Environmental Justice Analysis

Intersectionality between different systems of oppression and domination is relevant to Okereke’s article as he states, “The ‘unavoidability of justice’ in the pursuit of environmental sustainability resides in the fact that environmental issues are not distinguishable but rather interwoven, into the fabric of racial, social and economic injustice.” (Okereke 117). Environmental costs and benefits are often distributed such that those who already suffer other socio-economic disadvantages tend to bear the greatest burden. The co-domination of women and the environment is supported by the current power structure upheld by the dominant narrative that Okereke highlights in his article, which discusses the exploitation, over-production as well as over-consumption of natural resources leading to environmental degradation and global climate change.

The concept of social justice, and the environment have always been under great threat. However is it possible to mend the two, combine them together, in order to create an equal atmosphere and a sustainable society? The majority of the population have always wanted to prevent the minority in gaining their rights in fear of losing their power, and the nature conquerors have disregarded the wilderness’ needs in fear of losing their profit. Environmental activists and advocates have sought to bridge the gap between the complicated and divisive relationship between the natural world and the advancing technological world. Rebecca Solnit, Wendell Berry, and John Muir all recognize the explicit relationship between social justice and the respect for the natural world.

Environmental justice links a number of social movements—anti-racism, Aboriginals rights, and the mainstream environmental movement—and addresses the problem of environmental racism (Gosine & Teelucksignh, 2008, p. 11). The concept of environmental justice in the U.S was associated with the struggles over toxic waste sites and the call for equal treatment of all communities, radicalized or not (p. 9). It was about looking at human health rather than preserving areas deemed as “playgrounds for the rich.”

Certain environmental justice frameworks attempt to turn the dominant environmental paradigm on its head and seek to prevent environmental threats before they occur. This paradigm is known as the Precautionary

The purpose of this piece is to draw awareness to the many contradictions relating environmental justice movements and to create a society more conscious of decisions by considering consequences.

The U.S.D.A. Environmental Justice Strategic Plan of 2016-2020 was developed in an effort to provide equitable conditions throughout every community in the United States of America. The goals that have developed to reach the equality in all communities has to consider climate changes unlike other strategic plans. The key priorities for this strategic plan are many and varied. For example, one is to increase public participation, opportunities for minorities, low income, American Indians and Alaska natives. This plan is a malleable to adjust for the best results. However, it does contain parts that are immovable.

In the early 1980s, Environment Justice activist prioritized their efforts to focus on the unequal amounts of waste dumps in minority communities. The increased awareness of these situations led to the development of EJ from the civil rights movement that happened around the same time. Environmental Justice is defined by its recognition that, “disparate and disproportionate environmental impacts occur among different communities across racial and socio-economic lines, affected communities should be appraised of environmental issues affecting them, and these communities should be incorporated in any decision-making process.” (Middendorf, 2007)

Environmental justice is “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies” (epa.gov). An equal playing field is just what society needs, and this goes hand in hand with one of Carrie Chapman Catt’s greatest achievements: the nineteenth amendment. The nineteenth amendment “granted women the right to vote” (history.com), which is just one aspect of environmental

Colney and Pitts is a California based pharmaceutical company. Colney and Pitts is planning to set up a manufacturing plant near the Aberdares mountain range in the eastern highlands of Kenya to produce medicines for prostate disease. The Kikuyu tribe is the largest tribe in the country and occupies the Aberdares mountain range. An extensive ethno botanical survey on the use of the medicinal plants by this tribe has indicated that an evergreen tree popularly known as “Pygeum” or prunus Africana has been traditionally used to cure “old men’s disease”, which are prostatitis and genitourinary disorders. Colney and Pitts

The placement of companies deleterious to the environment and well-being of humans is something that prosperous communities are not quite familiar with; in contrast, it is something well-known to less affluent communities. The imbalance of classification shows a lack of environmental justice in low-income and minority communities. According to the EPA, or Environmental Protection Agency, “environmental justice is the fair treatment… of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies,” (EPA, n.d.). However, the environmental justice, the EPA mentions is not prevalent in communities of color, but rather its counterpart is: environmental injustice. Environmental injustice, or environmental racism, being the excessive placing of perilous waste and contaminating polluters near communities of color (Cha, 2016). Although often overlooked, environmental racism is an extensive problem that negatively affects minority communities in Southeast Los Angeles.

Environmental Justice refers to those cultural norms and values, rules, regulations, behaviors, policies, and decisions to support sustainability, where all people can hold with confidence that their community and natural environment is safe and productive. Environmental Justice is realized when all people can realize their highest potential, without interruption by environmental racism or inequity. A local example of Environmental Injustice in the Pensacola, Florida area is happening with the Rolling Hills landfill in Wedgewood. The landfill is split into two sections, one side that accepts land clearing debris and another that accepts construction and demolition debris.

Environmental sociology began to emerge in conjunction with the environmental justice movement. Environmental sociology can be defined as the study of how human societies interact with their environment. One important individual, Dr. Robert Bullard, acted as a key person throughout the environmental justice movement. He served as a technical advisor on civil right lawsuits and is now a professor at Texas Southern University. Because of his research dedicated to environmental issues pertaining the African American community, he is known as the father of environmental justice. Under the umbrella of environmental sociology it discusses concepts such as environmental justice and environmental inequalities. When racial and socially marginalized

Environmental Racism and Environmental justice is one of the biggest global issues that the world has facing and dealing with and critically hits the world as a result inconsistency

Living in a highly industrialized world that is ruled by capitalism, the concern for the environment often takes a back seat. Individuals or companies nowadays prioritize achieving optimal profit without putting into mind what their respective actions or productions may have an effect on the environment. They do not realize how important the role of our environment plays in the quality of human life. We can say that a good environment leads to a better quality life, while a bad environment could lead to a harmful and unproductive life. Now, it becomes unfair and unjust when the risks and costs of a company affect a certain group of people and on the opposite side of the spectrum another group of individuals enjoy the benefits without costs. The individuals that are affected badly are usually from Third World Countries where the distribution of risk and costs are not even (Low and Gleeson 1999). This is where Environmental Justice comes in. Environmental Justice mainly concerns the welfare of human beings (Low and Gleeson 1999). Talking about cities where capitalism surges from, it has been argued that these cities are ‘unfairly structured’ (Low and Gleeson 1999). Basically, what this is saying is that the wealthier you are, the better or cleaner the environment. On the other hand, if you are poor, then the environment around you will have more health risks. This kind of injustice or disparity is what adds fuel to the fire of environmental justice. In

Global Warming is the number one concern threatening the very existence of humans and everything within the environment today. The human race is to blame for the destruction of the natural world. The environmental issues that are threatening all human and non-human life today, started in the industrial revolution and the discovery of oil The need to improve the quality of life resulted in the construction of factories to mass produce products for consumers. These factories were powered by fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. The combustion of these fossil fuels emitted great quantities of pollutants that remain in the Earths atmosphere to this day and is the number one cause of global warming. However, in ethics one cannot evaluate just one thing. In ethics, as in nature, everything is connected to everything else (Partridge, 1998).