Environmental justice is a movement that strives to improve and maintain a clean, healthy environment, especially for races and people who have traditionally lived and been targeted by waste corporations to bear a disproportionate amount of waste produced in America (Roscigno et al. 2009: 49). Environmental justice addresses a statistical fact: “people who live, work and play in America’s most polluted environments are mostly poor minorities” (Roscigno et al. 2009:50). It is not just mere coincidence that communities of color, who are often poor, are targeted to host facilities with negative environmental impacts like landfills. Data shows clear evidence that communities of color bear too much and environmental justice movements are trying
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2009:69). On top of being poor, these neighborhoods populated with minorities are preyed on by waste facilities as they seek to reduce costs to maximize profit (Roscigno et al. 2009:69). Waste facilities prey on communities of color partially because they lack political clout and resources. Segregated communities lack political power over decisions on waste facility location and pollution prevention (Roscigno et al. 2009:67). They do not have the resources to hire lawyers and the resources to oppose powerful companies dumping toxic waste in their communities. Discrimination in the housing market leads to clusters of low income families and mostly minorities living in an area, therefore more likely to be picked on by facilities that produce toxic substances just because they are minorities, and they do not have a lot of political power to oppose and hold the waste facilities responsible (Roscigno et al. 2009:67-69). Desegregating neighborhoods will allow for neighborhoods to be integrated therefore, the impacts of pollution will be …show more content…
“Precautionary measures should be taken by waste facilities when an activity raises potential threats to the environment or human health, even if there is scientific uncertainty about those impacts” (Opp et al. 2013:863). Waste facilities should bear the burden of proving that any disposal action is safe because they are the party responsible for creating the risk, and should come up with a full range of solutions that can be examined by the Environmental Protection Agency to see if there are safer, less harmful options to the proposed activity (Opp et al.
2009:69). On top of being poor, these neighborhoods populated with minorities are preyed on by waste facilities as they seek to reduce costs to maximize profit (Roscigno et al. 2009:69). Waste facilities prey on communities of color partially because they lack political clout and resources. Segregated communities lack political power over decisions on waste facility location and pollution prevention (Roscigno et al. 2009:67). They do not have the resources to hire lawyers and the resources to oppose powerful companies dumping toxic waste in their communities. Discrimination in the housing market leads to clusters of low income families and mostly minorities living in an area, therefore more likely to be picked on by facilities that produce toxic substances just because they are minorities, and they do not have a lot of political power to oppose and hold the waste facilities responsible (Roscigno et al. 2009:67-69). Desegregating neighborhoods will allow for neighborhoods to be integrated therefore, the impacts of pollution will be …show more content…
“Precautionary measures should be taken by waste facilities when an activity raises potential threats to the environment or human health, even if there is scientific uncertainty about those impacts” (Opp et al. 2013:863). Waste facilities should bear the burden of proving that any disposal action is safe because they are the party responsible for creating the risk, and should come up with a full range of solutions that can be examined by the Environmental Protection Agency to see if there are safer, less harmful options to the proposed activity (Opp et al.