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Environmental racism is a concept that developed throughout the 1970s and 1980s in the United States. The term is used to describe environmental injustice that occurs in practice and in policy within a racialized context. ^[1]

The term was coined by Benjamin Chavis, previous executive director of the United Church of Christ (UCC) Commission for Racial Justice addressing hazardous PCB waste in Warren County, North Carolina, defined the term as

"racial discrimination in environmental policy making, the enforcement of regulations and laws, the deliberate targeting of communities of color for toxic waste facilities, the official sanctioning of the life-threatening presence of poisons and pollutants in our communities, and the history of excluding people of color from leadership of the ecology movements." ^[2]

The UCC and US General Accounting Office (GAO) reports on this case in North Carolina created an  association between locations of hazardous waste sites and poor minority neighborhoods. ^{[3] [4]} Chavis and Robert Bullard pointed out institutionalized racism stemming from government and corporate policies that led to environmental racism. Practices included redlining, zoning, and colorblind adaptation planning ^[5]. Residents were inhibited from preventing environmental racism due to their low socioeconomic status, and lack of political representation and mobility ^{[6] [7]} Expanding the definition in "The Legacy of American Apartheid and Environmental Racism," Robert Bullard described that environmental racism

"refers to any policy, practice, or directive that differentially affects or disadvantages (whether intended or unintended) individuals, groups, or communities based on race or color." ^[8]

The acknowledgement of environmental racism prompted the environmental justice social movement that began in the 1970s and 1980s in the United States. ^[9] Environmental racism has been historically tied to the environmental justice movement, throughout the years the term has dissociated more and more from the environmental justice movement. ^[10] In response to cases of environmental racism, grassroots organizations and campaigns have brought more attention to environmental racism in policy making and emphasize the importance of having input from minorities in policymaking. ^[11] Although environmental racism was coined in the US, it also occurs on the international level. Examples include the exportation of hazardous wastes to poor countries in the Global South with lax environmental policies and safety practices ( pollution havens). ^[6] Marginalized communities that do not have the socioeconomic and political means to oppose large corporations are at risk to environmentally racist practices that are detrimental and sometimes fatal to humans. Economic statuses and political positions are crucial factors when looking at environmental problems because they determine where a person lives. ^[12] People who do not have those privileges are usually the ones who suffer from environmental problems.

One perspective of environmental racism patterns include vulnerability of a community to flooding, and accessibility of potable water, solid waste removal, and drain systems. ^[13]

Environmental racism can also be identified through a sociological theories in which covert organized racial and ethnic oppression develop into environmental injustices, or overt racism that limits people of color to make decisions regarding the environment around them. ^[14]

Another perspective argues that there are four factors leading to environmental racism: cheap land, lack of political power, lack of mobility, and poverty. Cheap land is sought by corporations and governmental bodies. Communities that cannot effectively resist and cannot access political power cannot negotiate just costs. Minimized socio-economic mobility cannot relocate. Lack of financial contribution also reduces the communities ability to act both physically and politically. ^[15]

Chavis defined environmental racism in five categories. First, he termed it as racial discrimination in defining environmental policies. He also stated that this occurs when these regulations and laws are being enforced. He further stated that it is the deliberate targeting of communities of color as far as dumping of toxic waste is concerned. He also referred to this term as the official sanctioning of dangerous poisons and pollutants in the minority communities. Finally, he termed it as the history of exclusion of people of color from attaining leadership positions in the ecological organizations. ^[16]

In the United States, the first report to draw a relationship between race, income, and risk of exposure to pollutants was the Council of Environmental Quality's "Annual Report to the President" in 1971, in response to toxic waste dumping in an African American community in Warren County, NC. ^[17] After protests in Warren County, North Carolina, the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report on the case in 1983, and the United Church of Christ (UCC) commissioned a report exploring the concept in 1987 drawing a connection between race and the placement of the hazardous waste facilities. ^{[3] [4] [11]} Thus, the outcry in Warren County was an important event in spurring minority, grassroots involvement in the environmental justice movement by addressing cases of environmental racism. ^[11] One activist, Benjamin Chavis, who at the time was the executive director of the Commission for Racial Justice of the United Church of Christ coined the term environmental racism 1982 in response to the case. ^[11]

From the groundbreaking reports on environmental racism in Warren County, NC, the accumulation of studies and reports on cases of environmental racism and injustices garnered increased public attention in the US, and eventually led to President Bill Clinton's 1994 Executive Order 12898. ^{[18] [2]} This was a historical step in addressing environmental injustice on a policy level, especially within a predominantly white-dominated environmentalism movement. ^[19] The Order directed agencies to develop a strategy that manages environmental justice, but not every federal agency has fulfilled this order to date. Congress never passed a bill making Clinton's Executive Order law; however the effectiveness of the Order is noted mainly in its influence on states. The issuance of the Order propelled states into action as many states began to require relevant agencies to develop strategies and programs that would identify and address environmental injustices being perpetrated at the state or local level. ^[20]

In 2005, during George W. Bush’s administration, there was an attempt to remove the premise of racism from the Order. EPA’s Administrator Stephen Johnsonwanted to redefine the Order’s  purpose to shift from protecting low income and minority communities that may be disadvantaged by government policies to all people. President Barack Obama's appointment of Lisa Jacksonas EPA Administrator and the issuance of Memorandum of Understanding on Environmental Justice and Executive Order 12898 established a recommitment to environmental justice. ^[21] The fight against environmental racism faced some setbacks with the election of President Trump. Under Trump’s administration, there was a mandated decrease of EPA funding accompanied by a rollback on regulations which has left many underrepresented communities vulnerable. ^[22]

Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is a process that places a monetary value on costs and benefits to evaluate issues. ^[23] Environmental CBA aims to provide policy solutions for intangible products such as clean air and water by measuring a consumer's willingness to pay for these goods. CBA contributes to environmental racism through the valuing of environmental resources based on their utility to society. The more someone is willing to pay for clean water or air financially benefits society more than when people are not willing to pay for these goods. This creates a burden on poor communities. Relocating toxic wastes is justified since they are not willing (or able) to pay as much as a wealthier area for a clean environment. The placement of toxic wastes near poor people lowers the property value of already cheap land. Since the decrease in property value is less than that of a cleaner and wealthier area, the monetary benefits to society are greater by dumping the toxic waste in a "low-value" area. ^[24]

Research conducted by Professor Been indicates that there are other factors acting on environmental racism. Professor Been’s research examined the change in the socioeconomic composition of a surrounding community in Houston after ten noxious facilities were constructed. She found that initially five of the ten facilities were located in areas with above average percentages of non white residents, while the other five locals had lower percentages of non white residents.Over time there was a significant shift in demographics. By 1990, nine out of the ten facilities had above average percentages of minority residents; Been then concluded that these results pointed to a case of “White Flight”. ^[25]

A study conducted by the University of Massachusetts found that when compared to their counterparts, home values fall by $11,000 when they are located by commercial hazardous waste facilities. ^[26]

An important aspect of environmental racism includes the impact it has on the health of the communities affected by environmental racism. Various factors that can cause health problems include exposure to hazardous chemical toxins in landfills and rivers. ^[27] Health problems produced by exposure can vary from disabilities to chronic illnesses. Increase in cancer rates, asthma, and neurobehavioral and learning disabilities have been linked to environmental pollution. Industrial chemicals have also been noted to have an effect on hormone production which can also cause illnesses and disabilities. ^[28]

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