Posted on 04/21/2023 9:54:06 AM PDT by Red Badger
President Joe Biden's latest climate action is intended to erase a legacy of institutional discrimination, which has led to underinvestment in climate infrastructure and other critical services in minority districts across the country.
April 21 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden will sign an executive order Friday to protect the environment and other vital resources in minority communities as part of a series of announcements this week to highlight government efforts to fight climate change.
The president's latest action on the environment, ahead of Earth Day on Saturday, was primarily intended to address a legacy of institutional discrimination, which has led to underinvestment in climate infrastructure and other critical services in many disadvantaged areas.
"These communities with environmental justice concerns face even greater burdens due to climate change," the White House said.
Biden's action will immediately work to reduce toxic pollution and deliver cleaner air and water to these areas to reduce the risk of asthma, cancer and other health-related issues, while creating better access to safe and affordable housing, green spaces and clean-running transportation, the White House said.
The order was intended to demonstrate Biden's commitment to the idea of environmental justice for all Americans.
"With this action, the president is working to ensure that all people -- regardless of race, background, income, ability, Tribal affiliation, or ZIP code -- can benefit from the vital safeguards enshrined in our nation's foundational environmental and civil rights laws," the White House said. "It also affirms that environmental justice is central to the implementation of our bedrock civil rights and environmental laws."
Most notably, the order establishes the creation of the Office of Environmental Justice within the White House Council on Environmental Quality and adds agencies to the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council.
The new office will be led by a yet-to-be-named federal chief environmental justice officer, who will coordinate and implement environmental justice policy across the federal government.
As part of the executive order, all government departments and agencies will also be required to incorporate Biden's environmental goals into their existing protocols as the administration takes a "whole-of-government" approach to environmental justice.
The order includes a provision to prevent disproportionate climate impacts on poor communities and will require federal agencies to notify residents in the event of a toxic spill.
Biden was seeking to strengthen federal engagement with local communities by requiring public meetings to share information on health risks and necessary precautions during environmental emergencies.
The order will also mobilize government agencies to confront existing barriers and injustices, which would open the door to meaningful public participation and give disadvantaged communities a voice in federal decision-making, the White House said.
The order was intended to target the illegal practice of redlining, in which banks and financial institutions refuse to provide credit services or mortgages to people from communities of color.
Biden is also directing his agencies to identify and address any loopholes in research related to environmental justice and to coordinate a strategy for identifying and filing environmental justice data. The agencies are also required to update existing environmental strategic plans to match up with Biden's goals.
The Environmental Protection Agency was also set to release a national strategy to combat plastic pollution and its disparate impact on disadvantaged communities, the White House said.
The announcement of Biden's executive order was timed to coincide with Earth Week, during which Vice President Kamala Harris and other Cabinet officials will hold several events to announce progress being made under the president's domestic agenda.
The Investing in America initiative has created new clean energy jobs, lowered industrial costs and advanced climate goals and conservation, while "strengthening communities that for too long were left behind or left out," the White House said.
The latest environmental action builds on Executive Order 14008 -- signed days after Biden took office in 2021 -- which ramped up federal climate efforts as the most pressing matter facing U.S. foreign policy and national security.
Efforts to curtail the climate crisis have gained steam around the world, with numerous climate summits and Biden forming the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate in April 2021 to help galvanize the response.
Friday's executive action aligns with Biden's broader climate agenda, which calls for a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035 and net-zero vehicle emissions by no later than 2050.
Also this week, Biden announced $1 billion to help developing countries address emerging environmental concerns during a global climate forum at the White House.
Yeah. Many cities eventually tore down those types of project housing.
This is mostly virtue signaling. They’ll spend a few billion dollars to buy some electric buses, maybe install some solar panels and replace some galvanized steel with copper plumbing while some grantee will test the air and water quality and number-crunch the utility costs and proclaim “mission accomplished”. Nothing that much more productive or efficient will have been done.
He has zero authority over non-federal entities.
Why don’t they quit trashing the areas where they live?
His puppet masters know that it could never pass congress right now.
This is a stop gap until they can enough communists in congress.
buying votes with my tax dollars. FUJB.
Where is the SCOTUS case that deals with letter agencies?
Easy.
This new group is going to fund the crazy megaphone left with taxpayer dollars.
A lot of territory covered much said about Martin Luther King back in the 1960’s the Johnson Mafia leaked out some of the Kennedy dirty tricks aimed at MLK of course RFK authorized the FBI spying on MLK.
The FBI spying against MLK continued during the Johnson Administration so LBJ was just projecting trying to fight the Kennedy’s in his own dirty way.
On the march of no consequences.
We Americans are very stupid to put up with this malicious stupidity.
It’s taking your stuff and shoving you around.
No Big Deal!
Our communist masters know that the pathetically servile and indolent Aamerican people will just continue to roll over and spread their collective cheeks...
The hell with this tyrant’s EO. We’re not obliged to adhere to it.
They’re very good at money laundering.
Like peeing in a dark suit.
Gives you a warm feeling, but nobody notices.
I'll be quite interested to see how this is going to work.
No one FORCES them to live there.
“Jed move away from there!”
Anytime you read about new, low cost housing, merely divide the number of persons who will be served by it into the projected total cost of it.
The answer will ALWAYS be more than buying a complete new house for each person!!
Now I’m left wanting to know the definitions of ‘fair and meaningful’.
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