Social Policy and Justice
The public environment is a term used to reference the land, soil, air, water, ecosystems and natural resources that surround us. At times, the environment around us and systems that exist within it are negatively affected by the presence of pollutants which are often present as a result of human actions. Globalisation and capitalism are unfortunately huge catalysts for some detrimental changes to the environment worldwide.
Environmental racism is related to the degradation of human health in communities of colour, which are often marginalised. Environmental racism exists as a result of environmental policies and regulations that are designed without components intended to protect the humans that are most closely affected by the issues at hand. It is an act of dismissal of the health needs and health risks that are experienced by people in locations where interactions with the environment can lead to precarious health conditions. Since the environment is an important social determinant of overall health and wellness, racism and oppression can be perpetrated through direct inequity related to environmental resources. The decisions to disrupt environmental systems are often made at a corporate level, involving macro and mezzo institutions, and subsequently lead to micro level problems that have potential to grow into wider spread, community and public health issues. Environmental racism affects marginalised communities exponentially more than wealthy communities, and even serves to disparage the concerns of people in low income communities even further. The act of environmental racism plays out in obvious circumstances that greatly affect the public health and income levels of those who it affects. With lower fines and less accountability for the negative effects they have on communities which have been historically known as communities of colour, industries who often lack diversity in their corporate levels, are given opportunities to damage communities even further. One example of environmental racism is the water crisis in Flint, Michigan which began in 2014. The city that was once home to the largest General Motors Plant in the US, used a pipeline in order to change the body of water through which its residents relied on, in efforts to save money. The results of this act were catastrophic and resulted in numerous health concerns for residents which included the effects of lead consumption such as its risk to organs, as well as exposure to development of issues such as impaired cognition, hearing problems and behavioural disorders among youth,
Some examples of the short and long term effects that people who are subject to environmental racism experience are:
Mental Health problems as a result of living among industries
Limited job choices that are often directly linked to the power plant, or other large industrial company that is in fact responsible for the destruction of the local environment
Continued detriment to environments which have already been affected by segregation and under-resourcing. This has been known to actually affect the average temperature in heavily racialized and previously segregated cities, since they are often lined with more concrete and less green space than wealthy and middle class areas.
Pollution of air and water quality are linked to poor physical health and diseases such as different types of cancer.
Environmental racism is an imperative factor of social policy and societal change, as people in marginalised communities need adequate advocacy at many different levels. The right to life, liberty and freedom from torture are basic human rights worldwide. and in many cases, the perpetration of environmental racism has directly conflicted with the ability to exercise those rights for people in these communities.
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