United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
OEJ to Launch
New Collaborative
Problem-Solving
Grant Program
The Office of Environmenfal
Justice (OEJ) recently
selected 30 projects as final-
ists under its new grant pro-
gram—the Environmental
Justice Collaborative
Problem-Solving Grant
Program (GPS). The pur-
pose of the Environmental
Justice GPS Grant Program
is for EPA to provide finan-
cial assistance to affected
local community-based
organizations who wish to
engage in constructive and
collaborative problem-solv-
ing by utilizing tools devel-
oped by EPA and others to
find viable solutions for their
community's environmental
and/or public health con-
cerns. For more information,
visit the OEJ Web site at:
www.epa.gov/compliance/
environmentaljustice/grants/
ej-cps-grants.html
lit This Issue:
!J Funds New Training for
Communities ............ 1
~ New Video Brings EJ Law to
NEJAC Conference
on Cumulative Risks/
Cumulative Impacts
nvironmental Justice
Headquarters Update
Environmental
Justice
:wvvw.epa.gov/compliance/environmentaljustice> Winter/Spring 2004
Breaking New Ground: Environmental
Laws & ADR Training
EPAs Office of Environmental
Justice (OEJ) is launching an impor-
tant breakthrough in providing a
joint training about environmental
laws and alternative dispute resolu-
tion (ADR) to environmental justice
grassroots organizations. The
Environmental Law Institute (ELI)
has been selected for a grant
award to create and deliver a series
of training courses to be held
throughout the United States over
the next three years. The first
course is scheduled to be held in
September 2004 in New Mexico.
The new course fills an important
training gap. While a number of
communities have successfully
used ADR to address environmental
justice issues, they have lacked the
in-depth knowledge of relevant
environmental laws that can help inform
and guide the ADR process. To citizens in
communities with environmental justice
issues, identifying and navigating relevant
laws can be a daunting task.
Based on a previous two-and-a-half-day
course developed by ELI, entitled
Demystifying the Law, the new course will
educate interested organizations about
existing laws they can use to address
environmental concerns in their communi-
ties. Using interactive activities, role-play-
ing exercises, and written materials
designed to be used as both training
materials and take-home references, the
courses will teach 30 to 35 participants
per session to effectively use the tools at
their disposal. As part of the grant, all
1
Identifying and navigating through relevant
laws can be a daunting task, but the new
courses seek to increase understanding so
that non-lawyers can feel comfortable using
the law to forward their environmental justice
goals.
expenses incurred by organizations to
attend the training sessions will be reim-
bursed.
ADR is a technique that can be used to
pursue resolutions to environmental justice
issues through non-litigious avenues.
Defined as "any procedure used to resolve
issues in controversy, including but not
limited to conciliation, facilitation, media-
tion, fact finding, mini-trials, arbitration,
and use of ombuds, or any combination
thereof," ADR utilizes neutral third parties
and negotiation to help interested parties
address their concerns and come to a
mutually acceptable agreement.
Compared to litigation, ADR can reduce
the monetary cost of action, create more
satisfying and long-lasting solutions, and
create better working relationships
Continued on page 3
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New Video Brings EJ Law to Grassroots Organizations
A new video, entitled Communities and
Environmental Laws, will be released this
April to provide valuable information to resi-
dents of communities with environmental
and/or public health issues. The new video
presents information tailored to grassroots
organizations that want to make a differ-
ence in their communities' environmental
outlook.
The Environmental Law Institute (ELI) has
teamed with the Southwest Network for
Environmental and Economic Justice and
the United Church of Christ to develop
the instructional video, which will serve as
a companion piece to a handbook previ-
ously developed by ELI.
Over the past several years, through a
cooperative agreement with EPAs Office
of Environmental Justice, ELI has been leading the effort to
provide stakeholders with targeted environmental justice
information. In 2001, ELI released its extensive report, enti-
tled Opportunities for Advancing Environmental Justice: An
Analysis of U.S. EPA Statutory Authorities, which outlined
the various elements of federal environmental laws that EPA
can use to address environmental justice issues.
Following the publication of the report,
targeted to government officials and oth-
ers with advanced environmental justice
knowledge, ELI developed a companion
handbook, entitled A Citizen's Guide to
Using Federal Environmental Laws to
Secure Environmental Justice. The hand-
book addressed many of the same basic
issues as the initial report, but tailored the
information to citizens who want to pur-
sue environmental justice in their commu-
nities and are less familiar with
environmental law and legal conse-
quences.
The new video companion to the Citizen's
Guide features members of two environ-
mental citizens groups: the Tucsonans for
a Clean Environment (Tucson, AZ) and the
Southern Organizing Committee for
Economic and Social Justice (Atlanta, GA). Beginning April
30, 2004, both VMS and DVD format versions of the video
will be available to interested parties free of charge. To order,
please call the National Service Center for Environmental
Publications at 1-800-490-9198 or visit the NSCEP Web
site at .
NEJAC Conference To Tackle Cumulative Risks/Cumulative Impacts
Cumulative risks/cumulative impacts will
be a key topic of discussion at the
upcoming conference of the National
Environmental Justice Advisory Council
(NEJAC). The conference will be held
April 13-16 at the Sheraton New
Orleans Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana.
For more than a year, a NEJAC Work
Group has been studying the issue of
Cumulative risks/cumulative impacts in
the context of environmental justice. Its
proposals and recommendations will
be deliberated at the April conference.
In recent years, EPA has been broaden-
ing its risk assessment approach—from
an individual, chemical-based approach
to one that gives greater consideration
to multiple endpoints, sources, path-
ways, and routes of exposure. In 2003,
the Agency released the Framework for
Risk Assessment, an informational doc-
ument that describes various aspects of
cumulative risk and serves as a founda-
tion for developing future guidance. The
Framework is intended to foster consis-
tent approaches to cumulative risk
assessment in EPA, identify key issues,
and define terms.
EPA asked NEJAC to consider short -
and long-term actions that EPA should
take to proactively implement the con-
cepts contained in the Framework to
ensure environmental justice for all
communities and tribes. The Agency
recognizes that many communities and
tribes are exposed to multiple toxins
from myriad sources. Certain commu-
nities and sub-populations are also
more susceptible to environmental tox-
ins, are exposed to more toxins, or
have a compromised ability to cope or
recover from such exposures.
The Work Group has been examining
these issues and will present a number
of key concepts for discussion at the
conference, including the use of a col-
laborative working model to ensure
tangible and sustainable risk reduction
results.
NEJAC Conference
"Cumulative Risks/
Cumulative Impacts"
April 13-16, 2004
Sheraton New Orleans Hotel
500 Canal Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
Phone: (504) 525-2500
Fax: (504) 595-5552
For additional information on NEJAC
or the conference, visit:
In addition to the discussions of
Cumulative risks/cumulative impacts,
conference sessions also will be devot-
ed to business of the Executive Council
and meetings among NEJAC's six sub-
committees.
-------
Environmental Justice Coast to Coast
ABA and Hastings College of Law Release 50-State EJ Report
Since 1993, when New Hampshire
became the first state to enact an envi-
ronmental justice policy, numerous
states have developed their own envi-
ronmental justice policies, laws, and
initiatives. Despite the widespread
adoption of environmental justice poli-
cies by states over the past 11 years,
no single, current resource existed that
documented the actions taken by each
state. All of that changed in January
2004 with the release the first compre-
hensive listing of state environmental
justice efforts, entitled Environmental
Justice For All: A 50-State Survey of
Legislation, Policies, and Initiatives.
The report was produced by the Public
Law Research Institute at the
University of California Hastings
College of Law and the American Bar
Association (ABA). In 2000, Hastings
law students produced a similar but
less extensive report. ABA decided to
partner with the school and its stu-
dents to expand on their previous
efforts. The new report documents
each environmental justice effort con-
ducted in all 50 states—from creation
of advisory boards to enactment of
statutes—in order to keep government
regulators, the regulated communities,
and, especially, affected communities
informed on state-based efforts.
According to Benjamin Wilson, of the
law firm of Beveridge and Diamond,
and vice-chair of the ABAs
Environmental Justice Committee
responsible for the report, "The identifi-
cation of more than 30 states actively
involved in pursuing environmental jus-
tice initiatives is a positive indicator of
the rapid emergence of environmental
justice as a state issue." Because envi-
ronmental justice is a new issue for
many states, there was little past
precedent for states to use in formulat-
ing their policies—a situation the report
will help remedy.
Eileen Gauna, a law professor at
Southwestern University and author of
Environmental Justice: Law, Policy and
Regulation, noted that the report "pro-
vides an easily discernible baseline
from which to measure progress in this
Environmental Justice Performance
Partnership Agreements
EnvironmentalJustice For All: A 50-State Survey of Legislation, Policies, and
lnitiativesa\so addresses Performance Partnership Agreements (PPAs) related to
environmental justice. PPAs are agreements between state governments and EPA
that outline how the state and EPA will work together toward mutual goals.
Currently, 35 states have entered into PPAs related to a variety of environmental
concerns, though not all of the agreements are currently in effect. Of these 35
PPAs, 15 involve environmental justice initiatives and are covered in the report.
EPA has entered into environmental justice related PPAs with the following states:
Arkansas
Colorado
Connecticut
Illinois
Maryland
Massachusetts
Minnesota
Montana
New Hampshire
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Utah
Washington
rapidly developing area. The report is
an invaluable tool for the many individ-
uals and institutions working to pro-
mote environmental justice."
To ensure that the report included all of
the efforts underway, researchers relied
on a variety of resources, including
state environmental bureau Web sites,
the Lexis-Nexis legal database, and
interviews with hundreds of state and
federal officials.
Researchers also recognized the need
to expand their search beyond clearly
identified environmental justice topics
and scoured state laws to document ini-
tiatives which, though not described as
"environmental justice" or "environmen-
tal equity" initiatives, affect environmen-
tal justice within the states. For exam-
ple, the report examines Alabama's
anti-concentration law, which prevents
the construction of more than one solid
or hazardous waste facility within a
given county. This legislation, which
also covers power facilities, helps
ensure that minority and/or low-income
communities do not bear an unfair por-
tion of the environmental burden asso-
ciated with these facilities.
Copies of Environmental Justice For
All: A 50-state Survey of Legislation,
Policies, and Initiatives are available
free of charge on the ABA Web site at
-------
Headquarters Update
OECA
specific office at EPA Headquarters, highlight-
ing recent activities, programs, and policies
aimed at addressing a variety of environmental
justice issues.
OECA Announces 2004 Environmental Justice Policy
EPA's Office of Enforcemenf and Compliance Assurance
(OECA) issued ifs firsf Environmenfal Justice Policy in
January. If seeks fo integrate environmental justice goals
into every aspect of its activities.
The policy was drafted by the Environmental Justice
Action Council (comprised of Deputy Office Directors)
and the Environmental Justice Coordinating Council
(comprised of staff level environmental justice coordina-
tors). The new policy strengthens OECA's commitment
to integrating environmental justice into every aspect of
its activities.
OECA will make environmental justice a cornerstone of its
"smart enforcement" efforts. Smart enforcement incorpo-
rates OECA's institutional knowledge into actionable
objectives aimed at improving the enforcement program's
outcomes. Smart enforcement is based on collaboration
between regional offices, program offices, and individual
states, and focuses on five key areas:
• Addressing significant environmental, public health,
and compliance problems.
• Using data to make strategic decisions for better uti-
lization of resources.
• Using the most appropriate tool to achieve the best
outcome.
• Assessing the effectiveness of program activities to
ensure continuous program improvement and desired
program performance.
• Effectively communicating the environmental, public
health and compliance outcomes to enhance program
effectiveness.
OECA will use environmental and health data to identify
communities with significant environmental and/or public
health problems. It will then identify the most appropriate
enforcement or compliance tool to obtain the best out-
come in the most efficient way. OECA is also committed
to communicating the results of environmental justice
enforcement efforts to the affected communities.
To more thoroughly integrate environmental justice into its
planning and budgeting process, OECA reaches out to
groups both within and outside EPA. OECA will consult
with the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council
(NEJAC) to develop ways to better assimilate environ-
mental justice into all its activities. The environmental jus-
tice goals will also be reflected in cooperative agreements
and grants with states, tribes, and other stakeholders.
OECA has initiated an aggressive staff training program
to help staff understand environmental justice issues and
find opportunities to address them. OECA will also train
its state and tribal partners to ensure that environmental
justice is considered at every level of enforcement and
compliance work.
Environmental justice will be emphasized in OECA's
national program priorities guidance for fiscal years
2005-2007. The guidance will be used by OECA and its
regional and state counterparts to encourage compliance
with 10 distinct federal environmental statutes dealing
with prevention and control of air pollution, water pollu-
tion, hazardous waste, toxic substances, and pesticides.
Most of these statutes have multiple program elements;
OECA carries out compliance and enforcement activities
in 28 separate program areas. The statutory and regula-
tory requirements of these programs apply to 41 million
regulated entities. The priorities emphasis will increase
the environmental justice impact of enforcement and
compliance efforts.
-------
Regional Corner
Region 7
tiatives under way in EPA regional offices.
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and nine
tribal nations.
EPA's Region 7 is working hard to create collaborative
environmental justice solutions at the community level.
Here are just a few examples of Region 7's projects.
Raising Pesticide Safety Awareness
Southwestern Kansas
The community-based nonprofit group Harvest America
Corporation (HAG) is using a $30,000 Region 7 grant to
implement the Informing People on Pesticides (IPOP)
Project. The IPOP Project seeks to identify migrant, sea-
sonal farm workers
and their families in
Kansas to raise
awareness about
issues related to
pesticide safety
and exposure. In
addition, HAG also
collects demo-
graphic and pesti-
cide awareness
data to better
assess the overall
needs of the target
population.
Since its inception, the IPOP project has collected pesti-
cide usage information from more than 300 participants,
which IPOP has shared with both EPA and state pro-
grams. It also has communicated pesticide safety informa-
tion to more than 800 participants. Following bilingual
presentations, participants have demonstrated, on aver-
age, a 50 percent knowledge increase on pesticide safety.
Migrant mothers (and their children)
at an EPA presentation promoting
awareness of pesticides, household
hazardous waste, asthma, and lead.
Partnerships also have been successfully established
between migrant farm worker communities, service
providers, and federal and state agencies in Kansas.
For more information on the IPOP program, contact Debbie
Bishop at (913) 551-7529 or .
Environmental Justice Center To Offer Technical
Assistance
Jefferson City, Missouri
Lincoln University's Cooperative Research and Extension
(LUCRE) Program is using a $50,000 Region 7 grant to
develop a resource center for low-income and minority
communities in the Missouri "Boot Heel" region. The
Midwest Technical and Virtual Resource Center for
Environmental Justice will specifically target communities
affected by substandard drinking water. The center's
charter also stipulates that it will work in conjunction with
federal and state partners to respond to requests for
technical assistance on compliance issues. In addition,
the center hopes to develop materials to respond to com-
munities' requests for assistance. For additional informa-
tion about this project, contact Sherick Andri Jovan at
(913) 551-7397 or .
Tribal Cultural Education & Awareness Video Project
Nebraska & Iowa
Region 7 is co-producing a video with the Omaha Tribe of
Nebraska and Haskell Indian Nations University that will
be used for training and education. In the video, different
generations of Omaha Indians share their environmental,
cultural, and communication perspectives. Region 7
Continued on back page
Region 7 Offers Training
Opportunities
To ensure basic awareness of envi-
ronmental justice issues, training is
provided to all members of environ-
mental protection programs, states
and partnering agencies, Region 7
holds quarterly environmental justice
training based on the modules
developed by the Environmental
Justice Training Collaborative.
Recently, Region 7 offered this train-
ing in partnership with the Missouri
Department of Natural Resources.
Based on the success of this effort,
Region 7 plans to expand the train-
ing to state employees in Kansas,
Iowa, and Nebraska, and plans to
host a train-the-trainer workshop in
the next two years.
Region 7 also sponsored the first-
ever, region-wide small grants work-
shop in October 2003 in Kansas
City, Kansas. In an effort to provide
regional stakeholders with a compre-
hensive look at financial assistance
opportunities, this two-day workshop
provided information regarding the
pre-award process, post-award
responsibilities of grant recipients,
and funding opportunities. Region 7
officers plan to hold this workshop
again in October 2004.
To learn more about environmental
justice projects in Region 7, contact
acting Director Pamela Johnson at
(913) 551-7480 or
.
-------
Regional Corner: Region 7
(Continued from page 5)
hopes to use the video as part of its
"Working Effectively with Tribal
Governments" training.
Students from Haskell Indian Nations
University's production studio are cur-
rently editing the interviews and back-
ground footage collected for the video.
Production is scheduled for completion
within the next few months and the
video will be available later this sum-
mer. For additional information on this
project, contact Monica Espinosa at
(913) 551-7058 or
.
John Garland Park Revitalization
Project
Kansas City, Kansas
For several years, community groups in
Kansas City have worked collaborative-
ly to revitalize a park that was once a
Superfund site. EPA Headquarters and
Region 7 have both supported the revi- to improve environmental protection.
talization of John Garland Park in the
Oak Grove neighborhood through sev-
eral grant awards.
In 2001, Region 7 awarded community
group Associated Youth Services (AYS)
$15,000 to work with stakeholders to
revitalize the site.
The project has garnered attention
regionally and nationally for its
community-driven results. OGNAwas
recognized at both the 2002 EPA
Brownfields Conference as well as the
National Community Involvement
Conference. In addition, EPA recently
honored a key stakeholder in this effort,
Clintel Betts, chair of the Oak Grove
Community Group, by granting him the
2003 Citizen Excellence in Community
Involvement Award. This award is given
annually to individuals and/or community
groups that work with a Superfund team
For additional information about this
project, please contact Sherick Andri
Jovanat(913)551-7397or
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