Skip to content
Vayafail

Vayafail

Trailblazing health perfection

Primary Menu
  • Health & Fitness News
  • Health Insurance
  • Health Education
  • Dental Clinic
  • Health Food
  • Health
  • About Us
    • Advertise Here
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • sitemap
  • Home
  • Biden to Crack Down on Polluters in Poor, Minority Areas
  • Health Food

Biden to Crack Down on Polluters in Poor, Minority Areas

By Freeman Ptak 3 years ago

[ad_1]

Following through on a campaign promise, the Biden administration on Thursday announced a wide-ranging enforcement strategy aimed at holding industrial polluters accountable for damage done to poor and minority communities.

The strategy includes creation of an Office of Environmental Justice within the Justice Department to focus on “fenceline communities” that have been exposed to air and water pollution from chemical plants, refineries and other industrial sites.

The plan also reinstates a dormant program that allowed fines paid by industry as part of a settlement go to community activities such as river cleanup, health clinics or other programs that benefit the environment or public health. The program was used by presidents from both parties before being eliminated in the Trump administration.

“Although violations of our environmental laws can happen anywhere, communities of color, indigenous communities and low-income communities often bear the brunt of the harm caused by environmental crime, pollution and climate change,’’ Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a news conference.

“And for far too long, these communities have faced barriers to accessing the justice they deserve,’’ he said.

“No American should have to live, work or send their kids to school in a neighborhood that carries an unfair share of environmental hazards,” added Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta.

President Joe Biden had promised during the 2020 campaign that he would establish an environmental justice division within the Justice Department and elevate environmental justice issues in an all-of-government approach.

In a related development, the White House announced Thursday that advocate Jalonne White-Newsome will lead environmental justice efforts at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. White-Newsome succeeds Cecilia Martinez, who stepped down in January.

White-Newsome, of Michigan, is founder and CEO of Empowering a Green Environment and Economy, a consulting firm focused on climate change, public health and environmental and racial equity.

CEQ Chair Brenda Mallory called White-Newsome “a strong and effective champion for communities that have been overburdened by pollution and subjected to decades of environmental injustice.” Her ability to “listen deeply, bring people together and find creative solutions will be invaluable,” Mallory said.

On enforcement, the strategy unveiled Thursday is intended to guide the work of employees throughout the Justice Department, including U.S. attorneys across the country who will begin a renewed focus on environmental justice issues, Garland and Gupta said.

The new office “will prioritize meaningful and constructive engagement with the communities most affected by environmental crime and injustice,” Garland said. “Whenever possible, these efforts will respond directly to community needs and concerns.”

Environmental Protection Agency head Michael Regan said the “partnership” between his agency and the Justice Department “has never been stronger” and will ensure that the federal government does all it can “to protect overburdened and underserved communities across America.”

The strategy follows a series of enforcement actions announced by Regan in January to address air pollution, unsafe drinking water and other problems afflicting minority communities in Louisiana and other Gulf Coast states that Regan toured in November.

The plan includes unannounced inspections of chemical plants, refineries and other industrial sites and installation of air monitoring equipment in Louisiana’s “chemical corridor” to enhance enforcement at a series of chemical and plastics plants between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The region contains several hotspots where cancer risks are far above national levels.

EPA also issued a notice to the city of Jackson, Mississippi, saying its aging and overwhelmed drinking water system violates the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The agency also said it would move forward on clean up creosote contamination from a site in Houston now owned by Union Pacific Railroad. The site has been linked to higher than normal cancer rates in the historically Black neighborhood in the city’s Fifth Ward.

Regan has made environmental justice a priority since taking the helm at EPA in March 2021. The weeklong “Journey to Justice” tour in November was intended to highlight areas in the American South that have long been marginalized and overburdened by pollution.

Biden requested $1.4 million for the environmental justice in his budget proposal. Cynthia Ferguson, an attorney in the department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division will serve as acting director. The office will support environmental justice investigations and litigation and work with communities across the country with environmental justice concerns, the Justice Department said.

A rule being published in the Federal Register will restore the department’s ability to use Supplemental Environmental Projects, or SEPs, as part of settlements with corporate or industrial polluters. The projects are intended to bring environmental and public health benefits to communities directly affected by the underlying violations.

A 2007 settlement with Texas-based energy company Valero included a $4.25 million penalty and $232 million in pollution controls at refineries in Tennessee, Ohio and Texas. The company was required to spend at least $1 million to enhance efforts by a health center Port Arthur, Texas to diagnosis and treat asthma and other respiratory problems.

More Must-Read Stories From TIME


Contact us at [email protected].

[ad_2]

Source link

Tags: Apostrophe Health Brian, Cobb Douglas Public Health Department, Cpap Health Market, Cvs Affordable Health Insurance, Delegation In Public Health, Envoy Health Denton Autumn Lake, Fairview Health Services Yelp, Greenville Rancheria Tribal Health Center, Health And Safety Conferences 2019, Health Benefit Exchange Coi, Health Benefits Feta Olive Oil, Health Benefits Pawpaw, Health Canada Processed Food, Health Insurance Cheaper Single, Health Net Login 2018, Health Net Therapist Los Angeles, Health Problems From Uranium, Health Professional Licensing Board, Healthy Recipes For Brain Health, Hi Health Hearing Aids Reviews, Horton Valley Behavioral Health, Hospital Sisters Health System Number, How Intergrity Investigate Health Care, Iggy Azalea Mental Health, Jay Williamson United Health, Kernersville Health Care Center Jobs, La Canada Health Care, Lee Health New Ceo, Lsd Health Effects Edu, Mental Health Dissertation Pdf, Mental Health Retraints, Mental Health Utilization Racial Groups, Most Common Crime Health, New Health Market Job Reviews, Nys Health Insurance License, Physician Assistant Health Professional Organizations, Plant And Health Quotes, Prestige Women'S Health Care, Rex Health Care Login, Richmond Times Dispatch Health Reporters, Smokeless Tobacco Health Risks Definition, Soliant Health Houston, Stress Test S Health, Sunrise Health Care Moultrie Ga, Unified Life Insurance Health In, United Health Care Medcare, United Health Cincinnati Dentist Rating, United Hospital Mental Health Inpatient, Vive Health Coupon Codes, Wild Mosa Health Regen

Continue Reading

Previous Plant based health summit will tackle food apartheid, disease prevention and good vegan food
Next Best Health Insurance Companies of 2022
May 2025
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Mar    

Archives

  • May 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • May 2017
  • January 2017

Categories

  • Dental Clinic
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • Health & Fitness News
  • Health Education
  • Health Food
  • Health Insurance

Recent Posts

  • How to Know If You Need Anxiety Disorder Medication 
  • The Role of Rehab in Healing Relationships Affected by Addiction
  • Naturally Relieve Headaches with Ayurvedic Wisdom
  • Exploring the Role of a Biomagnetic Therapist and How MagnetRX Products Support Your Health
  • Navigating the Challenges of AI Disruption

bl

BR

steviaagent
techoutgrowth

BP

backlinkplacement.com

Copyright © All rights reserved. | Magazine 7 by AF themes.

WhatsApp us