When Joe Biden was running for president, he made environmental justice a cornerstone of his campaign. After he was elected, he honored his pledge by making environmental justice part of everything his administration does. But what is it, exactly? Every discussion begins by defining its terms. For that, let’s turn to Wikipedia:

Environmental justice is a social movement to address Environmental injustice, which is the exposure of poor and marginalized communities to harm from hazardous waste, resource extraction, and other land uses from which they do not receive benefits. The movement has generated hundreds of studies showing that exposure to environmental harm is inequitably distributed. Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.

Environmental justice is typically defined as distributive justice, which is the equitable distribution of environmental risks and benefits. Some definitions address procedural justice, which is the fair and meaningful participation in decision-making. Other scholars emphasize recognition justice, which is the […]