Advocates are concerned that the Biden administration’s environmental justice efforts received a significant funding boost in the $1.5 billion government spending bill. However, advocates worry about whether the increased attention can last given years of promises that have not been fulfilled in their communities.
One of the biggest wins for the Environmental Protection Agency’s equity programs is the $100 million earmarked to its environmental justice programmes, a substantial $83 million increase over fiscal 20201.
The agency will receive grants for disadvantaged communities, but the increase will also allow it to improve its ability to integrate environmental justice efforts throughout its entire mission, which includes clean air, clean water and toxic chemical management.
Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, stated that although this funding is vital, it’s only a start. He was a leading voice in Congress advocating for more attention for disadvantaged communities.
We need the money to solve the problem. He stated that vulnerable communities need laws to hold polluters accountable, give them recourse against discriminatory policy, and more input into permit decisions.
Funding Boosts
In addition to the $100m for environmental justice efforts, fiscal 2022 spending measures offered a modest $13m boost for enforcement and monitoring of the environment. Total $539m. The bill provided a slight $27 million increase in spending for the EPA’s Superfund cleanups, which totalled $1.23 billion.
The $1 million increase in funding for cleanup and redevelopment of Brownfields sites has brought the total to $92million. These increases are not significant, but Superfund cleanups and other waste cleanups were granted billions in new money under a bipartisan infrastructure package. This money was awarded in part to long-neglected communities near the sites.
The law allocated $3.5 billion to Superfund cleanups for five years.
The House approved Omnibus measure (
All-Agency Effort
Advocates argue that underserved communities will require more than funding for EPA programs. Biden promised that the effort would be an all-of-government initiative when he was elected.
We have been fighting legacy pollutants issues for communities that were built on Superfund site and landfills for over 30 year, trying to figure out a way out, Beverly White, a member and executive director at the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, stated.
White stated that more resources are needed in order to transform clean-up waste sites into jobs such as solar energy projects, which can benefit the local communities. To resolve this issue, they need the assistance of multiple agencies, and EPA is only one gateway to an all-of-government approach.
White stated that she does not see a way to extend the EPA’s efforts beyond it.
Significant Gains
Former senior adviser to EPA’s environmental justice initiatives, Mustafa Santiago Ali, stated that EPA’s environmental justice efforts, especially its Office of Environmental Justice, which coordinates efforts across all EPA regional offices, are seeing significant gains from the spending measure.
This is a significant step towards environmental justice. Superfund cleanups and other waste site cleanups now have a stronger foundation. Ali, now vice president of environmental justice, climate and community revitalization at the National Wildlife Federation, said Ali.
Ali and other advocates claimed that, although increased funding is always welcome and appreciated, that funding is coming as EPA leadership vows to more aggressive enforcement in order to better protect communities and neighborhoods of color and low income. This includes surprise inspections of polluting locations.
He stated that even though some of the increases may be modest, it is important to consider how the agency is actually using these resources to benefit these communities.
Looking ahead to the Next Year
According to Dana Johnson who is senior strategy director and federal policy chief at WE ACT, Environmental Justice, many advocates are already looking forward to next year in order to determine whether recent gains made in federal spending will be sustained.
She said that fiscal 2023 should be viewed as a period of spending that is centered on environmental justice and not just EPA.
In January, Michael Regan, EPA Administrator announced that the agency would intensify inspections of areas in and around disadvantaged neighborhoods, as well as employ additional air pollution inspectors and use its single-engine turboprop ASPECT airplane for air monitoring.
Regan, who organized a tour of long-ignored communities this fall, stated that too many communities have been suffering for far to long, with some communities waiting decades for answers.
