Action Alert: Environmental Justice
March 24, 2022
Ask your state senator to vote YES in support of HB4093, which defines factors used to determine Environmental Justice Community designations and requires potential polluters to hold public meetings prior to applying for a permit to operate in an Environmental Justice Community.
Background
Environmental Justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, in the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies.
Environmental Justice Communities are those communities that are more highly affected by environmental toxins and pollution than the average community.
Some communities have a disproportionate amount of polluting industries. A Harvard report says that 1 in 5 people worldwide die prematurely from air pollution.
Recent examples in Illinois of communities overburdened by polluting industries are:
Coal ash ponds in Waukegan left behind by a closing coal plant
General Iron metal shredding plant moved from the Lincoln Park neighborhood to the mostly Latino community on Chicago’s southeast side
Wood River Coal Power Plant Demolition in East Alton, IL
Crawford Generating Station demolition in Chicago’s Little Village community
Please see the Chicago Environmental Justice fact sheet.
League Position
HB4093 gives communities more opportunities for local decision making and public participation. The League of Women Voters believes that public understanding and cooperation are essential to the responsible and responsive management of our nation’s natural resources. The public has a right to know about pollution levels, dangers to health and the environment, and proposed resource management policies and options. The public has a right to participate in decision-making at each phase in the process and at each level of government involvement. Officials should make a special effort to develop readily understandable procedures for public involvement and to ensure that the public has adequate information to participate effectively.