 |
|
 |
|
|
Listed below are recent developments pertinent to environmental justice from the past six months. If you would like to suggest a recent development on this topic, please submit a short description to AASHTO (including any pertinent links) on the Share Info with AASHTO form.
|
|
|
|
«View Recent Developments Archive
|
| |
| Report Documents Best Practices for State DOT Compliance with Title VI Requirements for Transit |
| Best practices for state departments of transportation to comply with requirements for transit programs under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are provided in a report produced under the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP Project 20-65, Task 18). The report provides an overview of the Federal Transit Administration’s Title VI requirements for state DOTs and their grantees to ensure nondiscrimination in state transit programs. The report also examines best practices to comply with the Title VI requirements. A companion report includes a collection of reference materials related to the best practices. For more information, link to Research Results Digest 340: State DOT Best Practices for Title VI Compliance (NCHRP Project 20-65, Task 18) (1-11-10)
[back to top] | | |
|
| EPA Awards Grants for State Environmental Justice Projects |
| The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded a total of $800,000 in grants to five state government agencies to support collaborative efforts to address environmental and public health issues in communities disproportionately exposed to environmental risks. The funding will support projects in Alaska, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina, including efforts to coordinate multiple environmental pollution mitigation activities in affected communities, provide community outreach and training on lead paint contamination, and use collaborative problem solving to address environmental and social justice concerns.. For more information, link to the news release and to EPA’s State Environmental Justice Cooperative Agreements website. (11-24-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| EPA Selects 10 Communities to Showcase Environmental Justice Efforts |
| The Environmental Protection Agency has launched a new national initiative to address environmental justice concerns in communities across the country. The agency will provide $100,000 each to 10 communities for demonstration projects that promote collaboration between communities, governmental agencies, and other stakeholders to address the disproportionate environmental and health risks faced by in low-income and minority populations. The projects will test and share information on different approaches to improving environmental results in these communities, with a focus on “green” development. For more information, link to the Environmental Justice Showcase Communities website. (11-17-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| Environmental Justice Research Supplement Available Online; EPA to Host Symposium |
| The Environmental Protection Agency has announced the availability of a free online supplement to the American Journal of Public Health that includes over 30 research-based articles, editorials, and commentaries highlighting the contributions of environmental and occupational justice projects across the United States, including projects supported by EPA, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Topics covered in the supplement include how community-based approaches in urban and rural areas have successfully improved public health outcomes for vulnerable populations. For more information, link to the EPA news release and to the AJPH November 2009 Supplement. EPA also will host a symposium on the science of disproportionate environmental health impacts on March 17-19, 2010, in Washington, D.C. The symposium will focus on technical papers regarding seven factors that may lead to disproportionate environmental health impacts on minority and low-income populations. For more information and to register, link to the symposium website. (11-12-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| EPA Requests Applications for 2010 Environmental Justice Grants |
| The Environmental Protection Agency is accepting applications for $1 million in grants to support projects that help low-income communities address environmental and public health issues. EPA plans to award approximately 40 grants of up to $25,000 each in fiscal year 2010. Applications are due Jan. 8, 2010. For more information, link to Environmental Justice Small Grants Program. (11-4-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| Conference to Consider Environmental Justice Impacts of Goods Movement, Air Pollution |
| The Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and Dillard University are hosting the 2010 Conference on Environmental Justice, Air, and Green Jobs: Evolution and Innovation, on Jan. 25-27, 2010, in New Orleans. The conference will address topics including goods movement, sustainability and green jobs, impacts of ambient air pollutants and greenhouse gases on disproportionally affected communities, and impacts and challenges of hazardous waste and cleanup activities. NIEHS has issued a call for abstacts for poster presentations during the conference, due Nov. 13, 2009. For more information, link to the conference website. (10-28-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| Report Offers Policy Recommendations for Healthy, Equitable Transportation |
| PolicyLink and the Prevention Institute have published a report that examines “the intersection of transportation, health and equity,’’ offering policy recommendations for improving health outcomes and environmental quality in low-income communities and communities of color. The report describes 11 policy proposals, including prioritizing investments in public transportation and bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure; encouraging equitable transit-oriented development through incentives for integrating land use and transportation planning; targeting transportation investments to vulnerable communities; and supporting the development of cleaner bus and truck fleets. The report also includes a foreword by U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar. For more information, link to The Transportation Prescription: Bold New Ideas for Healthy, Equitable Transportation Reform in America. (7-23-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
| Policy Groups Offer Recommendations for Ensuring Equity in Transportation Reauthorization |
| PolicyLink, the Transportation Equity Network, and the Gamaliel Foundation have published a series of recommendations for ensuring transportation equity for lower-income people and communities of color in the Surface Transportation Authorization Act (STAA) of 2009 currently before the U.S. Congress. The recommendations address increasing access to jobs and workforce development opportunities in the transportation sector; providing transportation options for all, including low-income people, the elderly, and the disabled; reforming transportation institutions to provide increased accountability and transparency; and establishing national transportation objectives. For more information, link to Equity Recommendations for STAA. (7-17-09)
[back to top] | | |
|
|
|
