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Washington, DC - Today Senators John Kerry (D - Mass.) and Richard Durbin (D - Ill.) together with U.S. Representatives Hilda Solis (D - Calif.) and Alcee Hastings (D - Fla.) introduced the Public Health and Environmental Equality Act, which will protect public health, environmental and environmental justice laws during the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina.
Hurricane Katrina caused an unprecedented environmental and public health crisis in the Gulf Coast region. Not only did 9 major oil spills occur, but 60 underground storage tanks, 5 Superfund sites, and numerous hazardous waste facilities were hit. Over 1,000 drinking-water systems were disabled and lead and E-Coli levels in the floodwaters have far passed the EPA’s safe levels.
The Public Health and Environmental Equality Act resolves that public health and environmental laws should be protected during the time residents of the Gulf Coast need them most. Low-income and minority communities - those most negatively affected by pollution and poor environmental standards - are also those who have been hardest hit by Katrina’s wrath. Protecting these environmental laws will help those most affected communities and protect the environment from greater risk for future generations. The bill is an important signal that many in Congress will stand against the opportunistic and needless repeal of environmental and health protections in the name of rebuilding after Katrina.
“The victims of Katrina must not be victimized twice, first by a hurricane then by Washington's assault on clean air and clean water. It's wrong to talk one week about the poverty of the Gulf Coast then the next week rollback basic safeguards that protect children in our most needy communities from permanent health risks,” Senator Kerry said. “Every family in the Gulf Coast deserves decent public health and environmental protections, and a callous leadership in Washington should not exploit this moment by launching a shameful sneak attack on environmental justice. I am proud to work with Senator Durbin, Representatives Solis and Hastings on this important effort.”
Senator Durbin added, “This issue is about ensuring that the victims of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita are not victimized again. For the well-being of all Gulf Coast residents, we must ensure that public health is protected and that environmental compliance remains a priority.”
“I believe that as responsible policymakers we should be pushing for greater protections for the poor, the elderly, children, minorities and other under-served communities - not selling off their health to the highest corporate bidder,” Representative Solis said. “These communities are the most likely to become sick and suffer because of dirty air and water, the most likely to live in closer proximity to refineries, toxic dumps and hazardous waste sites, and the least likely to be able to protect themselves. Hurricane Katrina showed the vulnerabilities of our nation's infrastructure and safety net. As we rebuild the Gulf Coast and plan for our nation's future, we should remember the suffering of Katrina and do more - not less - to protect public health and the environment.”
Representative Alcee Hastings said, “When you look at the areas that were and still are flooded in New Orleans, we know who lives there, we know what they look like, and we know their income bracket. What good are we doing in sending people home to drink water that isn't potable, walk on soil that is contaminated, and breath air that downright toxic. The first inclination is obviously to get people back in their homes. But that inclination alone is not enough to give the Bush Administration carte blanche authority to waive every critical environmental regulation on the books. ”
The Public Health and Environmental Equality Act resolves that:
Hurricane Katrina and other such disasters will not be used to weaken, waive, or roll back Federal public health, environmental and environmental justice laws;
State, local, and regional authorities retain their authority for compliance and permitting of industrial and other facilities and their role in enforcing cleanup;
Testing, monitoring, cleanup and recovery in the Gulf Coast region is completed in a manner designed to protect public health and the environment and ensure habitability of the region;
Federal rebuilding of communities and the economy of the Gulf Coast region becomes a model of the integrated, diverse and sustainable society that all Americans desire and deserve.
The act is co-sponsored by: Senators Durbin, Reid, Obama, Boxer, and Jeffords and Representatives Solis, Hastings, Leader Pelosi, Allen, Andrews, Baldwin, Berman, Tim Bishop, Blumenauer, Capps, Christensen, Clyburn, Conyers, Crowley, Jim Davis, Doggett, Grijalva, Hinchey, Honda, Jefferson, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Kaptur, Kucinich, Lee, John Lewis, Matsui, McGovern, George Miller, Menendez, Nadler, Napolitano, Owens, Pallone, Payne, Rangel, Linda Sanchez, Schwartz, Serrano, Udall, Van Hollen, Wexler.
It is supported by the National Black Environmental Justice Network, the Breast Cancer Fund, the National Hispanic Environmental Council and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
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