Environmental Science: Environmental Justice and Equity
Analyzing fairness in environmental risks, benefits, and decision-making
Environmental Science: Environmental Justice and Equity
Analyzing fairness in environmental risks, benefits, and decision-making
Environmental Science - Grade 9-12
- 1
Define environmental justice in your own words. Include both the idea of fair treatment and the idea of meaningful involvement in decisions.
Think about both who is affected and who gets to participate in the decision-making process.
Environmental justice means that all people should be protected equally from environmental harms and should have a real voice in decisions that affect their health, land, water, and neighborhoods. - 2
A city has three neighborhoods. Neighborhood A has 2 parks, low traffic, and one small factory. Neighborhood B has no parks, heavy truck traffic, and three factories. Neighborhood C has 4 parks, low traffic, and no factories. Identify which neighborhood may be experiencing an environmental justice concern and explain why.
Neighborhood B may be experiencing an environmental justice concern because it has more environmental burdens, such as heavy truck traffic and three factories, while also having fewer environmental benefits, such as parks. - 3
Explain the difference between environmental equality and environmental equity. Give one example of each.
Equality means the same for all. Equity means fair based on need.
Environmental equality means giving everyone the same resources or protections, while environmental equity means giving communities what they need based on their specific risks and needs. An example of equality is giving every neighborhood the same number of air monitors. An example of equity is placing more air monitors in neighborhoods with higher pollution levels. - 4
A community near a highway has higher asthma rates than the city average. List two types of data scientists or public health officials could collect to investigate whether traffic pollution is contributing to the problem.
Officials could collect air quality data, such as levels of particulate matter or nitrogen dioxide, near the highway. They could also collect health data, such as asthma emergency room visits or school absences related to breathing problems. - 5
Study this data: Community X has an average household income of $42,000, 18 percent tree canopy, and an average summer surface temperature of 96°F. Community Y has an average household income of $91,000, 42 percent tree canopy, and an average summer surface temperature of 88°F. What pattern do you notice, and why might it matter for environmental justice?
Look for relationships among income, trees, and temperature.
The lower-income community has less tree canopy and a higher summer surface temperature. This matters for environmental justice because extreme heat can increase health risks, and communities with fewer resources may have less ability to cool homes, plant trees, or access health care. - 6
A new waste transfer station is proposed for a neighborhood that already has a bus depot, a recycling plant, and a major highway. Explain what cumulative impacts are and how they apply to this situation.
Do not look at the new facility by itself. Consider everything the community is already experiencing.
Cumulative impacts are the combined effects of multiple environmental stressors over time. In this situation, the neighborhood already faces pollution and noise from several sources, so adding a waste transfer station could increase the total burden on residents. - 7
A state agency holds a public meeting about a proposed chemical plant at 2:00 p.m. on a weekday, provides documents only in English, and gives residents one week to comment. Identify two barriers to meaningful involvement and suggest one improvement for each.
One barrier is the meeting time, because many residents may be at work or school; an improvement would be to offer evening and weekend meetings. Another barrier is providing documents only in English; an improvement would be to translate materials into the languages spoken in the community. - 8
A map shows that hazardous waste sites are clustered near low-income communities and communities of color. Explain why a map alone is not enough to prove cause and effect, but why it can still be useful evidence.
Distinguish between showing a pattern and proving the reason for that pattern.
A map alone does not prove cause and effect because it does not show why the sites were placed there or include all possible historical, economic, and political factors. However, it is useful evidence because it can reveal patterns that deserve further investigation and can help guide data collection and policy decisions. - 9
Give one example of an environmental benefit and one example of an environmental burden. Then explain how unequal distribution of these can affect quality of life.
An environmental benefit could be access to safe parks, clean air, or reliable public transit. An environmental burden could be air pollution, contaminated water, or noise from industrial activity. Unequal distribution affects quality of life because some communities may experience better health and recreation opportunities while others face higher risks and fewer resources. - 10
A city has $2 million to reduce heat risk. Option 1 plants the same number of trees in every neighborhood. Option 2 plants more trees in neighborhoods with the hottest temperatures, fewest trees, and highest rates of heat-related illness. Which option better supports environmental equity, and why?
Choose the plan that responds to differences in risk and need.
Option 2 better supports environmental equity because it directs more resources to neighborhoods with the greatest need and highest risk. This approach can reduce health disparities more effectively than giving every neighborhood the exact same number of trees.