Environmental justice advocates slam Supreme Court ruling
The Supreme Court decision Thursday to limit how the Environmental Protection Agency may regulate carbon dioxide emissions could make an already grave situation worse for those most affected by air pollution and climate change, community residents and advocates fear. Environmental and climate justice advocates from across the United States are calling on the EPA to find other ways to limit carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution and on Congress to grant the agency the authority to do so.
The Supreme Court decision to limit how the Environmental Protection Agency regulates carbon dioxide emissions from power plants could make an already grave situation worse for those affected most by climate change and air pollution, advocates say.
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Environmental and climate justice advocates from across the United States are decrying the court’s 6-3 ruling, saying it will be felt most by communities of color and poor communities, which are located near power plants at higher percentages than the national average.
They are calling on the EPA to find alternate ways to limit carbon dioxide emissions and other forms of air pollution, and for Congress to grant the agency the authority to do so.
The court did not prohibit the EPA from regulating carbon emissions, in fact Chief Justice John Roberts said capping carbon emissions to move the U.S. away from burning coal for electricity “may be sensible for the crisis of the day.”
Despite this, advocates said the ruling puts disadvantaged communities at risk of greater harm due to the effects of climate change and air pollution.
They also are concerned about the ability of the EPA to enforce other bedrock environmental laws, like the Clean Water Act.
The Supreme Court decision “denies relief to Black and other communities of color as well as poor communities disproportionately exposed to power plant pollution and vulnerable to climate change,” Monique Harden, assistant director of law and policy at the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice told the Associated Press.
Harden’s organization has done extensive research on the effects of heavy industry on people living along the Mississippi River Chemical Corridor — also known to some as Cancer Alley — a stretch of petrochemical plants and oil refineries.
That corridor touches New Orleans and Baton Rouge, two cities that have experienced intense storm surges and hurricanes worsened by climate change over the last 20 years.
