President Donald Trump’s picks for key positions in his second administration continue their Senate confirmation hearings, which began on Jan. 14. Marco Rubio, Trump’s choice for Secretary of the Department of State, was the first to win confirmation, gliding through the process. On the other hand, Pete Hegseth, selected to be the Secretary of the […]
EPA
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
EPA Rollbacks Mean More Pollution, Less Justice for Black Communities
For a quarter of a century, a Black neighborhood in Beaumont, Texas, where Chris Jones lives has been the subject of two federal civil rights investigations by the Environmental Protection Agency that explore the role of race in his community’s disproportionately high levels of air pollution. In San Francisco, Kamillah Ealom’s neighborhood has been the […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Unsafe Water
Millions Face Toxic Water as Trump Reverses Key Environmental Reforms
Less than a year ago, the Biden administration’s Environmental Protection Agency unveiled the first national plan to remove lead pipes and limit the levels of harmful chemicals in drinking water — and they chose to do so in front of Black North Carolinians. For decades, residents in the Tar Heel State have been concerned by […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
Michael Regan Rebuilt the EPA, but Did It Deliver for Black Communities?
When the Environmental Protection Agency dropped a civil rights investigation last year and subsequently weakened the civil rights complaint process, it dealt a blow to the legacy of the first Black man to lead the agency. This decision underscored the immense challenges the agency’s former head, Michael Regan, faced during his tenure, where the weight […]
Posted inInfrastructure, Unsafe Water
The Sewage Crisis Drowning America’s Poorest Town
Each time it rains, even if it’s just a light rainfall, the streets of Cahokia Heights, Illinois, flood. But that’s not all. Those floodwaters bring in a nightmarish brown tide, a disgusting slurry that engulfs the area, dragging with it the stench of human excrement and decay. With such constant and high floodwaters, people have […]
Posted inAir Pollution, Environmental Justice
The Court Ruling That Guarantees a Future of Environmental Racism
About 45 minutes from New Orleans, cities founded by formerly enslaved people make up St. John the Baptist Parish. As the regional economy has shifted from chains and plantation slavery to smokestacks and petrochemical plants, their descendants still make up most of the people who live there. Those original deadly threats have not disappeared. Today, parts […]
Posted inClimate Change, Environmental Justice, Extreme Weather, Partner Content
As Baltimore’s Sewer System Buckles Under Extreme Weather, City Refuses to Help Residents With Cleanup Efforts
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. A sewage cleanup program meant to assist Baltimore residents with backups in their homes has been in limbo for more than a year because of […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Water Quality
Jackson’s Water Is Still Brown. The EPA Says That’s Not Discrimination.
As a child, Brooke Floyd wondered why her grandmother cooked all her food and washed all her dishes with bottled water. As an adult living in Jackson, Mississippi, it became clear. After a storm damaged a water treatment plant in 2022, leaving most of the majority-Black city without water flowing through their faucets for weeks, […]
Posted inAir Pollution, Environmental Justice, Land Pollution
This Environmental Victory May Reinforce Injustices in Black Communities
While virtually every environmental group across the nation celebrated the Biden administration’s historic steps to lower pollution last month, John Beard sat patiently. After years of advocacy and hundreds of scientific studies, the federal government designated two “forever chemicals” as hazardous substances. This move makes it easier to mandate the removal of these man-made compounds […]
Posted inAir Pollution, Environmental Justice, Partner Content
23 States Ask EPA to Halt Civil Rights Rules Regulating Pollution
Echoing arguments similar to those used by the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court striking down affirmative action, Republican attorneys general from 23 states petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency this week to stop taking race into account when regulating pollution. The petition, authored by the office of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, was filed […]