If you’re going to develop energy in the U.S. you’ve got to do it with the support of tribal communities.” Read more


Lost Photographs of Black America 02-01-24

A trove of images from the 1960s and ’70s, discovered in a Swedish bank vault, offers new perspectives on the past—and the present.


How a Black Miami Neighborhood Became ‘ground zero for climate gentrification’ 01-29-24

A documentary, Razing Liberty Square, examines the plight of families in Liberty City as developers ‘revitalize’ community on desirable higher land. Read more


How an Oil Boom in North Dakota Led to a Boom in Evictions 01-19-24

New study links surge of oil workers to long-term residents losing their homes. Read more


Environmental Injustice 01-15-24

“Today, zip code is still the most potent predictor of an individual’s health and well-being” Read more