Introduction: Environmental Justice

Human Health & the Environment

Dr. Alicia M. Rich

Tue Sep 1, 2026

Human Health & the Environment
Tue Sep 1, 2026

Introduction: Environmental Justice

Environmental Justice Defined

The just treatment and meaningful involvement of all people in environmental decision-making to ensure full protection from disproportionate environmental and health impacts, and equitable access to a healthy, sustainable, and resilient environment.
– U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (2024)

Justice & Equity

Everyone is a product of diverse biological and cultural histories, existing in a system that disproportionately benefits those most recently in power.

Environmental Justice

A landmark 2007 study found “race to be more important than socioeconomic status in predicting the location of the nation’s commercial hazardous waste facilities”.

https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/toxic-wastes-and-race-at-twenty-1987-2007.pdf

Environmental Justice

• Black children were 5x more likely to have lead poisoning than white children were.
• Even black Americans making 50-60K/year were more likely to live in polluted areas than their white counterparts making only 10K/year

In the UK meanwhile, a government report found that black British children are exposed to up to 30% more air pollution than white children.

Environmental Justice

The term “environmental justice” initially referred to the movement that arose to confront environmental racism, but it has since expanded to encompass multiple forms of environmental inequities and problems.

Environmental Justice