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Environmental Justice is a cornerstone in addressing how ecological harm has disproportionately impacted human health. With air, water, and soil at risk, the communities living under direct pollution conditions are at the frontlines of burden. Recognizing the correlation between sociocultural and environmental neglect was formalized during the Civil Rights Movement. Beginning with Rev. Dr. Benjamin Chavis Jr. who coined the term “Environmental Racism,” activists and leaders have affirmed that it’s a human right to retain environmental safety. Predominately BIPOC and low-income communities continue to be affected by the history of exclusion in zoning and regulatory legislation. Recognition of inequity was significantly impacted when the E.O. 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations was signed by President Clinton in 1994. The executive order extended the management of federally funded projects to an Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice, requiring strategy development to identify the effects of programs, policies, and activities on the impacted communities.

 

In 1999, California codified Environmental Justice as a Government Code, reinforcing the commitment to preserving the most vulnerable communities. Aligned with California’s history of addressing environmental hazards through innovation, CalEnviroScreen 4.0 is a mapping tool for the most affected areas by pollution sources. Data populating the map informs the California government about locations facing both pollution and poverty. California Climate Investments uses the map to identify priority populations, including disadvantaged and low-income households. They are required by SB-535 California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006: Greenhouse Gas Fund and AB-1550 Greenhouse gases: investment plan: disadvantaged communities to use 35% of the fund to benefit priority populations. As of May 2024, 75%, or over $8.5 billion, of California Climate Investments project funding has been directed to projects within priority populations. These include restricted industrial VOCs, clean transportation accessibility, increased forestry, and employment opportunities.

 

Using similar geospatial data publishing, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency compiled information sources to assess the environmental and human health impacts on populations “identified by race, national origin or income.” Along with the advancement of ArcGIS technology, the EPA created a federally consistent mapping tool. Developed in 2010 and made publicly available in 2015, EJSCREEN addressed stakeholder and agency concerns about challenges faced by minority, low-income, tribal, and Indigenous populations. Datasets were organized by U.S. Census tract percentile values of Environmental Burden Indicators, Socioeconomic Indicators, Climate Change, Health Disparities, Critical Service gaps, and Environmental Justice Indexes. The tool significantly impacted funding allocation to remove vapor intrusion contaminants and remediate soil and groundwater in historically neglected communities.

 

The current administration has taken down thousands of government web pages related to environmental justice, public health, and scientific research. Mass takedowns are consequential of the removal of diversity and “gender ideology” from federal practice. Entire websites have disappeared. The list includes USAID.gov, ReproductiveRights.gov, NeglectedDiseases.gov, and Youth.gov to name a few. During my internship as a Student Pathways Intern at the U.S. EPA, I worked closely with Community Involvement Coordinators (CICs). The Community Relations personnel relied on EJSCREEN’s data to support meeting accessibility and potential community concerns. I vividly remember the day I had searched for EJSCREEN on my desktop, and the message “Sorry, but this web page does not exist.” appeared. Environmental Justice initiatives in federal agencies are being increasingly targeted as they fall under the umbrella of DEI initiative removal. President Donald Trump issued E.O.14151: Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing, rescinded President Clinton’s E.O. 12898, President Biden’s E.O. to Advance Environmental Justice, and the Justice40 Initiative within the first three weeks of his inauguration. Federal recognition of environmental hazards on socioeconomic groups has been reshaped.

 

What’s Next

Through first-hand experience, increasing alarm is resonant within the U.S. EPA. While scraping to find alternative information sources, retaining duties founded upon environmental justice has become purposefully taxing. On behalf of the Community Relations Section, EJSCREEN’s American Community Survey data supported arguments for socioeconomic sensitivity in the following categories: Low-Income, Minority, Less than High School Education, Linguistic Isolation, Individuals under age 5, Individuals over age 64, and Persons with Disabilities. This information contributed to budget allocation of language translators, technical support during online public forums, venue accommodations for physical barriers, and priority material disbursement medium. The U.S. EPA used more than the data; it was used as a discretion to gather further information through interviews with community members. This information had been combined with attributes of environmental burden (Levels of Ozone, PM 2.5, Lead Paint in Homes, etc.), creating a map layer called the ‘EJ Index’. The internal search for environmental hazard and socioeconomic characteristics, especially on a ‘communal’ or U.S. Census Tract level, will take the same amount of time that Community Involvement Coordinators need to spend with their assigned sites’ hazardous waste clean-up involvement plans. The lack of transparency makes it difficult to identify communication risks in the communities that the U.S. EPA will expand its presence in.

On the macroscale, eliminated environmental justice prioritization will significantly guide the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), otherwise known as the ‘Superfund’ Act, in a distinct direction. While its actions are protected under law, the U.S. EPA will be limited in reaching communities that face health deterioration and identify as BIPOC. EJSCREEN’s formerly persistent data updates could identify communities with the strongest EJ concerns. It’s ultimately the duty of the Regional Administrator to confirm which hazardous waste sites are submitted for U.S. EPA’s National Priority List. The lack of commitment to identifying these communities as underserved will reinforce that private companies do not need to be held accountable. Without direct order and racial data access, Regional Administrators could potentially increase the disproportionate harms inflicted upon communities of color.

 

Since there is no comprehensive list of all existing federal government websites, environmental data communities are racing to save jeopardized websites before they’re irretrievable. The Open Environmental Data Project has already recreated EJSCREEN 2.3 with the Public Environmental Data Partners. Their work began in November once the new administration had begun its transition, yet their team has significantly ramped up their efforts following the 2025 inauguration. These efforts will support scientists and historians in contextualizing preceding federal action. It is currently an uphill battle to document the locative data that intersect environmental challenges and disadvantaged communities.

The community of environmental professionals need us now more than ever. Talk to your colleagues and professors about volunteering for data rescue.