Office of
Environmental Justice
401 East State Street
7th floor East Wing
Mail Code: 402
Trenton, NJ 08625
PH: (609) 292-2908
FX: (609) 984-3962
|
|
Environmental Protection through Public Involvement.
Today,
investments in New Jersey’s urban centers and older suburbs,
such as preserving open space and brownfields revitalization, are empowering
communities to chart a course for redevelopment that ensures public
health and environmental protection.
Various studies show communities of color and low-income communities
are exposed to a disproportionate amount of industrial pollution and
other environmental hazards. Rooted in the 1960’s Civil Rights
struggle, the Environmental Justice movement seeks to address these
environmental inequities at the local, regional, state and national
level. In 1994, concerned citizens gained the right to address
environmental injustices under Executive Order 12898 entitled, “Federal
Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and
Low-Income
Populations,” signed by President William Clinton. Executive
Order 12898 institutionalizes a mechanism whereby state programs receiving
federal funds must pro-actively address environmental concerns to ensure
that minority and low-income communities are not disproportionately
impacted
by environmental hazards.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines environmental
justice as:
The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless
of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development,
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and
policies. Fair treatment means that no group of people, including a racial,
ethnic, or socioeconomic group, should bear a disproportionate share
of the negative environmental consequences resulting from industrial,
municipal, and commercial operations or the execution of federal, state,
local, and tribal programs and policies.
|
